TechCabal

Leading Africa’s Tech Conversation

  • In Nigeria, Small-Scale Solar Plants Are Letting The Sunshine In

    GE 1

    Innovative technology links three solar power projects that GE is undertaking in Nigeria for the Tolaram Group. Until recently, small-scale rooftop solar projects have been under-utilised in the country, with diesel generators a far more common source of primary energy supply to these locations. Now, advances in solar technology are making this clean energy more affordable.

    The first Africa installation of GE’s solar hybrid technology will go ahead later this year at the Northern Noodles factory in Kaduna, northern Nigeria. The state of the art manufacturing facility is run by Dufil Prima Foods, a Tolaram subsidiary.

    Since it was built in 2012, the automated noodle factory has been a completely off-grid operation, powered by its own diesel generators and drawing no electricity from the Nigerian grid. GE Solar is installing a photovoltaic (solar PV) renewable energy plant, which will integrate with the existing diesel generating system for a 24/7 uninterrupted power supply.

    Adding this 382.8 kW kilowatt solar hybrid system will reduce the rate of diesel consumption at the plant site thereby drastically reducing the customer’s opex, while also reducing emissions from the diesel operation. GE expects the plant to achieve an annual 18% reduction in both costs and emissions.

    Noodles are becoming an increasingly popular food in Nigeria, and the factory is the largest noodle producer in Africa.

    “This installation is an example of what’s possible for solar technology on a smaller commercial scale,” explained Jeff Wyatt, general manager of GE’s solar and energy storage business when the solar hybrid system was contracted.

    “In many regions where there is no grid, or power from the utility grid is unreliable or expensive, manufacturers need a reliable, integrated solution they can count on. The economics of PV hybrid are attractive,” he said. As a result, companies are able to take advantage of a sustainable long-term energy solution.

    “Tolaram strives to be an early adopter of advanced technology, and solar energy looks extremely promising. Our goal is to reduce our carbon footprint and create sustainable industrial growth,” Sajen Aswani, CEO of Tolaram Group, explained on the group’s LinkedIn page.

    Two more Tolaram sites, in Lagos, received solar PV systems that can switch automatically between three power sources – solar, diesel generator and grid electricity – to achieve maximum fuel and cost savings. These pilot sites, sponsored by GE Ventures Licensing, are designed to test new business and technology models focused on small commercial solar customers in Africa.

    The electronic controller integrates an electric battery system that stores solar power during the day for use at night, extending the use of solar power beyond daylight hours and bringing about further savings.

    The two installations are at the Tolaram Group headquarters, incorporating a retail shop, in Lagos and at a second retail shop in Rotimi. Adding a renewable energy power supply, with battery power throughout the night, has been a huge boost as the area has grid electricity for 12 hours a day or less.

    The Lagos installation is capable of delivering 10kVA of continuous power, with a short term peak capability of a high as 30kVA. The smaller installation at Rotimi can deliver 2kVA of power, with a peak capability of 5kVA.

    “These pilot plants have only been in operation since November 2015, and once we have completed our assessments we will consider expanding the offering,” said Brian Selby of GE Ventures Licensing.

    “It’s an exciting and innovative design, making energy available around the clock from the least-cost energy source. While the system intelligently uses electricity as and when available from the grid or a fuel generator, it always prioritizes the use or solar electricity, be it directly from the sun or as stored in the battery,” he said.

    A further advantage is that the system does not require any technical training to operate. In addition, GE can offer remote monitoring for data collection and analysis across the installations.

    GE recently renewed its “company to country” agreement with Nigeria for another five years. This is part of a larger GE plan to invest $2 billion in Africa by 2018. That will help Nigeria as it pushes to install 40 gigawatts (40 000MW) of additional power generating capacity by 2020.

    General Electric

  • All of style and colours: introducing the Gionee P5 mini

    p5 mini

     

    With more than eighteen phones to its name, epoch-making mobile phone manufacturer and one time holder of the Guinness Book of World Records for the world’s slimmest Smartphone, Gionee, is introducing another spectacle to the Nigerian market.

    The Gionee P5 mini is the new definition and epitome of simplicity and style. It has got everything you need in today’s definition of a Smartphone and a little more. The look and feel, the camera and the sound music are among many reasons you should look forward to this phone.

    The look and feel of the Gionee p5 mini makes it hard to hide. You will get attached to this phone long before you own it. It will take you with its colours. The touch and feel of it is as pleasant, it is sleek and smart and really, it is tempting to own.

    The Smartphone camera has been a trademark of the Gionee brand. The P5 mini flaunts a 5-megapixel rear camera with an autofocus LED flashlight that delivers images that are finer than real life. The 2-megapixel selfie camera is enhanced with a state of the art feature for auto face beauty and DIY adjustment.

    Those who want their music loud also want it crystal clear and this is what the P5 mini stands for. It also accompanies music audios with images that resonate with the sound, colouring these moments. It is a good idea to make some noise once in a while.

     

    p5 mini2

     

    The Gionee P5 mini allows you to enjoy smart power consumption. It lets you unlock your phone in style with your own facial expression. Whether you want to select colours from the rear and front cameras to display on your phone and simulate the wonders of camouflage and the chameleon or you want to tell everyone how you feel by creating a mood card from a plethora of colours, images and templates, then share with the world, the Gionee P5 mini is the phone.

    The Gionee P5 Mini is exotic in its style and colours. It is a new add to the P5 series made to meet certain demand peculiarities, especially for those who do not think that it is necessary to spend all one’s earnings for a quality Smartphone that places you high in the class. This is the phone.

     

    Specifications

     

    Design

    132*66*9.1mm

    Weight: 153g

    Colour: black white and blue

     

    Display

    4.5 FW once oncell display

    854 x 480 pixels

    Battery: 1800mAh

     

    Camera

    Autofocus LED flash

    2 Mp sub-camera

     

    Memory

    Internal memory 8GB ROM+1GB RAM

     

    Connectivity

    WCDMA

    WIFI

    BLUETOOTH 4.0

    Micro USB 2.0

    GPS

    Dual SIM standby

     

    Processor

    Chipset MT6580M

    Speed: 1.3GHz Quad core)

     

    OS: Andriod 5.0

    Gionee

  • Hotel expert reviews slimtrader’s mobiashara for hotels service

    pc_pos_pr

     

    We recently sat down to a chat with Mr. Bruce Prins, the Founder of Amplitude Solutions and a nationally renowned Hospitality Operations and Training Consultant. Mr. Prins provided industry relevant insights on a leading hospitality management tool on the market today; SlimTrader’s MoBiashara for Hotels (MFH). Mr. Prins has worked in various industries over his 25-year career, including that of telecommunications, retail, education, fashion and most noticeably hospitality. The latter of which he was with the Accor group for 15 years before being active over the last 3 years in the Nigerian hospitality industry.

    Commending SlimTrader’s rapidly growing platform, Mr. Prins said, “SlimTrader has managed to develop a hotel inventory management and reconciliation platform called MoBiashara for Hotels (MFH) that provides important benefits to hotel owners or managers, from larger hotels to the very small bed and breakfast establishments, in and around Nigeria”.

    He went on to say, “besides the fact that MFH is there to assist a hotel in getting more guests and it serves in a similar capacity to marketing platforms – with visibility to hotels through either a customized website for each hotel or through Online Travel Agents (OTAs) or advertising on various social media platforms – the platform also provides hotels with a Property Management System (PMS) for managing their room inventory and offers payment reconciliation ease with the integrated Personal Computer – Point of Sale (PC-POS) feature. All these comes from the premise that every hotel wants to have some sort of control system in place, which uses technology but does not require an IT qualification to manage it.

    To expand this visibility further, SlimTrader through its MoBiashara for Hotels Platform has partnered with leading local and international Online Travel Agencies (OTAs). With OTAs such as TripAdvisor or Hotelnownow.com, MFH allows potential guests to locate a Nigerian hotel based on a location and or rate specification from virtually any country in the world. It then allows such a potential guest to book and pay online or when they arrive at that Nigerian hotel.

    SlimTrader goes further by empowering the hotel to use MFH as it’s PMS or Property Management System. This basically means that the hotel automatically accepts on-line bookings made through OTAs and its own website – if it has rooms available, and at the same time allows the hotel staff to make bookings directly on MFH. These bookings may be those made at the hotel either via the hotel’s phone number, e-mail address or by guests that walk in.

    In this way the hotels do not need to record bookings made on their websites or those made on other 3rd party websites and then manually enter it in a book or on their own in-house PMS. It also enables the hotel to manage room availability, process in-house room payments and generate reports to see how it is performing for the day, the month and the year.

    It also enables the hotel to control each receptionist’s shift, as every payment done at the hotel is recorded directly on the system and the shift reports help the manager or owner reconcile the payments with the actual money received.

    Then to add to the efficiency of the above, Slimtrader also provides a point-of-sale that can be used in the restaurant and bar in the hotel, which links directly with the front office system. This point-of-sale is made to be compatible with existing or new laptops or personal computers at the hotel. Any orders can be recorded under room numbers for guests and the payments taken at the front desk, either from the restaurant staff collecting the payments or when the guest checks out.

    SlimTrader offers hotels a loyalty scheme so they can attract new guests, increase repeats and spend per booking and improve guest retention.

    To add more opportunities for a hotel to get bookings, regardless of where the hotel is located, SlimTrader has agreements with many international OTAs that will permit customers to book on those websites, and in doing so, automatically book onto the hotel’s channel manager. This relieves the hotel of having to source or sign up with international OTAs, which can be a lengthy process itself and difficult, if not laborious. Some international OTAs may think the hotel too small to sign up in any event.

    For those other local OTAs that do not have an agreement with SlimTrader but always contact the hotel directly, the hotel can still accept and enter those bookings received onto the Slimtrader PMS and thereby retain the relationships the hotel may have with local travel agencies or OTAs.

    Worthy of note is SlimTrader, through its partnership with Interswitch, allows hotels to also link a credit card machine (POS) for on-site credit or debit card payments and also be a point of sale for either mobile or data airtime. This not only gives some revenue for the hotels but actually provides an extra service for the guests who otherwise would have to use paper vouchers or go outside the hotel to buy mobile and data airtime.

    For peace of mind the owner or manager can access the platform from a phone browser or on his or her mobile phone or tablet. This permits him or her to view the hotel system live even when on the move to make or see bookings, review reports or monitor payments done. In this way, the owner or manager can have access to what is happening at the hotel, no matter where they are. All they would need is data airtime or Wi-Fi access to do so.

    SlimTrader, via its MFH service is innovating for the hospitality technology industry at a fast pace, especially for the smaller players, and in doing so it is bringing the guest and the hotel closer together”.

    He closed by commending the company for providing this entire suite of features on the MoBiashara for Hotels platform for only N6,000 per month.

    Slimtrader

  • Unlimited Internet with wifi.com.ng is now in an area near you

    IMG_5151

     

    If you have not heard of wifi.com.ng prior to this, well now is a great time to take good notice of them. Wifi.com.ng provides unlimited uncapped internet to users for as low as N9,500 a month, without limits or hidden gimmicks.

    Founder, Patrick.K.Ananyi started the company off the back of Swift Network’s sudden decision to cancel their unlimited data plan back in 2012 and the company has grown significantly from just providing unlimited internet to an estate in Lekki to now providing affordable and reliable internet service to individual residents, estates and Hotels across parts of Lagos.

    Service
    Services include unlimited Internet, VOIP and Video Streaming using a US IP Address amongst others. With average speeds of 3Mbps constant across all covered areas, they provide high speed affordable internet to meet individual demands. Due to the huge demand for video content they plan to provide customers with speeds of up to 5Mbps by mid-year to keep up to the high demands.

    Pricing
    As already mentioned, you can get unlimited uncapped monthly data plan for as low as N9,500. Plans also include 6 months and 1 year data package (with added benefits). With uncapped internet customers are sure to make good use of Netflix and Chill, as well as unlimited downloads. Find out more http://wifi.com.ng/pricing/

    Coverage
    As of today, the areas covered include Lekki, Ikoyi, Yaba & Ikeja. In the next 18 to 24 months, the plan is to cover Lagos entirely, according to the founder who is passionate about expanding such great service to a wider audience across other parts of Lagos. To check coverage areas click http://wifi.com.ng/coverage/

    Comparison with competitors
    As the lowest cost provider in the market, cost efficiency is at the forefront of the company’s goal in continuing to provide affordable internet service to its customers. This is evident in their use of solar power in each of their stations as an energy efficient alternative to the use of Diesel powered generators.

