Telecom
Why Digital Trust Matters: Secure, Responsible AI for African SMEs?
By Kehinde Ogundare, Country Head, Zoho Nigeria
For years, security for SMEs across sub-Saharan Africa meant metal grilles and alarm systems. Today, the most significant risks are invisible and growing faster than most businesses realise.
Kehinde Ogundare
Artificial Intelligence has quietly embedded itself into everyday operations. The chatbot responding to customers at midnight, the system forecasting inventory requirements, and the software identifying unusual transactions are no longer experimental technologies. They are becoming standard features of modern business tools.
Last month’s observance of Safer Internet Day on February 10, themed ‘Smart tech, safe choices’, marked a pivotal moment. As AI adoption accelerates, the conversation must shift from whether businesses should use AI to how they deploy it responsibly. For SMEs across Africa, digital trust is no longer a technical consideration. It is a strategic business imperative.
The evolving threat landscape
Cybersecurity threats facing sub-Saharan African SMEs have moved well beyond basic phishing emails. Globally, cybercrime costs are projected to reach $10.5 trillion this year, fuelled by generative AI and increasingly sophisticated social engineering techniques. Ransomware attacks now paralyse entire operations, while others threats quietly extract sensitive customer data over extended periods.
The regional impact is equally significant. More than 70% of South African SMEs report experiencing at least one attempted cyberattack, Nigeria faces an average of 3,759 cyberattacks per week on its businesses, Kenya recorded 2.54 billion cyber threat incidents in the first quarter of 2025 alone, whilst Africa loses approximately 10% of its GDP to cyberattacks annually.
The hidden risk of fragmentation
A common but often overlooked vulnerability lies in digital fragmentation.
In the early stages of growth, SMEs understandably prioritise affordability and agility. Over time, this can result in a patchwork of disconnected applications, each with separate logins, security standards, and privacy policies. What begins as flexibility can involve into operational complexity.
According to IBM Security’s Cost of a Data Breach Report, companies with highly fragmented security environments experienced average breach costs of $4.88 million in 2024.
Fragmented systems create blind spots, each additional data transfer between applications increases exposure. Inconsistent security protocols make governance harder to enforce. Limited visibility reduces the ability to detect anomalies early. In practical terms, complexity increases risk.
Privacy-first AI as a competitive differentiator
As AI capabilities become embedded in business software, SMEs face a choice about how they approach these powerful tools. The risks are not merely theoretical.
Consumers across Africa are becoming more aware of data rights and willing to walk away from businesses that cannot demonstrate trustworthiness. According to KPMG’s Trust in AI report, approximately 70% of adults do not trust companies to use AI responsibly, and 81% expect misuse. Meanwhile, studies also show that 71% of consumers would stop doing business with a company that mishandles information.
Trust, once lost, is difficult to rebuild. In the digital age, a single data leak can destroy a reputation that took ten years to build. When customers share their payment details or purchase history, they extend trust. How you handle that trust, particularly when AI processes their data, determines whether they return or take their business elsewhere.
Privacy-first, responsible AI design means building intelligence into business systems with data protection, transparency and ethical use embedded from the outset. It involves collecting only necessary information, storing it securely, being transparent about how AI makes decisions, and ensuring algorithms work without compromising customer privacy. For SMEs, this might mean choosing inventory software where predictive AI runs on your own data without sending it externally, or customer service platforms that analyse patterns without exposing individual records. When AI is built responsibly into unified platforms, it becomes a competitive advantage: you gain operational efficiency whilst demonstrating that customer data is protected, not exploited.
Unified platforms and operational resilience
The solution lies in rethinking digital infrastructure. Rather than accumulating disparate tools, businesses need unified platforms that integrate core functions whilst maintaining consistent security protocols.
A unified approach means choosing cloud-based platforms where functions share common security standards and data flows seamlessly. For a manufacturing SME, this means inventory management, order processing and financial reporting operate within a single security framework.
When everything operates cohesively, security gaps diminish and the attack surface shrinks. And the benefits extend beyond risk reduction: employees spend less time on administrative friction, customer data stays consistent, and platforms enable secure collaboration without traditional infrastructure costs.
Safer Internet Day reminds us that the digital world requires active stewardship. For SMEs across the African continent who are navigating complex threats whilst harnessing AI’s potential, digital trust is foundational to sustainable growth. Security, privacy and responsible AI are essential characteristics of any technology infrastructure worth building upon. Businesses that embrace unified, privacy-first platforms will be more resilient against cyber threats and better positioned to earn and maintain trust. In a market where trust is currency, that advantage is everything.
Samsung Electronics has laid off hundreds of employees in its United States consumer electronics business as part of a headquarters relocation from New Jersey to Texas, amid mounting pressure on its mobile and home appliance divisions.
The South Korean technology giant said Samsung Electronics America (SEA) would relocate its headquarters to Texas, a move affecting 739 positions in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.
The company said most affected employees had been offered relocation packages, while others were laid off.
In Plano, Texas, about 100 employees, including workers in Samsung’s mobile division, were also dismissed, according to a source familiar with the development.
Samsung said the relocation could lead to workforce changes involving employees unable to relocate and the restructuring of certain functions to align with business priorities.
Documents cited by Reuters indicated that affected employees were informed on June 30 of an enterprise-wide workforce reduction that would have a significant impact on staff.
Several employees also disclosed their departures through posts on LinkedIn, including senior sales and marketing executives based in Texas and New Jersey.
The layoffs come despite Samsung’s semiconductor division recording strong growth driven by rising global demand for artificial intelligence (AI) chips.
The company recently projected a 19-fold increase in second-quarter profit, supported by booming AI-related chip sales, and announced plans to invest hundreds of billions of dollars in expanding chip manufacturing.
However, Samsung’s consumer electronics business continues to struggle with higher semiconductor costs and increasing competition.
Its mobile division is expected to record its first-ever operating loss as it faces stiff competition from Apple, while Chinese brands, including TCL and Hisense, continue to gain market share in the television and home appliance segments.
Industry observers say the contrasting performance highlights Samsung’s growing reliance on its semiconductor business as consumer electronics revenues weaken.
Samsung denied reports of a broader global restructuring, insisting there was no company-wide overhaul of its consumer products division.
According to the company, relocating its U.S. headquarters is intended to improve collaboration and strengthen operations within Texas’ expanding technology and AI ecosystem.
Texas has increasingly attracted major technology companies due to its lower taxes and business-friendly environment, with firms such as Tesla and Oracle also relocating significant operations to the state.
Samsung already operates semiconductor manufacturing facilities in Texas, alongside its mobile operations hub in Plano.
As of the end of 2025, Samsung Electronics employed about 11,770 workers across the United States, including staff in its semiconductor business.
Meanwhile, Samsung SDS America, the company’s IT services affiliate, has also notified authorities that 179 positions could be affected by the relocation of its North American headquarters, although Samsung said the move was unrelated to layoffs or corporate restructuring.
Telecom
NCC Urges African Unity Ahead of ITU 2026 Conference, Calls for Stronger Telecom Collaboration
Nigerian Communications Commission has urged African countries to adopt a unified and technically coordinated position ahead of the 2026 International Telecommunication Union Conference, saying stronger regional collaboration is essential for the continent to influence global telecommunications and digital economy policies.
The Executive Vice-Chairman of the NCC, Dr Aminu Maida, made the call on Monday in Abuja while declaring open the African Telecommunications Union Conference Preparatory Committee meeting.
Maida said Africa must strengthen cooperation to shape global telecommunications and digital economy policies, noting that the two-day meeting was expected to produce greater continental alignment ahead of ITU 2026, establish practical collaboration mechanisms between conferences and sustain Africa’s technical participation in ITU processes.
“Preparation is not a procedural step; it is the place where coherence is built,” he said. “Africa must prepare together, work together and arrive at global forums with solutions that are both coherent and technically compliant.”
He said the committee would review the ATU’s activities between 2023 and 2026 and prepare agenda items, resolutions, decisions and recommendations for the 18th Conference of the Union.
According to him, while the forthcoming ATU conference will determine the direction of the continental body, the ITU conference will shape global telecommunications leadership and priorities.
Maida stressed that Africa’s influence at international forums would depend less on the size of its delegations than on the quality of its preparation, the coherence of its positions and consistency in advancing them.