    If you are looking for unlimited uncapped internet in Lagos, then wifi.com.ng is just the service provider you need for that.

    Be sure to check out the website to find out more and pick a plan that suits you best,

    http://wifi.com.ng/

    Tizeti (wifi.com.ng)

  • Five Reasons to Support #AfricasEinsteins

    Fellows_Apply_NEF1-30ircbsvut0u81c4t7lz4a

    Tomorrow, Africa welcomes the world to continent’s premiere science and technology forum at The Next Einstein Forum’s Global Gathering in Dakar, Senegal. Issuing a firm call to action to industry influencers, policymakers and business leaders to close the continent’s STEM deficit, the conference will seek to trigger increased support and investment in R&D and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields in order to propel sustainable growth. NEF believes that Africa can be home to the next scientific genius and game-changing innovation. Given the following reasons, it’s hard to argue:

    1 – Africa is a Living Lab: When news of Ebola broke out, it seemed to spell doom for a lot of countries, but in many ways it was déjà vu. The disease was first discovered in 1976 in Nsara, in what is now South Sudan, yet almost 40 years later, Ebola resurfaced as a global epidemic.  It’s a similar story with Zika – a newly re-emerged disease that was discovered decades ago in Uganda.  When media reports pinpointed Africa as the original source of both diseases, many Africans weren’t pleased at the perceived “blame game.” As the birthplace of humanity itself, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that we can trace the roots of many diseases to the continent. What’s more puzzling is why we haven’t been able to similarly look to Africa for the cures. One can argue that because the diseases were confined within African borders, finding pre-emptive cures were not high on the priority list for the global scientific community. However in today’s connected world, ignoring Africa’s potentially game-changing role in scientific discovery is a missed opportunity that not only costs resources but also lives.  African scientists – who are inspired and affected by their environments – should be on the frontlines, seeking solutions that are locally impactful and increasingly global relevant.

    2 – African Women in STEM Slay: Globally, women are under-represented in the science field representing just 28% of the world’s researchers. In Africa, the story is no different – and even more aggravated by culture. However, while Africa only contributes 1% of global scientific research, a talented pool of young female scientists are rising above the challenge and driving Africa’s science renaissance. These women are setting the pace in their various fields – like Alta Schutte, the South African scientist studying trends in hypertension among the growing middle class and conducting the only baseline study measuring South Africa’s soon to be launched salt-intake reduction policy or Dr. Tolu Oni, the epidemiologist and researcher figuring out how to use culture and society to solve public health concerns that arise from the developing food insecurity and obesity paradox. Being a woman on the African continent provides experiences of how homes are run, what children need, and a connection to the community. These experiences feed our female scientists with nuances that may affect treatment, which may not be so apparent to their male counterparts. These differing experiences point back to the need for inclusive representation and a diversity of ideas – not just from women but all Africans – to be able to provide better rounded contributions to science.

    3 – Because, Money: Did you know it takes 4 billion dollars a year to hire expats to work STEM jobs on the African continent? 4 billion dollars – basically losing 35% of aid to Africa received every year! This includes payments for swanky apartments, danger pay, and salaries comparable to if not more than what they would earn in their home countries. Now do that math, and strip all the extra expenses, and then think about what African governments could do with that. With the fall in African currencies, it is more critical now than ever to invest in our local talent, with funds that would go to temporary expatriates.  If we spent half of what we paid expatriates there is no way we couldn’t entice and encourage more talent to go into STEM. In the long term, this would be the only path to sustainable and ongoing technological advancement and would allow more scientists to compete on the global stage.

    4 – We are Young and Hungry – For Success: The continent is the youngest in the world.  In 2050, 40% of the global youth will be African yet today, 60% of Africa’s unemployed are between 15 and 24 years old. This is either a demographic dividend, if the talent is developed, or a major loss if the next generation is left behind their global peers.  Bottom line, Africa can’t afford to sleep on this talent – one only has to look at the make up of top institutions like Oxford, Harvard, MIT and Stanford to see the majority of black student populations at the top of their class are from the continent. This is no coincidence, but a testament to the hard work, smarts, and capabilities of our youth with the right investment.

    5.  Science Can Prove the Africa Rising Theory: Thanks to a thriving start-up culture and a surplus of commodities, the African Rising narrative has created a false sense of growth and development that is now losing its luster.  Unlike countries like South Korea that have become global economic players in just a generation  – thanks in part to deliberate increased investment in R&D and STEM fields – Africa’s growth remains stunted as governments still commit less than 1% of GDP to science research across the continent.  Africa’s science challenges are daunting but also represent a significant opportunity for sustainable development and global competitiveness. There is a tremendous opportunity for Africa to advance STEM and innovation by building on its wealth of human capital. This can be done by affirmatively expanding opportunities for promising young students and researchers, increasing government investments, implementing policy and strategically collaborating with international private and public sector partners to enhance its achievements.

    Lend your voice to the cause and call on African governments, leaders, and youth to embrace and support a new era in science, technology, and innovation. Sign and share the IamEinstein.org petition – because we can no longer silence #AfricasEinsteins.

    Next Einstein Forum

  • MTN clarifies accounting provision for fine

    mtn sim

    The Management of MTN Nigeria has clarified that the R9287 million set aside in the recently released MTN Group Financial results is in accordance with the Principle of Prudence in generally accepted accounting standards. This requires that reasonable provisions be made for contingent liabilities.

    Discussions with the Nigerian authorities are still ongoing and stakeholders will be advised accordingly when a settlement is reached.

    MTN executive, Amina Oyagbola, speaking to the same point made by the Executive Chairman, Phuthuma Nhleko in the 2015 results announcement published earlier today said, “MTN’s auditors have required that the company make a provision in line with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).”

    MTN Nigeria

  • Extreme, Insane and Impossible: speaking of the Gionee M5 mini battery

    g1

    Recently, mobile phone manufacturing giant, Gionee, released its newest model into the Nigerian Market. The M5 Mini, which is just four weeks old, is fast becoming a favourite in the country.

    It will take a while to get over its beautiful look and amazing performance, but it will take forever to get over its amazing battery capabilities. With its fast charging mode, 4000mAmp capacity and reverse charging technology, many have associated this phone with a plethora of adjectives: insane, impossible, extreme… and all thanks to the battery.

    The challenging situation of unstable power supply in most parts of the country is one reason that the Gionee M5 Mini stands out in the midst of so many other phones. Even with stable power supply, consumers will still appreciate the freedom from always being confined by the need to charge their mobile phones every now and then.

    Ours is a time and age with an increasing demand for our attention, and consumers are seeking for options where they would have to do less for most. Schedules are becoming more demanding so Gionee M5 Mini reduces the worry of rampant charging so that there can be focus on other matters.

    g2

    Of course, the phone will still have to be charged but the experience is nothing like the usual. The Gionee M5 Mini has a fast charge mode that raises the battery level from zero to “ready to go” in just ten minutes. This ten-minute charge lasts long enough to give more than ninety minutes of phone talk time, more than one hundred and twenty minutes of non-stop music and an entire two days of standby!

    If ten minutes would do that and more, one can imagine what a hundred percent will do. The way it is, very few experiences can match the feeling of having a fully charged Gionee phone. The exhilaration is hard to describe. With full battery power, one can rest assured of more than eighteen hours of non-stop call conversations, about one whole day of audio activity and a whopping standby time of two weeks.

    g3

    The Gionee M5 Mini has also been built with a reverse charging technology to charge other phones just like a power bank. With enough battery to power it up, this feature comes in handy, with extra bragging rights, to save situations.

    With everything that you need in today’s Smartphone, plus the battery power that invites you to indulge for as long as you want, the Gionee M5 Mini is designed for the heavy user in all of us.

    SPECIFICATIONS

    Design

    143.5X 71X 9.6mm

    Weight: 189.5g

    Champagne golden (TBD)

    Display

    5.0 HD IPS 1280×720 pixels

    Capacitive multi-touch 5 points

    Camera

    8Mpxl AF Rear-camera 5Mpxl FF Front-camera

    Connectivity

    GSM

    WCDMA

    Wi-Fi

    Bluetooth 4.0

    3.5mm AUDIO JACK

    GPS

    OTG

    Dual SIM Dual Standby

    Memory

    Internal memory

    16GB ROM+ 2GB RAM

    Up to 128GB

    Phone Features

    Chipset MT6580

    Android 5.1

    Quad Core 1.3 GHz CPU

    G-Sensor, Light Sensor, E-compass

    DTS Sound 4000mAh

    Gionee

  • Even Bodybuilders Get A Helping Hand

    MRI scanner. The latest imagining technologies from GE Healthcare are used at this diagnostic center operated by Me Cure Healthcare Limited (MHL), located on Victoria Island in Lagos. (Photo: Arne Hoel)
    MRI scanner. The latest imagining technologies from GE Healthcare are used at this diagnostic center operated by Me Cure Healthcare Limited (MHL), located on Victoria Island in Lagos. (Photo: Arne Hoel)

    Obesity and associated lifestyle diseases are not restricted to the  developed world. In fact, a growing number of emerging economies are finding  that as obesity rises, so too do preventable conditions such as diabetes,  hypertension, coronary heart disease and stroke. In South Africa, around one in four adults are obese, according to media fact-checking  organisation Africa Check and the World Health Organisation. According to the WHO, 13% of adults globally  were classified as obese in 2014.

    Measuring body-fat percentage is an important way to monitor and  manage obesity and related illness, but accurately calculating body fat  percentages is surprisingly difficult. With the recent installation of its bone  densitometry system in South Africa, GE Healthcare is making muscle and fat  measurement a lot easier. The technology identifies exactly how much muscle  and fat is in the body and where it is located, helping doctors and their  patients easily target zones for weight loss, advise on lifestyle changes and  plan customised exercise routines, explains Tessica Chetty, an advanced  applications specialist for GE Healthcare.

    The same technology can also be used in osteoporosis management, as it  assesses bone strength and can predict the likelihood of bone fractures.

    In body-building competitions, the fat-to-muscle ratio is of utmost importance. Recently, the Worcestor Mediclinic, in South Africa’s Western  Cape province, worked with a body builder to calculate her body-fat percentage  using the bone densitometry system, providing valuable data to prepare her  for competitions. Even her left and right arms were compared to determine  minute differences in muscle and fat, with the results determining final  preparations for competition.

    Deidre Laing, a radiographer at Worcester Radiology, says she decided  to work with the body builder in order to better understand the machine’s  capabilities.

    The bone densitometry system is also useful for non-bodybuilders. Laing  has used the same technology to track changes in body fat percentages over  time in a single patient. During the study, an initial scan was taken prior  to any diet or exercise interventions. Following this, the patient went on a  diet, after which the scan was repeated. She continued with the diet and  added an exercise plan drawn up by a biokineticist based on problem areas  highlighted on the scan. A third scan was able to show marked improvement  after these interventions.

    “You can actually see how you’re losing weight,” she says. As a  result, patients are far more motivated to make healthier lifestyle choices.

    Bone densitometry, like other medical scanning technology, empowers both patients and doctors with information they need to make informed  decisions on treatment and diagnosis based on facts rather than guesswork.  Now that we increasingly recognise the role of lifestyle decisions in  maintaining good health, personalised healthcare information is set to become  even more important.

    General Electric

  • The Gionee M5 Mini: one week on the table

    g1

    There is a difference between the phone about to be launched and one that has been bought. Before launch, a phone can be a bit too proud and boastful but after spending one week with its buyer, it will be more humble and sincere. The about-to-be-launched phone can hide behind glossy images, flowery language and the reputation of the maker but the phone in hand cannot. Instead, it has a load of expectations and promises to meet. This is why this article is coming one week after its launch.

    For first impressions of the Gionee M5 mini, you will be attracted to its amazing look, its magical feel and its sound performance but as the days go, you will come to revere the extreme battery. The 22hours of music and 18hours of talk time quoted by its makers are modest estimations of the phone’s actual potentials. It can do much more.

    Despite its extreme battery power, the Gionee M5 mini has got a smart power function that optimizes power usage. When you switch to extreme mode, only the vitals of the phone are left on. This conserves power and brings battery consumption to a standstill. The Gionee M5 mini can charge other phones, making it a unique solution provider in times that matter accompanied with all the bragging rights.

    Instead of one window in another window in a horizontal stack pattern, it employs a uniquely animated cascade where one window rolls into the other in an unending loop of ease and delight. As I write this, I got twenty windows stacked, everything from applications to live internet pages running seamlessly. The Gionee M5 mini is ready to work or play, whatever you choose.

    g2

    A ripple-effect-like display colours every touch on the phone like the effect of a drop of water in the middle of the stream. The spread effect of lights and perspective enlivens every touch and transforms experiences as ordinary as typing to a thing of excitement that you rarely get over.

    After you take a picture you may not only share and edit – you can also geo-tag, encrypt or resize the megapixels to suit the purpose. You can annotate these pictures in a variety of colours and styles, making the phone a little Photoshop. Game lovers will quickly fall in love with this piece of hardware for its super sensitive to both touch and geography. None will be able to forget the phone’s manoeuvrability, the grace by which the phone switches from one application to another and from one mode to another. There are no rough edges.

    You will always be proud to pull out your Gionee M5 mini to make calls or save contacts. You will find yourself holding it even when it is not in use. The Gionee M5 mini is exotic enough – it will quickly replace other phones in its pay grade. For phones that are clearly in its senior class, the Gionee M5 mini holds a joker of its amazing battery power. The best time to purchase a new phone is one week after, when it has got nothing to hide.

    Design

    143.5X 71X 9.6mm

    Weight: 189.5g

    Champagne golden(TBD)

    Display

    5.0 HD IPS 1280×720 pixels

    Capacitive multi-touch 5 points

    Camera

    8Mpxl AF Rear-camera 5Mpxl FF Front-camera

    Connectivity

    GSM

    WCDMA

    Wi-Fi

    Bluetooth 4.0

    3.5mm AUDIO JACK

    GPS

    OTG

    Dual SIM Dual Standby

    Memory

    Internal memory

    16GB ROM+ 2GB RAM

    Up to 128GB

    Phone Features

    Chipset MT6580

    Android 5.1

    Quad Core 1.3 GHz CPU

    G-Sensor, Light Sensor, E-compass

    DTS Sound 4000mAh

    Gionee

  • The Big Picture: Here’s What GE Will Look Like In 2016

    GE released its fourth-quarter results two weeks ago, capping a pivotal year when the company sold much of its lending business and embraced software to become the world’s largest digital-industrial company. The company also improved its operations, growing revenue at a faster clip than peers and fattening margins.

    CEO Jeff Immelt said he would keep the company on the same course in 2016. He projected modest EPS growth, riding atop the company’s booming Aviation and Power businesses. He will be managing costs in businesses like Oil & Gas and Transportation, where growth is lagging.

    Immelt had no new specific plans for mergers and acquisitions. The company will seek to finalise its exit strategy from GE Capital and integrate Alstom’s assets into GE’s Power, Renewable Energy and Energy Management businesses.

    GE maintains it will return $26 billion to investors in the year, $18 billion in the form of buybacks and $8 billon to the dividend. Take a look.

    General Electric

  • The GIONEE M5 Mini launch: all the cards on the table

    Gionee M5 Mini Article Pics1 (1)

    INTRODUCTION 

    After so much anticipation, Gionee launched its newest addition to its M5 family. News of the arrival of the Gionee M5 Mini has been generating speculations and debate since the company hinted the new release. Speculations came to an end on 10th February 2016 when the spectacle was finally unveiled. Yes, there was a shocker, for once, all the hype about it was not enough! Anticipations, Photos, Thoughts – nothing compared to the look and feel of the actual phone.

    FOR A FIRST AND REPEATED IMPRESSION

    From its unique design to its aura, the first feelings of spectacle and elegance communicated by the Gionee M5 Mini lasts more than a first time. The Gionee M5 Mini would give other phones in the block a good run for their money.

    APPEARANCE 

    Compact within a dimension of 5.7X 2.8X 0.4 inches and weighing 189.5g, the phone’s wear resistant and part metal finishing with its water drop display is a marvel to behold. Coupled with a 2.5D Arc Edge Screen Gionee M5 mini is a tripartite model of fashion, dignity and technology. Easy to hold, feel and use. Whether in use or idle, there is a magnificence that is tangible.

    Gionee M5 Mini Article Pics2

    DISPLAY

    With a screen built from the HD IPS technology (High definition In-Plane Switching), the Gionee M5 Mini ensures pin sharp high-quality views from every angle on its liquid crystal display (LCD) with high resolution. It allows precision and accuracy with all functions associated with touch – powered by a 5 point contact capacitive multi-touch.

    BATTERY 

    With 4000mAh, the Gionee M5 Mini was built for stardom. It charges superfast and in ten minutes delivers enough power for one and a half hours of talk time, more than two hours of nonstop music or almost two days on standby.

    With full battery power, there is so much room for indulgence. Allows more than eighteen hours of non-stop call conversations, about one day of audio activity and gives a whopping standby time of two weeks. No matter how heavy a user you are, you will need to do much more to drain its 4,000 mAh.

    The Gionee M5 Mini also serves as a power bank to other phones with its reverse charging technology that allows it charge other phones.

    MEMORY

    The Gionee M5 Mini has got an internal memory of 16GB ROM+ 2GB RAM that can be extended up to 128GB to save everything that matters.

    PERFORMANCE

    Efficiency is a combination of many factors and Gionee M5 has them all. With the chipset MT6580, it has four cores with a central processing unit speed of 1.3GHz. Multitasking is normal with little to no lag. Built on the Reduced Instruction Set Computing (RISC) model strategy, instructions are executed quicker than the popular Complex Instruction Set Computing (CISC) design strategy.

    Gionee M5 Mini Article Pics3

    CAMERA

    With zippy zoom and precision, the Gionee M5 Mini captures images or video with real-life semblance. With a rear camera of 8Mp and a selfie camera of 5Mp, you can make videos and take pictures to save cherished memories. It also comes with DIY and auto face beauty functions to enhance selfies.

    SOUND

    Inbuilt is the Digital Theatre System, a compilation of multichannel audio technologies capable of discrete 5.1 and 6.1 channels of surround sound. With a sound software and speakers that are as sensitive as you are, and a range of options, it is time to have your music just the way you want it.

    CONNECTIVITY

    With its (OTG) On-the-Go technology, users also have the liberty to connect their phones directly to other devices like flash drives, keyboards to allow for ease and practicability. It also comes with WCDMA , Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS and its dual sim have dual standby

    CONCLUSION

    With the Launch of Gionee M5 Mini, frontiers have been breached. The bars have been raised and borders have been extended. The lines of sophistication, manoeuvrability and the limits of power have all been pushed. At an affordable retail price, the Gionee M5 Mini offers more answers than questions and has taken expectations for Smartphones to a whole new level.

    Don’t just take our word for it, see for yourself. 

    Gionee

  • In Medicine, Technicians As Well As Doctors Are Saving Lives

    At the start of his working day at the Lagos  University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), biomedical engineer Segun Jephet’s first priority is to ensure that all the medical and diagnostic technologies that he is responsible for are fully functional. “Each day we assess the condition of the equipment and determine whether there are any issues. We do this to troubleshoot these as efficiently as possible,” explains Segun.

    Biomedical engineers play a critical role in healthcare facilities worldwide. Between 50 and 80% of medical equipment is frequently out of service in low-income countries according  to the World Health Organisation. Equipment downtime can substantially impact  on the delivery of healthcare services, because in many cases there are no  back-up options available. In Nigeria, 50% of hospital equipment is offline  or unavailable.

    The GE Foundation recently refurbished and equipped the Biomedical Training Centre at LUTH, so that biomedical engineers like Segun can receive training to perform maintenance and troubleshoot essential equipment. This helps to create a  sustainable pipeline of qualified medical engineers in Nigeria.

    The BMET Project  first launched in 2009 in Rwanda with 38 technicians graduating in 2012 and  another 67 currently enrolled in the programme.  Since then, projects were set up in  Honduras (2010), Ghana (2012) and Cambodia (2013) training nearly 200  technicians and establishing several centres of excellence.

    Together with seventeen of his  colleagues, Segun recently graduated from Nigeria’s first BMET programme in  December.  The course focused on  healthcare technology management, principles of medical device operation,  computer skills and professional development and was delivered through eighteen  four-week modules over a period of three years.

    Reflecting on what he learnt from  the programme, Segun said there are two key qualities a biomedical engineer  should have: professionalism and discipline. “The programme taught me to take  a systematic, disciplined approach to maintenance. At all times you need to  know what you are doing because indirectly our work helps to save lives.”

    General Electric

  • BOI and NBTE introduces vocational skills competition

     

    IMG_2505

    The Bank of Industry, in partnership with the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) is organizing a Vocational Skills Competition to support and promote Vocational Skills acquisition among Nigerian youth.

    The target participants are top graduating students of NBTE-accredited Vocational Enterprise Institutions. They will showcase their final-year projects and demonstrate the skills involved in their execution. Winners will benefit from prizes aimed at further developing and enhancing their skills and career paths. The eligible vocational courses for the competition are as follows:

    1. Automotive Mechatronics/Mechanic
    2. Carpentry & Joinery
    3. Fashion & Beauty
    4. Electrical & Electronics
    5. Painting & Tiling
    6. Plumbing & Fittings
    7. Welding & Fabrication

    Regional competitions will take place in Kaduna and Lagos on February 13th 2016 and February 19th 2016 respectively, while the grand finale will be held in Abuja on 19th March 2016. A panel of judges made up of seasoned professionals has been selected to evaluate the nominated candidates and select the winners in each vocational field.

    Prizes to be won include:

    • Modern vocational work tools
    • Access to small business loans
    • Placement/Internship with BOI customers

    IMG_2697

    As Nigeria seeks to become a more diversified economy, vocational skills development must receive greater attention across various fields.

    This competition is one of the initiatives of the Bank of Industry towards supporting and promoting the nation’s industrial sector through the development of Vocational Skills.

    Further details, including the full list of nominees and judges for the competition can be found on our website through the following link: www.boi.ng/skillscompetition or follow us on instagram @bankofindustry & twitter @boinigeria for details and updates.

    Bank of Industry

  • Transforming industrial equipment into works of art

    In  2015, GE installed its 1000th wind turbine in Pernambuco, Brazil, making GE the first company to reach this milestone in the country. To celebrate this achievement, Brazilian graffiti artist Cadumen transformed this turbine into a piece of artwork dubbed “The Lady of the Wind”, drawing on design motifs inspired by local culture.

    Do you think this could work in your country? Tell us on Twitter (@GE_Africa) what piece of GE equipment you would like to see transformed into a work of art.  You might just inspire the next “Lady of the Wind”!

    General Electric

  • Spectranet Redefines Port Harcourt Lifestyle With Affordable High-speed Internet Service

    Spectranet

    Port Harcourt 17th January 2015: Residents of Port Harcourt, the capital of Nigeria’s treasure Base, Rivers State, can now browse the internet at the fastest speed available, as Nigeria’s foremost Internet Service Provider, Spectranet, launched and activated the 4G Long-Term Evolution (4G LTE), a service that promises to redefine the life style of residents and business owners in the state.

    With the launch of the 4G LTE, a standard that defines wireless communication of high-speed data for mobile phones and data terminals, Spectranet has provided Port Harcourt business owners and residents faster, reliable and affordable internet service that could lift them above current challenges caused by infrastructure deficits.

    Speaking on the launch of the service in the Rivers State capital, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Spectranet 4G LTE, David Venn, said: “Today marks another milestone in our service delivery, as we bring faster, reliable and affordable internet service closer to you for a better browsing experience.

    Spectranet

    “Our principle is to connect the people to what matters most to them by providing a faster and more reliable broadband experience at unparalleled value for money.”

    Speaking on the importance of the 4G LTE services as launched in Port Harcourt, Venn said: “Port Harcourt, like other cities (Lagos, Abuja and Ibadan) where we have our services is very dear to us.

    “At Spectranet, we don’t just expand for the sake of expansion, but with the sole purpose of delighting our customers with unique experiences.”

    In this regards he said, as market leader, Spectranet is committed to providing its teeming customers with a world class internet experience that is provided using a network of 4G LTE base stations (towers) and coverage, which currently include Lagos, Abuja, Ibadan and now Port Harcourt.”

    In terms of affordability, Venn said: “We have designed plans and offerings that suit individual pockets irrespective of their income and status-whether they are students, Professionals, family, or business enterprise owners.”