He identified spectrum management, artificial intelligence governance, data protection, universal access, cybersecurity and digital infrastructure development as priority areas requiring stronger collaboration among African countries.
“No administration can address these challenges effectively in isolation. Our regulatory cooperation must therefore become more continuous, more technical and more institutionalised,” he said.
The NCC boss also called for greater support for African experts to participate actively in technical discussions where international standards and frameworks are developed.
“Our objective in Africa is not to resist global standards. It is to help shape standards that are globally sound and sufficiently informed by African realities,” he added.
He commended the leadership of the African Telecommunications Union for strengthening the coordination of Africa’s positions at the ITU and other international platforms.
Maida reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to supporting the ITU process through technical expertise, regulatory experience sharing and peer learning among African administrations.
Earlier, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Nadungu Gagare, described the meeting as critical to advancing Africa’s digital transformation agenda.
He said the committee’s recommendations would provide the foundation for decisions at the forthcoming ATU Conference of Plenipotentiaries and expressed confidence that the deliberations would strengthen the union’s capacity to promote inclusive and sustainable digital development across the continent.
“As we navigate an era of rapid technological advancement and digital innovation, the importance of collaboration among member states has never been greater,” Gagare said.
Also speaking, the Secretary-General of the ATU, John Omo, said the Conference Preparatory Committee plays a vital role in processing documents and proposals ahead of the main conference to enable member states to adopt common positions.
Omo disclosed that the union’s membership had increased from 49 to 52 countries, while associate membership had risen from 50 to 56, with 18 African academic institutions now participating in its activities.
He said the ATU had recorded progress in broadband development, satellite communications, spectrum coordination, internet governance, rural broadband, standardisation and digital infrastructure resilience.
However, he expressed concern over irregular financial contributions by some member states, warning that predictable funding remained essential for implementing the union’s programmes effectively.
Omo added that the forthcoming conference would elect members of the Administrative Council and a Secretary-General for the 2027–2031 tenure.
He commended the Federal Government, the NCC and the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy for hosting the preparatory meeting, which brought together representatives of African countries, academia, sector members and development partners to discuss the continent’s telecommunications and digital future.
News
NITDA Communications Director Hadiza Umar Named in 2026 PR Power List, Graces Glazia Magazine Cover
Mrs. Hadiza Umar, Director of the Corporate Communications and Media Relations Department at the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), has been officially recognised as one of Nigeria’s top public relations professionals in the prestigious 2026 PR Power List.
The definitive annual list, compiled by GLG Communications in partnership with The Guardian, was unveiled to commemorate World PR Day.
It celebrates 50 outstanding professionals within Nigeria and the diaspora whose strategic communication strategies have significantly shaped organisations, influenced public discourse, and advanced the profession over the past 12 months.
Adding to the momentous milestone, Mrs. Umar was hit with a major surprise at the exclusive PR Power List Soirée and Awards ceremony held at the Alliance Française in Ikoyi, Lagos, where she was unveiled as a front-cover personality for the Glazia Magazine PR Power List Special Issue.
The double recognition highlights her exceptional distinction and impact in public sector communications and narrative management.
Speaking on the dual achievement, Mrs. Umar expressed profound gratitude for the honours, describing the magazine cover appearance as a breathtaking surprise.
“I am deeply humbled and honored to be recognized on the 2026 PR Power List and to feature on the cover of Glazia Magazine alongside other exceptional industry titans,” Umar said.
“This milestone is a testament to the enabling environment and visionary leadership of the Director General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, which has allowed us to strategically drive the narrative of Nigeria’s digital economy and technological innovation.”
Mrs. Umar, a highly respected corporate communications strategist, holds professional fellowships in the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (Chartered), the African Public Relations Association (APRA), and the Institute of Corporate Administration (CICA).
Under her supervisory role, NITDA’s media relations have consistently projected national information technology frameworks, start-up support frameworks, and digital literacy initiatives, to position Nigeria competitively on the global stage.
The 2026 PR Power List selection process involved a rigorous, independent evaluation led by a distinguished international jury.
The organisers noted that the class of 2026 represents professionals raising the standard of strategic communications and introducing new ideas to the industry.
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