    Venn also spoke on Spectranet’s customer care focus, saying, “We understand the needs of our customers and subscribers very well and have kept improving our services to offer the best internet solutions in the country.”

    Spectranet Nigeria

    ,

  • Pitch your Idea and stand a chance to win 2016 Enterprise Challenge competition.

    EnterpriseChallenge

    Do you have an idea that will challenge the status quo? Are you an innovative or creative positive disruptor? Are you within the age of 18 – 35? Do you think your idea is good enough to be pitched to Richard Branson? Yes, you read right THE Richard Branson. Then don’t stop reading this.

    British council in partnership with Virgin Atlantic, Zenith Bank, and Samsung has kicked off the second edition of the Enterprise Challenge Nigeria, 2016. This year it is bigger and better.

    In search for a new “breed” of home-grown entrepreneurs, the 2016 Enterprise Challenge calls on young Nigerian entrepreneurs, within the ages of 18 – 35 who have forward thinking, creative and innovative ideas/solutions which are business oriented and focused on making a positive impact.

    If you have any idea/solutions which are in line with the current strategy of Nigerian governments to drive for change within less active sectors of the economy which promote economic diversification, then get on board the challenge.

    Register for the 2016 Enterprise Challenge and stand a chance to win a mentorship session with Sir Richard Branson, grants for your idea and so much more. To find out more about the 2016 Enterprise Challenge, please visit the British Council website or follow this link weblink – https://www.britishcouncil.org.ng/enterprise-challenge

    See videos of past winners below:

    Qualification criteria:

    All applicants should:

    • Be between 18 and 35 years of age
    • Have good English language skills
    • A Nigerian citizen resident in Nigeria (with a valid Nigerian passport)

    Interested applicants are requested to read carefully through all terms and conditions and respond by the given deadlines.

    Don’t lose this amazing opportunity. Hurry now to https://www.britishcouncil.org.ng/enterprise-challenge to register and watch your big idea come to life.

    Hurry now, registration and entry closes on the 8th of February, 2016. Be the next positive disruptor #ECNG2016.

    All enquiries regarding the Enterprise Challenge can be sent to us via email at NG.Enterprise@ng.britishcouncil.org

    You can also follow our conversations on social media as follows:

    Facebook: www.facebook.com/studyintheuk

    Facebook: www.facebook.com/BritishCouncilNigeria

    Twitter: @ngBritish

    British Council

  • WebDoc Launches; allows user to ask (2) FREE questions from Qualified Medical Doctors 

    WebDoc

    How often have you heard of people who appeared healthy this minute and the next they are on admission in the Intensive Care Unit of a hospital? More often than you think.

    In a bid to raise preventive health awareness, MedEnhanz Resources, a Medical Information company, has developed a product, focused on providing real-time medical information and advisory services 24/7 via its mobile application WebDOC.

    A prominent WebDOC’s feature – ASK-A-DOCTOR, allows the user to ask a plethora of experienced medical specialists, questions in strict privacy and get responses in near real-time. The platform already boasts of over 2,000 Nigerian doctors practicing in Nigeria and in the Diaspora

    The feature offers the following benefits:

    • Prompt Medical Advice 24/7
    • Qualified doctors from various Specialties
    • Privacy, confidentiality and anonymity of the user
    • Reduced hospital visits or quick referral to see a physician
    • Responses from doctors in simple terminologies
    • Quick tips in Emergency situations

    The healthcare application comes with other features such as Health Screening Recommendations tailored to the users lifestyle which include, Health Calculators (BMI, Heart risk calculator, pregnancy weight checker, ovulation calculator, pregnancy due-date calculator), and an Immunization scheduler.

    As an introductory offer and to allow users test the experience, the firm is offering every new registrants, (2) FREE questions which doesn’t expire. Subsequent questions only cost =N=50 per day and users can pay with their cards or internet bank accounts directly from the app. The firm is working on other payment channels to make user experience even better.

    MedEnhanz

    , ,

  • 19 Tech Stories From 2015 You Should Know About

     

    ge1

    There were many tech stories that caught our eye in 2015. Here are 19 examples that either touch on GE technology and research or received funding from the company. They stretch from the depths of the human genome to edge of the solar system. Take a look:

    Scientists around the world have been experimenting with a powerful new tool called the CRISPR-Cas9 system, which has begun to open up the possibility of rewriting faulty or unwanted human, animal and plant DNA.

    Europe is using so much solar energy that a partial eclipse that swept over much of the continent in March tested its power distribution system.

    ge2

    Neuroscientists are making important advances with brain implants. They allowed a paralysed woman to control a robotic arm with her thoughts.

    Image credit: Brown University
    Image credit: Brown University

    GE scientists shrunk and 3D printed a steam turbine originally designed to generate electricity. The smaller version can efficiently remove salt from seawater. The system could one day reduce the cost of desalination by as much as 20 percent and bring desalination technology to places that cannot afford it today. 

    ge4

    Philippine farmers in Bacolor, Pampanga, just north of the capital Manila, have plenty of grassy land to grow cattle, but the town’s meat factory needs electricity to process the beef and send it to market. It turns out that a clever solution that feeds biogas made from the grass to an omnivorous Jenbacher engine can keep the lights and machines on. Engines like the Jenbacher, which can burn biogas from many different sources of fuel, could be a key to bringing electricity to parts of the world that still remain mostly dark after sunset. 

    ge5

    A company called Neuronetics is using a non-invasive technology called “transcranial magnetic stimulation,” or TMS, to help patients battle depression. TMS uses a small but powerful magnet to deliver electromagnetic energy to the brain tissue through the skull. “What if you could stimulate the brain from the outside, without drugs, and make it heal?” says Dr. Mark Demitrack, chief medical officer of Neuronetics.

    ge6
    Image illustration: GE Global Research

    Intelligent LED street lights developed by Current, a GE startup, are using sensors to monitor everything from traffic to air quality, parking and even street crime, and transmit the data to the cloud for analysis. The information could be one day available to app developers. San Diego and Jacksonville have already started testing the system. 

    ge7

    Winning a Formula 1 race is no longer just about building the fastest car and the best driver. Today, teams beam data from hundreds of sensors wired in their cars to distant computer centers for analysis and insights, and then relay optimal race strategies back to the driver. This is also the idea behind the “digital twin” – cloud-based simulations of physical assets – which will soon encompass and start optimising everything from wind turbines, power plants, jet engines and even the human body. 

    ge8

    The World Health Organisation reported earlier this year that more people die from cardiovascular disease than from any other cause. A new MRI imaging system can see the heart in 7 dimensions – 3 in space, 1 in time, and 3 in velocity direction – showing the actual blood flow in the heart as a moving image. It can help physicians distinguish scarred or damaged tissue from healthy heart muscle and tell them whether blood is flowing through the heart the way it should be. The system is not yet commercially available. 

    ge9

    The FAA cleared the first 3D-printed part to fly inside a GE jet engine. GE engineers also 3D-printed all of the components for a miniature jet engine, assembled it and then took the engine for a spin. Advanced manufacturing techniques like 3D printing will be going mainstream in 2016. 

    ge10

    The tides are a perfect and perfectly predictable source of renewable energy. But until now, the technology to tap their power has been too expensive. That’s changing, however. France and the U.K. have both started building new tidal power plants. The tides are caused by the gravitational pull of the moon. After tapping electricity from the sun and the wind, moon power is finally within reach.

    ge11

    When the New Horizons spacecraft finally buzzed Pluto at roughly 30,000 mph last summer, it sent back snaps of untamed plains and jagged ice mountains. The pictures of the dwarf planet at the edge of the solar system traveled the expanse of space thanks to a 125-pound power plant that doesn’t know the meaning of quit. It was originally designed by GE’s space division. 

    ge12

    A company in Rhode Island started building America’s first offshore wind farm. It will include some of the world’s largest offshore wind turbines. When completed in late 2016, the farm will generate a combined 30 megawatts of electricity — enough to supply 17,000 homes. 

    ge13

    The Stockholm-based biomaterials company Spiber Technologies is using genetically engineered bacteria and GE protein purification technology to produce large quantities of spidroin proteins found in spider dragline silk. It then customizes them for a variety of applications. “Man-made spider silk can be adjusted to contain specific parts that bind to cells and promote wound healing, thereby enabling use within fields of tissue engineering, diagnostics and cell culture,” says Kristina Martinell, Spiber’s production director. “In short, it’s a tailor-made biomaterial.”

    Image credit: Spiber Technologies
    Image credit: Spiber Technologies

    Japan is famous for innovation. But, like many countries in the Pacific, it must also cope with earthquakes and other fierce forces of nature. Now one local company has merged insights from both and built what could be one of the  world’s first “disaster-proof” factories. 

    ge15

    GE’s latest wind turbine prototype rises 450 feet from base to blade tips – almost half the height of the Eiffel Tower – and has a large spinning silver aluminum dome bolted to its rotor. “It almost looks as if an UFO got stuck on the face,” says Mike Bowman, the leader of sustainable energy projects at GE Global Research. “But the dome could be the future of wind.” If experiments confirm wind tunnel data, the 20,000-pound dome, called ecoROTR, could lead to larger and more efficient turbines. “As far as I know, there’s nothing like this in the world,” Bowman says. “This could be a game changer.” 

    ge16

    More than a decade after the last flight of the supersonic Concorde, NASA has invested $2.3 million into eight projects seeking to overcome barriers to commercial supersonic flight. The goal of the new work is to make supersonic flight greener by reducing high-altitude emissions and to cut down on the noise from sonic booms, the extremely loud report from a shockwave created by an aircraft flying faster than the speed of sound. 

    ge17

    Over a decade ago, the Human Genome Project gave us the first blueprint of our genetic code, opening the door to a future where medical interventions could be personalised for each patient’s genetic composition. Today, programmes like theHuman Protein Atlas are zooming in even deeper, mapping out not just the DNA that defines our bodies, but also the building blocks – specifically, the proteins – that make us tick (or sick). A team of scientists led by Mathias Uhlén of the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden, published the first comprehensive open-source map of 17,000 human proteins, showing where they are, and how they function in the human body. 

    ge18

    Scientists at the GE Global Research found a futuristic way to fix things: blowing metal powder at four times the speed of sound onto parts in need of service. “The tiny bits of material fly so fast they essentially fuse together when they hit the target,” says Gregorio Dimagli, materials scientist from Avio Aero, a division of GE Aviation. “Unlike welding, you don’t need to apply heat to make them stick. The bond happens on the atomic level. That’s why we are so excited.” 

    ge19

    GE train engineers built a software-guided high-tech air blower that directs high-pressure air moving at supersonic speeds in front of the lead axle of a locomotive, blasting away snow, rain, sand and other debris. The system has increased the tonnage hauled by a locomotive by the equivalent weight of pulling four extra jumbo jets. This could help railroads run longer trains and move more goods more efficiently.

    ge20

    ge21

    This post was originally posted on GE Reports.

    General Electric

    , ,

  • This 2016, tech may just be the way forward for you: here’s why

    hi-tech_performance

    Every industrial age always has its big economic driver. Human existence has witnessed the contribution of stone, coal, agriculture, steel and recently, within the past century, crude oil. The turn of the millennium offers us a new hope.

    Nigeria is at a dire stance, our economy is shrinking because of falling oil prices. While a hope of price rebound is expected, the nation cannot wait or bank on that. Agriculture, our first economic love long abandoned, requires an average of four years for economic boom. Our erstwhile mining economy has not had a better story either, not then or now. Power is poor, infrastructure is not our forte and the recent government mass attack on corruption and fines imposed by regulators surely has got some minds thinking. All these moves are being watched closely by those outside who know the ripeness of our Nigeria. Are they seeing something we are not yet seeing?

    Against the backdrop of these seeming woes is a fast rising opportunity – TECH. This opportunity is not entirely dependent on power or infrastructure. Its core resource is ideas and innovative minds – resources Nigeria has well over fifty million of. This opportunity powers mega employers and revenue generators like Facebook, Apple, Google, Alibaba, Jumia, Konga, MTN and a host of others.

    The recent World Economic Forum meeting in Davos Switzerland gave it a quick glance. Judging by contribution to GDP, a report by CNBC stated that the agricultural sector contributed 35 per cent to GDP prior to rebasing, but is now only estimated to account for 22 per cent. Meanwhile, the services sector’s contribution increased from 29 to 52 per cent. Telecoms had a jump from 0.9 to 8.7 per cent.

    The former Minister of Communications Mrs Omobola Johnson noted that the Nigerian telecoms sector, being one of the fastest growing markets in the world, continues to attract significant foreign direct investment, with an estimated additional $6 billion invested between 2011 and 2013. The future of this, she alluded, is improved broadband services, internet penetration and reduced cost of use for internet users. The rise of mobile technology is another aspect to consider. Within the last ten years, Nigeria has become a hot destination for smartphones and PCs. This period also witnessed the rise of local manufacturers like Omatek, Inye a local smartphone made by Saheed Adepoju to name a few.

    In the government’s strategic plan for broadband growth, it wants to deepen penetration from 6 percent in 2013 to 18 percent by 2018. This at least shows government’s direction and plan. However we are quick to ask from experience if this plan won’t end in paper as other plans in education, agriculture, mining and petroleum had ended.

    While we await government to do what it can, the onus lies on the millions of youths employed, unemployed, educated and illiterate to see the potential technology has in stock. The Computer Village in Ikeja is just an example of economic empowerment. App builders are another bunch. They even now enter competitions where funding is provided for their ideas which leads to start-ups and enterprises – take Jason Njoku’s Iroko TV, Ofili’s Okadabooks, Afrinolly as examples. Ecommerce is booming with the likes of Konga, Jumia, Kaymu and Yudala. Mobile banking and everything mobile is enabling how we make payments and how farmers get agro news.

    The world is no longer ahead of us, for once Africa – Nigeria in particular – has an opportunity to dictate pace. Oil prices may not favour us, we may have religious and cultural issues – which government should tackle vehemently but economic progress lies in thinking ‘tech’ and ‘small scale’. SMEs are the backbone of economies; for the umpteenth time, this can’t be over emphasized.

    Government’s support needs to focus on SMEs, major enterprises that are technology economic drivers, enablers that help smaller players to thrive especially within the telecoms industry.

    Focus should be to revitalize the energy and transport sectors chiefly while not forgetting to lay the foundations of tomorrow right through quality education.

    Africa is rising, the sun has set on the West, it is rising on Africa. We have to act now.

    Photo Credit: Siemens

    Jude Akhabue

    ,

  • 8 reasons why you can’t resist the refreshed Etisalat website

    wallpaper-newsite

    In the beginning, it was said that having a website was absolutely necessary. While that might be true, having a website today goes beyond the functionality and has more to do with the user experience or emotional connection.

    What are we saying?  We live in a time and age where a website does not just connote a web presence but a rich multimedia experience defined by how users interact with the system. As a company that is customer centric, Etisalat created its new website for the visiting pleasure of the user. So no matter where you come from whether desktop, mobile, or TV browsers; we simply created the ultimate website experience.

    1. User Centric Design

    We designed an experience that does not need to be learned but intuitive. Our philosophy is if a user has to think through it, then it is not good enough. Knowing that the user is the real hub of activity, we selected best case scenarios for user journey and user interaction from a series of mapped out use case scenarios.

    web article-recharge

    2. Simplicity & Consistency

    If you have to try to understand it, then it is not simple enough. We’ve simplified content and context so much to natural level by organizing text, call to action buttons and banners to be clear, concise, legible and straight to the point.

    The feel of equality on both web and mobile versions of the website brings a feeling of consistent familiarity that backs an assurance of catering for everyone irrespective of browsing environment.

    3. Responsive Layout

    We have made the user, the ultimate decision maker in terms of the experience a user gets based on his device type, browser type or device screen resolution.

    We introduced reflow configurations that makes the website adjust to whatever device type the user has, so nothing is missed out. The experience we have created does not limit a user to his device no matter how low end the device is.

    4. Readability

    We understand that users want to find what they want, in an ordered manner and simply too, they don’t want to read through too much content to find something.

    We put content ahead of design by organizing our content into blocks of few specific words that reduce cognitive load on users. We’ve made the content easily scanable by the eyes to a few lines and trimmed down to simple easily understood English.

    5. SEO

    We’ve made information about us so easy to find. This we have done with On-page, off-page and image optimizations. Leveraging on well-defined taglines, header tags, standard meta descriptions, structured data markup, keywords in URL with SEO (link) structures and rich snippets, preview of pages can easily be found in search results with enough information that increases click-through rate and generates leads.

    Our site map is periodically updated for search bots (Google/Bing/Yahoo indexing system), so we always have fresh and not stale content. Deep linking techniques employed has seen our links achieving far more reach, we have even achieved this further with domain referrals.

    6. Low Bounce Rate

    We identified and nipped bottlenecks that caused visitors who land on the website to get out without moving further on to other pages of the site and our efforts have paid off as we see visitors coming to our site and spending time there moving from one page to another, reading the content and clicking through.

    7. Performance

    We have achieved a website performance that is best in our industry. Our website loads fast with speed of about 2 secs and average load time of about 4 secs. It is also optimized even for low internet speed situations.

    8. Utility Hub

    Buying, using and sharing are key to life online. We have empowered our customers by providing utility features on our website such that they can buy airtime or data for themselves, friends or loved ones as well as subscribe to some of our services.

    etisalat

    Day or night, irrespective of location, our customers can simply recharge from our website.

    etisalat2

    Conclusion

    The Etisalat Nigeria website is ranked the most visited telco website in Nigeria and with the best user experience rating.

    Yes, we are happy with the results we are seeing but not relenting in our efforts in ensuring continuous improvements to the website. We are always researching, continually reviewing the entire website, engaging our visitors on their satisfaction levels, areas of improvement and of course continuously providing enhancements.

    As a brand truly dedicated to providing a best-in-class experience online, we keep pushing ourselves to ensuring the Etisalat Nigeria website is constantly in sync with advancements in technology and changes in human/user behavior.

    9mobile

    , ,

  • Freeme Digital Limited presents Next Great Hope

    NEXT GREAT HOPE_3

    A search for a music tech innovator who has a business idea or a music related app that can address one of the many challenges facing the local Nigerian digital music market.

    WIN! WIN!! WIN!!!

    N250,000 + a Windows Tablet

    To participate

    1. Follow @FreemeDigital on Instagram and Twitter and like our Facebook page.

    2. Make a 1 minute video (less than 20MB), explaining how your business idea or app can address these challenges.

    3. Send your video to info@freemedigital.com (include your name, phone number and Instagram handle).

    4. Qualified applicants will be published on our Instagram page (@FreemeDigital) and invited to Freeme Digital to defend their business ideas or apps.

    5. The winner will be announced on all our social media platforms.

    Submission ends on February 5, 2016.

    For enquiries, call 08072019117

    Freeme Digital

  • Coming up next: The Gionee M5 Mini

    Gionee M5 Mini Article Pics1

    INTRODUCTION

    The Gionee M5 Mini will not just be a new introduction to the Gionee Family; it will be a thoughtful add to the world of Smartphones. From a dimension of 143.5mm and 71X 9.6mm, the Gionee M5 Mini has been specifically designed to merge the best of two worlds by giving an unforgettable smartphone experience for the longest possible time.

    THE DISPLAY

    Splendid! With a screen built from the HD IPS technology (High definition In-Plane Switching), the Gionee M5 Mini ensures high-quality views from every angle on its liquid crystal display (LCD).

    PERFORMANCE

    Solid! Its processor, the Mediatek MT6580, has an average performing central processing unit with a maximum clock speed of 1,300.00 MHz. With four cores, it is super-efficient for multitasking. Built on the Reduced Instruction Set Computing (RISC) model strategy, instructions are executed quicker than the popular Complex Instruction Set Computing (CISC) design strategy.

    SOUND

    Rich! Inbuilt is the Digital Theatre System, a compilation of multichannel audio technologies capable of discrete 5.1 and 6.1 channels of surround sound.

    CAMERA

    Exquisite! The Gionee M5 Mini comes with a 5MP front camera with a technology to enhance facial beauty and a rear camera of 8MP to take every precious moment.

    REVERSE CHARGING AND OTG

    Sophisticated! Users also have the liberty to connect their phones to other devices like flash drives, keyboards and other devices to allow for ease and practicability. The phone has got a reverse charging technology that allows it charge other phones with its OTG cable.

    THE BATTERY

    With 4000mAh battery, it gives a standby time of nearly two weeks, a nonstop 22-hour audio experience of music and an uninterrupted 18 hours of talk. One will wonder why it still comes with a smart power notification for optimum power usage. It also charges super fast. A brief ten-minute charge lasts for almost two days on standby, one hour thirty minutes of talk time or over two hours of music.

    OTHER FEATURES

    GSM, WCDMA, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, Android 5.1, internal memory of 16GB ROM+ 2GB RAM that can be extended to128GB.

    Don’t take your eyes off the centre stage for the Gionee M5 Mini that is coming up next. A combination of two worlds: nothing short of today’s concept of a Smartphone, plus a dependable power supply that gives peace of mind.

    Gionee

    ,

  • Making Newborn and Maternal Health a Priority

    Article 8.0 Image

    For every  100,000 children born in South Africa, approximately 300 babies die due to  birth complications, including stillbirth. Yet 40 per cent of stillbirths are  preventable if adequate antenatal care is available. The vast majority of  these deaths occur in rural areas where healthcare services and resources are  limited. In a recent edition of eNCA Tech Report, Thenji Stemela discusses the  keys to better maternal care in Africa and how GE’s Vscan is playing its  role.

    Maternal and  newborn health remains one of the most pressing priorities in Africa. According  to the World Bank, more than 74 per cent of maternal deaths could be  prevented if all women had access to interventions that address complications  in pregnancy and childbirth. Mokhtar Hamed, African Leader for Ultrasound, GE  Healthcare believes that a lack of technology and skilled health resources  are among the reasons for poor maternal health outcomes.

    To help  reduce pregnancy-related deaths, GE developed its ultrasound device called  the Vscan. Its robust specifications ensure it is able to function fully in  rural settings. Designed for use by primary healthcare workers, the  battery-powered portable device enables the early detection of life-threatening  pregnancy complications and improves clinical decision-making and pregnancy  management.

    In Tanzania, the deployment of ultrasound devices in rural clinics has enabled healthcare  workers to detect pregnancy issues early on, allowing for better care for  their patients. With improved technology, caregivers have the ability to  extend the reach of high quality care for mothers and newborns. Research  shows that investing in better maternal health not only improves a mother’s  health but also that of her family and her community.

    GE committed $6 billion to continuously develop  innovations that help clinicians and healthcare providers deliver high quality  healthcare at lower cost to more people around the world and the Vscan is one  such-device delivering on this commitment.

    Check out eNCA Tech Report’s video on Vscan below:

    SUBSCRIBE TO GE REPORTS

    General Electric

    ,

  • These are the “Most African” Locomotives Ever Created

    GE has commenced production of its “most African” locomotives. Once completed, the 233 GE Evolution Series locomotives will contain 55 per cent local content, making them the “most African” locomotives of their kind.”

    We are building these world-class locomotives here in South Africa because we are committed to growing the local supply chain and establishing South Africa as the rolling stock hub for the continent,” said Thomas Konditi, President and CEO of GE Transportation Africa. “Over the past six years, we have developed relationships with some of the best local suppliers in the industry.”

    Powered by GE Transportation’s 12-cylinder diesel engine, the Evolution Series Engine produces 4,200 GHP. This 45-degree, 12-cylinder, 4-stroke, turbocharged engine provides efficiency, fewer emissions and extended overhaul intervals. The engine also uses enhanced cooling and higher-strength materials to dramatically improve reliability and allow for future increases in power and efficiency.

    The Evolution Series Locomotive represents one of GE’s most prominent EcomaginationTM products. Ecomagination is GE’s commitment to build innovative products that maximise environmental and economic impact. Products with GE’s EcomaginationTM designation undergo a rigorous process to prove they measurably help customers’ performance and bottom lines, while simultaneously improving their environmental performance.

    General Electric

    ,

  • Traffic Robbers On the Rampage, Don’t Be Their Next Victim

    C-Protect_Blood_fly

    It is no longer news that criminal gangs have stepped up robbery operations in different parts of the country, Lagos especially, dispossessing people of their valuables and vandalizing their cars while stuck in traffic. The situation is clearly getting out of hand and it has become imperative for citizens to do their best to protect themselves.

    For over 23 years, Concept Nova has been rendering indigenous IT Solutions relevant to the Nigerian environment such as its Fuel Management Solution, Vehicle Tracking Solutions (remember Ti-Kon?), and Cargo-Weight Monitoring Solutions, amongst others.

    To combat this uprising Traffic Robbery situation, Concept Nova has once again come up with a premium solution, the C-Protect. C-Protect is an anti-glass break solution that helps to safeguard lives and properties of individuals; while being extremely effective to motorists especially those who find themselves stuck in traffic jams around high-risk environments.

    This anti-glass break solution is an invisible coat of film installed around glass you need protected – for example; installing on car window glasses, vents, and windscreens to prevent the glass from shattering in an event of accidental glass break, theft or vandalism. It reduces the ease of robbery by over 80% as it is nearly impossible to break the glass upon multiple hits.

    The protective film holds all the pieces together, protecting occupants from injury while denying entry to a potential thief. It also comes with an alarm which has been developed to have a 300M radius, to scare invaders away and alert bystanders of a potential robbery.

    With less than N15, 000, the C-Protect will safeguard you and your valuables from being another victim of preying hands. Moreover, don’t protect yourself alone; get C-Protect for family and loved ones also. You can order directly from www.concept-nova.com/C-Protect or from our franchise partners; you can also find C-Protect here on the Dealdey and Konga platforms.

    These robberies might not end any time soon, how prepared are you? Get your C-Protect Today! See demo video here.

    Concept Nova

    ,

  • Ecobank Nigeria launches MyMall online trading platform for SME Businesses

    ecobank-mymall-product-launch-banner

    Ecobank, a foremost bank in Nigeria, is expanding its impact in the e-commerce industry by establishing MyMall Nigeria. MyMall Nigeria is essentially for Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) operators to sell and market their goods and services. It is designed for all categories of products and can be accessed from any part of the world. This online mall is different from other e-commerce platforms currently in the market in a number of ways; it is merchant-focused, backed by Ecobank, a trusted financial institution with vested interest in SMEs and managed by a partner, Netplus Advisory Services which has substantial experience in the ecommerce space.

    Registered merchants have access to own personalized web stores, logistic support for delivery of goods purchased online, inventory management system and a secured payment platforms for goods. There are also international trade opportunities to market their products to the whole world and collect sales proceeds with ease. The platform will also be supported with digital marketing solutions, provide opportunities for business to business, business-to-consumer and consumer-to-consumer sales, among others. This new offering from Ecobank is indicative of the already successful Ecobank SME club which has significantly impacted a number of SMEs by providing expert guidance and tools to properly establish and succeed at running an SME. 

    Perhaps most important and unique is the exposure that MyMall Nigeria gives its merchants and customers alike simply by living up to its ‘Pan-African Bank’ strategy. Ecobank with its presence in 36 African countries will in the long run be able to grant access to merchants from other countries to sell their products online using the platform. In the same vein, customers have a diverse collection of merchants to shop from. MyMall Nigeria helps to bridge the gap between merchants and customers across different borders in Africa.

    In the burgeoning e-commerce industry in Nigeria, MyMall hits all the right notes for both merchants and customers by offering convenience, security, ease of transaction, payment options, logistics and visibility.

     

    Ecobank

    , , , ,

  • Got a Business? Register a .NG domain from DomainKing.NG

    Domainking-logo

    DomainKing.NG, Nigeria’s leading domain registrar and web hosting company is offering yet another deal as they launched a campaign today called: “Get Online with .NG domain for Nigerian Business”. They are offering 10% discounts on all .NG domains that you register with them till the end of January.

    By using the coupon DKNGCabal you can register your .com.ng domain for just N1530 and .NG domain for N13,500. The actual prices of .com.ng is N1700 and .NG domain is N15,000 at DomainKing.NG. This means that you can save thousands of Naira if you register domain name with DomainKing.NG before 31st Jan. 2016 with this offer.

    DomainKing.NG is a NIRA accredited registrar and are well known for their amazing promos & services in domains and web hosting. They debuted in Nigeria in October 2014, with their .com for N499 offer and since then they have become a popular choice for businesses & bloggers looking to get their websites online.

    This promo is yet another initiative by DomainKing.NG to offer .NG domains to businesses & individuals.

    DomainKing.NG wants to become the preferred choice for businesses, bloggers & for anyone who is looking to get online. This will establish them as the market leader for domains names, hosting & website building industry in Nigeria.

    According to DomainKing.NG’s CEO Karan Singh “Nigeria is growing rapidly and so is its online industry. More and more startups are coming online everyday. And by accelerating the adoption and use of .NG domains, we believe that we can bring even more businesses online.”

    According to the latest NIRA stats, there are over 60,000 total NG domains registered with 20,324 new domain names registered in 2015. This is a marginal number when compared with other CCTLDs and gTLD registries. But this is also a great opportunity for anyone to register the name of your choice.

    “NG domain has a vast opportunity that can add value to your business if done right. It can tell your visitor/audience and Google that you are local business. Since, businesses are becoming more and more local everyday, so is Google. As people prefer to buy things from their local trusted stores where they can pay conveniently in their local currencies rather than choosing some store without any business in their country. For the same reason many big websites create their local websites using local cctlds like .ng, .cn, .in, .uk etc.” explains Singh.

    So how important is .NG Domain for your Next Big Business? And why should you decide to go for .NG domain?

    .NG Domain Names are perfect for Nigerian Startups & Online Businesses:

    I have seen a lot of people ask me about why should they register a .NG domain name when you can buy a .com domain at much more affordable price. The simple answer is:

    .NG domain is short, brandable, easily available & you can start your next big thing on your cool .NG domain rather than a long .com domain. With memorable .com domain names becoming harder to find, .NG domain is perfect for any Nigerian business looking to establish their online brand & reputation. You can be a Startup, a business owner, a  blogger, an entertainment website, or just about anyone, .NG domain can give your brand the right online presence that you deserve.

    Many hot Nigerian startups like Hotels.NG, Supermart.NG, Showroom.NG, Pass.NG and so many others are now choosing NG domains for their business because of its brand-ability. Also, big Internet Websites, blogs & News websites in Nigeria including Media24, Pulse, OLX, Jumia, Slot & so many others are using .NG domains for their businesses in Nigeria.

    “There is no better time to register your .NG domain than right now. There are so many brandable & short names available in the .NG domain extension. Also Nigerian Domain names can offer your business great advantage on Google search results.” says DomainKing.NG’s CEO Karan Singh.

    And when you register your .NG domain with DomainKing.NG you will get a lot more that just a domain name. With DomainKing.NG you will get a complete package of over N10,000 worth of free services to help your business expand

    Here are some of free tools that DomainKing.NG offers with every domain that you register or transfer to them:

    1) Free DNS Management for blogger integration & Google Apps Integration & to do lots more..

    2) Free Email Accounts for your business or personal use like: you@yourbusiness.ng or you@yourcoolname.ng

    3) Free Email Forwarding to forward custom emails on your domain to any other email. For example you can forward your emails sent to you@yourbusiness.ng to your gmail, yahoomail email or any other email.

    4) Free Domain Forwarding to park and redirect your website to another website or social media pages like Facebook or Linkedin.

    5) Complete Control of your domain name.

    And lots of other free features to help your business grow.

    “All our free tools include almost all the features that you would ever need to start any kind of website on your domain name. We offer our customers with a complete package of addons that will enable you to do almost anything from creating your business emails, to protecting your brand name at affordable prices” said Karan Singh.

    “At DomainKing.NG, we are here to help you with your online success by making it easier and affordable for you to register the name of your choice. We want to help you start your next Google, Facebook, Alibaba with us by offering you everything you would need for your online success” added Singh.

    Whether you are a startup or a business looking to gain more business by going online, .NG domain name can definitely offer you an advantage on the internet. And by registering your .NG domain with DomainKing.NG you will get even bigger advantage of their great support & the control they offer to you of your domain.

    So visit DomainKing.NG to register your .NG domain today & also find out in what other ways DomainKing.NG can help your business.

    DomainKingNG

    ,

  • How Robots Inspire Learning in Lagos

    Article 6.1 Image 1

    When Nigerian President-elect Muhammadu Buhari took office this year, in his Manifesto and Vision for Nigeria he emphasised the importance of ensuring that education is delivered to all of Nigeria’s children. The government has committed to undertaking a full review of the provisions of the Universal Basic Education Act, including commitments to gender equality in primary and secondary school enrollment.

    More than ten million children in Nigeria are not receiving formal education. The majority are girls as many of their parents opt to send them to work, rather than attend school. Of those fortunate enough to enroll, less than two-thirds complete primary school education and even fewer girls finish secondary school. With a lack of education seen to vastly reduce a child’s chance of escaping poverty, a renewed focus on all-inclusive education is a key step towards socio-economic growth.

    In a country where education is often seen as a blessing, many non-governmental organisations are helping to fill the gap where formal education is lacking, while others help ‘top-up’ education with vocational training and skills provision. One such Nigerian organisation is the Women’s Technology Empowerment Centre (W-Tec). W-Tec is a  non-governmental organisation working to empower girls and women socially and economically, using information and communications technologies (ICT).

    Article 6.1 Image 2

    With statistical evidence showing that in most African countries women’s use and knowledge of ICTs is lower than men’s, W-Tec is helping Nigerian women develop financial independence by training for ICT-specific jobs, providing them with technology skills that that can be used for ICT-reliant jobs or self-employment.

    Recognising the challenge of keeping girls in school, W-Tec helps girls develop an early interest in computers and information technology. By presenting an exciting career path to the girls and their parents, there is an increased likelihood the girls will complete their schooling. Partnering with the corporate sector enables W-Tec to offer programmes and business that show the many and varied careers available with ICT qualifications.

    Article 6.1 Image 3

    For three years W-Tec has partnered with GE Nigeria to host the annual ‘Girls in Technology Day’. Hosted at the Nigeria hub of the GE Women’s Network “GWEN”, it offers students the opportunity to learn first-hand from GE employees and executives about their careers and the career opportunities that ICT skills offer.  

    The theme for this year’s event was Robotics, and part of the programme saw the twenty-seven attendees challenged to build and race robots made from small Lego pieces. While building Lego robots is great fun, the task also introduced the girls to the principles and importance of structures, motions and sensors in robots, as well as working as teams.

    Several GE staff members and members of the executive team attended the event and shared stories about what inspired their careers. They encouraged the girls to remain inquisitive about technology and to hone their leadership skills.

    Article 6.1 Image 4

    “We take immense pleasure in meeting with such inspirational young ladies each year at The Girls in Technology Day,” said Patricia Obozuwa, Director of Communications for SSA who co-leads the Women’s Network in Africa. “Watching the girls build and race their robots was fantastic, and just knowing that GE can play a part in encouraging the girls to follow a career in ICT is rewarding in itself.”

    With education reform at the forefront and receiving increased funding, it is important to encourage more girls to complete schooling. Through education, there is an increased likelihood of more women entering the workforce, enabling them to play their part in the sustainable and all-inclusive development of Africa’s powerhouse.

    General Electric

    , , ,

  • WebMall Partners with Game Stores to Boost its E-commerce Operations

    webmall-game-partnership-banner

    WebMall, has announced that it has completed a partnership agreement with the South African mega store, Game to sell its products exclusively in Nigeria through the WebMall Platform. Game Stores, well known as one of the biggest department stores in Africa, offers a wide range of consumer goods in different product categories.

    The initial focus of the partnership will be to make the Game’s bi-weekly deals in all categories accessible by customers throughout Nigeria on WebMall. As an introductory offer, customers in Lagos, Enugu, Kano and Abuja where the physical Game outlet presently are will also be able to enjoy FREE delivery of any products sold through WebMall

    According to the CEO of WebMall, the partnership will help the e-commerce player offer more merchandize on its platform from a known and reliable brand that can offer post-sales services that customers are really looking for when they shop online. He also mentioned that the partnership helps Game to reach customers who may not otherwise come to the retail store for one reason or the other.

    Webmall

    , , , ,

  • Protect Your Car Against Vandalism

    C-PROTECT

    With the recent upsurge of traffic robbery incidents around the country, Lagos especially; it has become very important that motorists step up their protective measures in order to safeguard their cars, valued properties and even their lives in some cases.

    In view of this, Concept Nova has created a product C-Protect, a protective film created specially to serve this purpose since many motorists spend more time in their vehicles as a result of the never ending traffic jams.

    This anti-glass break solution is an invisible coat of film installed on car side glasses and windshields to prevent the glass from shattering in an event of accidental glass break, theft or vandalism. It reduces robbery by 80% as it is nearly impossible to break the glass upon various hits. See demo here.

    This protective film holds all the pieces of the car glass together, protecting occupants from injury, as well as denying entry to a potential thief. It also comes with a sound alarm which has been developed to have a 300M radius, to scare invaders away and alert bystanders of a potential robbery.

    C-Protect solution is for individuals and fleet owners as it goes a long way to provide the much needed added security to lives, personal and public possessions while on the roads. Give your vehicle that needed protection; get your C-Protect Today!

    For more information, visit www.concept-nova.com/C-Protect or contact our customer service team on +2347026333742, +2347046180256.

    Concept Nova

    , , , ,

  • How GE is creating the next industrial era

    1-Article 5.1Image a

    Business cycles have always been opportunities for GE, and today’s environment of lower oil prices is no different. To take advantage of a volatile world, GE has been investing in its core infrastructure businesses, simplifying its operations and leading the next industrial era of machines connected through the Industrial Internet.

    “We capitalize on cycles by investing when others can’t, and persisting through periods of doubt,” GE Chairman and CEO Jeff Immelt wrote in his annual letter to shareowners, which will be published later this month. “GE plans to be a stable partner to our oil and gas customers during good times and bad. Our financial strength allows GE to invest when others walk away.”

    Article 5.1Image b

    The advantage of GE’s current portfolio is the ability to thrive during periods of disruptive events and commodity cycles – like the recent downturn in the price of oil. “We’re not distracted by short-term adversity – we lean into it,” Immelt said. “If you stop investing – for instance, if we had not doubled down on aircraft engine development after 9/11 — you lose for 30 years. Instead, our CFM LEAP engine has a 79 percent market share since launch.” (See graphic above.)

    Similarly, GE is currently the only company taking orders on the Tier 4 freight locomotive, designed to meet new EPA standards, because it invested aggressively at a time where competitors did not.

    In the oil and gas sector, GE has diversified beyond surface and subsea drilling (about 40 percent of its portfolio) into compressors and turbines pushing oil through pipelines and technology boosting refinery production (60 percent percent of portfolio). This technology, unlike surface drilling, is less prone to cyclical changes.

    GE’s ability to play through cycles follows a decade in which Immelt has repositioned GE as a more focused, high-value industrial company, investing in core infrastructure and selling businesses in which GE lacked the competitive edge. (See GE’s 2014 Annual Report.) “We have exited all the industrial businesses that didn’t fit the infrastructure model,” said Immelt, when providing GE’s 2015 outlook to investors in December. “By 2016 more than 75 percent of our earnings are going to be an output of that.”

    Analysts agree. “In our view, there are more changes happening at GE today than in any previous period in the company’s history,” wrote Deane Dray of RBC in January. “CEO Jeff Immelt has divested more than half of the revenues inherited from the Jack Welch era. We expect the portfolio pivot to 75 percent industrial technology and 25 percent finance by 2016 will be a game-changer, both in how investors perceive GE and its expected boost to valuation.”

    Article 5.1Image c

    2014 was a year of strong execution for GE, achieving 7 percent industrial segment organic revenue growth. That compares to 2 percent for Siemens, 3 percent for Honeywell, and negative 1 percent for Caterpillar. Margins continue to improve at a rate that impresses many analysts.

    GE also used 2014 as a key year to advance its portfolio transformation, announcing the acquisition of the power and grid businesses from France’s Alstom, spinning off non-core assets like the retail finance unit Synchrony, and agreeing to sell its appliances business to Electrolux.

    According to Immelt, “every business in the industrial sector can leverage all of our capabilities, what we call the GE Store: technology, services, global footprint, simple structure.” (See graphic above.)

    “We have profoundly changed the company, to lead the next generation of industrial progress,” Immelt writes in his letter to shareowners. “Today, we offer investors consistent growth in a volatile world, with a strong dividend yield, and a set of businesses that share competitive strengths.”

    General Electric

    , , , , ,

  • Why you absolutely need to get a Gionee S Plus

    094A5047

    Let’s be honest, most smart phones we see these days are mere copycats of existing ones. It is almost impossible to find a smart phone with truly distinctive features, which is why the GIONEE S PLUS should quickly, catch your attention.

    The GIONEE S PLUS will attract you from a distance with its magnetic pull of well-crafted designs that inspires a feeling of elegance and style because it was designed to imitate nature rather than imitating other smart phones.

    This can be seen by the obvious amount of time spent refining the technological device to have the liquid and natural appeal it has. When you hold the phone in your hands you would definitely get the feeling that you’re holding a piece of art with the extreme metallic texture of the S PLUS, its curves and lightweight.

    The phone comes in stylish gold for the flashy and flamboyant as well as in Ink Blue for the conservative and business like. The colors are then given the sleek and elegant look with a glossy body finish.

    RAM

    An unusual feature you can find on the GIONEE S PLUS smart phone’s body is the Type-C USB, which is bi-directional, faster and easier to use.  The screen has a 5.5 AMOLED immersive display with a smooth, sharp and highly realistic resolution. The phone speaker is equipped with a 3D DTS sound system and comes with a Hi- Fi headset.

    Lastly the GIONEE S PLUS is endowed with a lock screen technology unlike the usual and basic pattern and digit passwords you find on most smart phone lock screens, the S PLUS uses a face unlock system that is safer, easier and more fun oriented than any other lock screen technology. This further proves that this phone is truly detailed to perfection.

    This device is definitely one that will make you feel and look good any day anytime.

    Battery

    Gionee

    , , ,

  • Infinix Mobility reveals next-generation camera smartphone with 4G named ZERO3

    打印

    Infinix Mobility the No.1 online smartphone brand in Africa today introduces its latest flagship of ZERO series — ZERO3.  With 5.5 inches Full HD display, Mediatek Helio X10 octa-core processor, 20.7 megapixel rear camera and 5 megapixel front camera with flash, 3GB RAM and 4G network Infinix ZERO3 has all specifications expected from a premium smartphone.

    “At Infinix Mobility, we do not think that our loyal users have to break the bank to own a smartphone with high-end specs. With Infinix ZERO3, we are offering the latest technology in terms of hardware and software”, said Benjamin Jiang CEO of Infinix Mobility. Infinix ZERO3 the latest addition to the ZERO series is a sleek yet durable device crafted with premium diamond feeling material to glamorize life’s experience.

    Wonderful viewing experience

    Things have started to look up for next in terms of hardware as we reach the end of the year for Infinix Mobility. The smartphone manufacturer chose SONY Exmor R™ IMX230 sensor to design its 20.7 megapixel rear camera.

    SONY Exmor R™ IMX230 sensor helps superior focus tracking of fast-moving objects; In fact it sports 192 point auto-focus and support 4K video. The HDR mode provides 8 different filters to let pictures addicts to modify their pictures at their own taste without any third-party software.

    ZERO3 features a 5 megapixel front camera with flash. The flash insures a sharp and bright selfies even in dark condition to make you look great. Record your favorite video call with your family and friends in 4K on a beautiful Full HD 1080p screen.

    On top of that, ZERO3 comes with 5.5 inches Full HD display with a definition of 1920 x 1280 pixels at a 440 ppi pixel density. Once again, Infinix Mobility partner with Corning® to provide a Native Damage Resistance™ screen with the third generation of CORNING® GORILLA® GLASS.

    Better experiences start with powerful chipset (HELIOX10 +4G)

    Infinix Mobility chooses to boost its phone performance with high end specs. Infinix and Mediatek team up to deliver the very first device entering Nigeria market with HELIO X10 chipset. With Mediatek HELIO X10, ZERO3 offers great performance in terms of multimedia usage and connectivity.

    The chipset used by ZERO3 is a 64-bit True Octa-core™ with speed of up to 2.2GHz and support 2K display. The high-performance satisfies the multi-media requirements of the most demanding users, featuring multi-media subsystems that support for 120Hz displays and the capability to create and playback 480 frames per second (fps) 1080p Full HD Super-Slow Motion videos.

    Built for a rich multi-media experience (3GB RAM + XUI)

    ZERO3 is a multi-media machine with its 3GB RAM. Infinix users who are huge consumer of multi-media contents: music, Apps, movies and games will find out easier to open several applications and run them simultaneously without any system slow down. The 3GB RAM bundled with Octa-core Mediatek HELIO X10 chipset allow a smooth gaming experience with 3D intensive games.

    In addition, Infinix Mobility has developed a new user interface call XUI–Slim, beautiful and fast; Infinix ZERO3 XUI offers a series of features such as different themes and wallpapers, system management, font manager and magazine lock screen, XUI is also energy efficient.

    “Infinix Mobility is not only a hardware manufacturer; we are delivering richer experience by developing software solutions for our users. It’s important for our users to experience something new, XUI provides customized software with regular system updates.” said Bruno Li, Infinix Mobility country Manager.

    Infinix ZERO3 specifications

    • Network: 4G/3G/2G
    • Processor:  Octa-core 2.0 GHz, MEDIATEK HELIO X10
    • Memory:  16GB ROM + 3GB RAM
    • Display:  5.5 inch FHD
    • OS:  Android Lollipop 5.1
    • Camera:  20.7 mega pixel rear camera dual LED flash, 5 megapixel front camera with LED flash, 4K video recording
    • Battery: 3030mAh
    • Dimensions:  154*76.7*7.85mm

    X552_HD PICTURE_GOLD_COMBO_B

    1-IMG_6270

    Infinix Mobile

    , ,

  • Are you a sales marketer looking to earn additional income?

    Brokers' Portal-Social2

    Do you work 8-5 and are looking for ways to rake in additional income? Well, here’s great news! Concept Nova’s Independent IT Solutions Consultant Program is for you!

    We are looking for individuals with the right contacts who are interested in making extra income as Independent Sales Marketer that will serve as a bridge between us and our customers in providing them with adequate information about our products and services which eventually leads to their purchase of Concept Nova’s Solutions.

    Simply put; bring someone who actually buys or use any of our solutions or services and get rewarded for it instantly! No Story.

    With the Concept Nova Independent Consultant Program, not only do you get extra income as a Sales Consultant, you also get increased incentives as your sales volume grows. In addition, you get the opportunity to become your own boss as there is a possibility of you owning a Concept Nova franchise.

    Interested?

    Here’s how to become a Concept Nova Independent Sales Marketer.

    Register on the broker’s portal here to set up your profile and voila! You have become an IT Sales consultant.

    It does not just stop there, you also get intensive training at the beginning and throughout the program so as to have a better understanding of  the products and services which will in turn improve sales, meaning higher returns for You!

    Marketers in Warri can also become independent sales consultants as Concept Nova’s Innovations can be gotten from our Franchise Partner, Joemark Technical Services located at Room 9, Eku Plaza, Opposite Solidas, Efunrun, Delta State and can be contacted on 08183410754, 08054005043.

    Extra income awaits you, what are you waiting for?

    Concept Nova

    , ,

  • Child’s Play: Machines learning like kids will usher in the next industrial revolution

    Image 4.1a1

    If you ask Hollywood, the world teeming with robots and artificial intelligence is a no-brainer. Movies like “The Terminator,” “WALL-E” and “Blade Runner” have all cast intelligent automata as the wings upon which the future — mostly dystopian — swoops in. In fact, some very big names in science and engineering have recently joined voices in cautioning against unchecked intelligence development. Tesla’s Elon Musk and theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking have both predicted catastrophe should we make dumb choices when building smart machines.

    Of those sounding a much less ominous tone are many of the people actually working on the cutting edge of robotics. While progress needs to be carefully considered, they say, prognostications of malevolence overlook the very real benefits the machines have already started to produce. No matter what you believe on this subject, there’s no doubt that smart machines are firmly planted in the global zeitgeist these days.

    “You’ve got people painting a very dark picture of robotics,” says John Lizzi, who heads GE’s research lab on distributed intelligent systems. “The concept of AI taking over is interesting, but getting anywhere near that type of capability is very far away. And while the rest of the world is dreaming up these science-fiction futures, we’re taking the technology and solving real problems today.”

    Since the first robots started working on factory floors 55 years ago, a significant number of smart machines have come on the market and are now under development. In recent years, several have grabbed attention for how they promise to improve work and home life. These include Google’s self-driving cars as well as humble domestic helpers like iRobot’s Roomba. The still-unwritten future of the robots rising from the DARPA Robotics Challenge could one day potentially save lives after disasters.

    Image 4.1a2
    “Transformation will come in the form of learning — when we can get the robots to start learning like children do, and we get their memory to be more episodic like humans,” says GE’s Brad Miller. GE is building aerial robotic inspection systems like this GE Guardian Air . They are combining the power of GE’s deep software and analytics and burgeoning drone technologies. Image credit: GE Global Research 

    Then, of course, there are the millions of robotic arms and other industrial machines deployed in automotive manufacturing, healthcare and other industries. They have proven themselves thoroughly in factories and their expanding skills mean that the ranks of bots toiling among us is certain to grow. According to the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), 1.5 million industrial robots were operating at the end of 2014, and an estimated 12 percent yearly increase in that number means 2.3 million will be operating by the end of 2018. The vast majority of those are the precise but limited robotic arms that have become commonplace on automotive production lines.

    But for the robotics revolution to come, as the IFR and industry insiders forecast, the machines will need to get smarter. In fact, experts in the field say that revolution is coming thanks to robots getting the brains to become collaborative — to perceive and respond to their environment, and to safely work side by side with their human colleagues.

    For this idea to come to fruition — Rethink Robotic’s Baxter and Sawyer robotshave already made important first steps — the machines will need to perform on their own, learn how to do new tasks by watching people and know when to ask for help. That’s going to require imbuing robots with artificial intelligence powerful enough to give them perception, reasoning and cognition. Just how much of these qualities they’ll need is still a hotly debated matter.

    The most recent discussion is taking place this week at the 2015 Robotics Leadership Summit, sponsored by GE and held at the company’s Global Research Center in Niskayuna, New York Among those speaking are Rodney Brooks, the founder, chairman and CTO of Rethink Robotics; Chia-Peng Day, Foxconn’s robotics chief; and Red Whittaker, a prominent Carnegie Mellon University researcher who has been instrumental in putting robots to work in space, mines and automobiles.

    Image 4.1a3
    Top and above: Collaborative robots like Baxter are making important first steps. GIF credits: Rethink Robotics 

    Bradford Miller, a GE cognitive scientist developing more robust AI who spoke at the conference, says the current early generations of collaborative robots now in production, like Baxter, are likely to trigger an evolution in how we think about factories, but they don’t represent the really large breakthrough still on the horizon. “The really big thing is yet to come,” he says. “Transformation will come in the form of learning — when we can get the robots to start learning like children do, and we get their memory to be more episodic like humans, and we get their reasoning up to the point where it can be used to make inferences about things. It will be a disruptive change where human knowledge is transferable to a machine.”

    Miller is a proponent of collaborative automation, one of the paths roboticists are taking to make machines think. They all involve improving hardware, artificial intelligence, power usage and machine communications with other machines and people through the Industrial Internet.

    But the paths differ in how much cognition is enough to give the machines. Miller wants to see an industrial world populated by robots that he likens to those inhabiting the Star Wars movies — independently operating, thinking machines that learn the world as they experience it and work with their human counterparts in complete partnership.

    A necessity in making this idea reality, though, is programming in an “ethical governor” to keep a learning robot in the service of its human creators. We need to “implement robots that understand the consequences of their actions,” Miller says.

    Image 4.1a4
    “In the next three to four years, software will be writing software, and in five to eight years we’ll have industries that get totally disrupted by robots,” says GE’s Collin Parris. GE’s is developing robotic perception software that will extend to a variety of robotic systems such as the one picture above. Image credit: GE Global Research. 

    Others in the field are taking a different tack, one that seeks to give collaborative robots less of a contemplative bent. Erik Nieves, the founder and CEO of startup PlusOne Robotics, espouses what he calls a human-centric robot strategy that teams less thoughtful machines with human supervisors, allowing for the team to operate more effectively. This approach, he says, doesn’t seek to install fully formed mental states in robots. Instead, bots are primarily a way to augment and extend human abilities.

    “As we move forward, yes, robots will need perception to respond to their environment,” Nieves says. “But it is unnecessary to wait until we replicate human cognition in order to further human-robot collaboration. AI robots are decades away. We can begin a much richer collaboration now. We don’t need smarter robots, we need robots connected to smart people. The goal is not to replace or replicate humans and thereby push them out of the equation. We need robots to enhance the effectiveness of humans.”

    Nieves uses his own example. He lives in Texas and works in Ohio, but instead of relocating his family or leaving them for extended periods, he works through a telepresence robot. He guides the machine around from the comfort of his home. A screen on the bot with a live video stream beams his face into meetings and onto the factory floor. A camera lets him see what’s going on around the office. “What is needed is my expertise to solve real-time problems, not my physical presence,” he says. “The machine simply facilitates my capabilities remotely. The robot didn’t need to be smart to be useful.”

    It’s likely that the future won’t be one path or the other. Rather, it will be a mix where we deploy robots with vastly different capabilities to do the work we need done. Either way, the people building the algorithms and hardware say they are excited about the possibilities they see for how robots can help humanity work smarter and live better.

    “The intelligence of robots is increasing, and they’re becoming more connected to each other and to humans,” says Colin Parris, the vice president of software research at GE. “In the next three to four years, software will be writing software, and in five to eight years we’ll have industries that get totally disrupted by robots.”

    Image credit: GE Global Research 

    General Electric

    , , , , , , ,

  • And here comes Music+ for everyone!

    1-mtn-music-plus_featured

    MTN’s innovative streak is not slowing down anytime soon. In the wake of all other exciting services, Music+, which has been exclusive to only MTN subscribers, will now be available to other telecommunication service providers. Anyone and everyone can download and stream their favourite jamz from Music +.

    The timing of this change couldn’t have been better, as MTN is set to partner with an international music company. This partnership will secure an over five million foreign songs accessible for streaming and downloads to subscribers- With this move, MTN Nigeria will cement its position not just as Nigeria’s foremost music downloads and streaming platform but Nigeria’s Number 1 supporter of Music in Nigeria.

    MTN Nigeria

    , ,

  • Spectranet reward subscribers with Double Data

    Spectranet-December-Promo-Email-Newsletter-LND

    The fastest growing ISP service provider, Spectranet 4G LTE, in the spirit of the yuletide, commenced a special promotion to reward loyalty this season with a double data offer.

    The offer, according to Mike Ogor, head of marketing, is part of the brand tactical activity to celebrate subscribers that expressed affinity with the brand.

    He stated that have subscribers will enjoy one hundred percent bonus of renewed data within the month of December in celebration of the yuletide amongst its numerous customers.

    The offer, which starts on 1st December, will last till the end of the month.

    It is an offer that works very well with Spectranet’s Data Rollover plan. With this, any unused data accumulated during the period will be carried over to the next month so long as the customer renews the account on time.

    The Spectranet offer is coming at a time the brand unveils a national campaign celebrating the core essence of the brand as a family and business brand that plans to provide unique experience to its customers.

    Speaking on the choice of a double reward, the Managing Director David Venn, said the Spectranet brand is value driven and we are encouraging subscribers to take advantage of building up data stored for subsequent use at a later date in the coming year without spending more but rather getting twice the data for normal price.

    Mr Venn said “we want our subscribers to have enough data to reach out to their friends and loved ones this holiday period by staying connected with a faster connection

    Spectranet 4G LTE brand positioning in the market is very strategic as a quality brand with huge consideration for the pocket of the consumers. We are very conscious of quality as we end the 2015 year we are bonding with our consumer to have a wonderful experience at this time of the year he concluded.

    Spectranet Nigeria

    , , , , ,

  • With Pointek’s phone theft Insurance, you will never worry about a stolen phone again

    1-POINTEK Ad Design_New

    Pointek, one of Nigeria’s leading Information Technology companies, known for providing mobile devices and other electronic products has launched Nigeria’s first full phone insurance service.

    The Managing Director of the company, Emeka Oguchi confirmed this in a statement today stating “that the innovative service launched by the company is aimed at allaying the fears of mobile phone users all over the country. Under this new insurance policy, Pointek will completely bear the cost of replacing any lost mobile phone that was purchased at any Pointek outlet as well as provide free damaged screen replacement.”

    He added that “this initiative will save customers from the stress and high cost of replacing their mobile phones, as he assured them of continued value-added services and first-class after-sales support”.

    Customers are encouraged to take advantage of the insurance policy which provides cover and compensation in the event of the loss, and a cost-effective way to protect it for a modest premium.

    Pointek rides on its advantage as a recognized leader in the mobile phone and electronics industry to change the face of phone insurance in Nigeria. 

    Pointek, one of Nigeria’s leading retailers of mobile phones, laptops and accessories is managed by an accomplished team with deep consumer mobile and IT hardware experience.  It was incorporated in 2005 under the Companies and Allied Matter Act of 1990 as a Limited Liability Company.

    The company’s vision is to become Nigeria’s Topmost Information Technology Company known for providing mobile devices and other electronic products with excellent service delivery.

    Pointek

    , , ,

  • Meet your digital twin: Internet for the body is coming and these engineers are building it

    1-Image 1_1

    Let’s be honest: November isn’t the best time to visit Helsinki. But the gloom that envelops the Finnish capital every autumn didn’t stop some 15,000 visitors from descending on Slush, one of the world’s largest tech gatherings, which drew 1,700 startups this year as well as Google, Nokia and GE.

    This shouldn’t be surprising. Although there are only 5.4 million Finns, they’ve had an outsized influence on the technology of our modern lives. Finland, after all, is the home of the open-source operating system Linux as well as Nokia, which set off the explosive growth of mobile communications. “We have a tradition of working together,” says Peter Vesterbacka, co-founder of Rovio, the company behind Angry Birds, who helped start Slush in 2008. “Maybe it has something to do with our cold winter. If you don’t get your house built, you’ll die.”

    GE is tapping into this spirit. Last year, the company’s healthcare business opened the Health Innovation Village, a startup incubator that is helping 26 local companies develop products tied to healthcare and medicine. The Village just partnered with the U.S.-based  StartUp Health, the world’s largest digital health hub, which opened its first international location in Helsinki in November.

    But GE is also using local brainpower to change the face of medicine by moving healthcare into the cloud. Its engineers in Helsinki are specifically looking at patient monitoring. They are building wireless tools that could one day be no larger than a Band-Aid and constantly stream heartbeat, blood pressure, respiration and other information into the cloud, where software could analyze it, alert doctors to anomalies and looming crises, and effectively create our digital twins.

    “The same transformation that happened with mobile phones is taking place in patient monitoring,” says Erno Muuranto, the engineer leading the effort. “The world is going wireless and wearable. We could run hospitals like smart factories. Wireless sensors and data analytics will help correctly diagnose patients in the ambulance. It will allow us to administer correct treatment faster, which could lead to faster discharge. It will also allow us to monitor people remotely from home. All of this will help improve care and costs.”

    1-image03

    Top: Wireless sensors will help remove the spaghetti of wires attached to patients in intensive care units. Above: Some 15,000 people visited Slush, one of the world’s largest tech gatherings that drew 1,700 startups this year as well as GE, Google and Nokia. Image credits: GE Reports 

    Like many members of his team of 60 scientists and engineers, Muuranto came to GE after cutting his teeth at Nokia. The researchers, who specialize in everything from miniaturization and wireless protocols to user experience design, are developing the first generation of wireless sensors that can monitor heartbeat, blood pressure and several other parameters.

    On a recent visit his lab, Muuranto attached one such device to a colleague and then monitored her heartbeat and blood oxygen level with an iPhone app the team built using Predix, a software platform GE developed specifically for the Industrial Internet. “It’s still early, but remember how quickly we moved from the mobile phones that looked like a brick to devices that slipped in our pockets,” he says.

    Image 3_1
    Within five years, the technology could enable patient monitoring over a wireless network that will allow doctors to learn what’s happening with a patient from any connected device. Image credit: GE Healthcare 

    The first opportunity for the tech is to remove the spaghetti strands of wires attached to patients in intensive care units and to use algorithms and analytics to eliminate false alarms. “Some 90 percent of alarms are not actionable,” Muuranto says. “We are looking for ways to use signals from multiple sensors to generate meaningful alarms.”

    Within five years, the technology could enable patient monitoring over a wireless network that will allow doctors to learn what’s happening with a patient from any connected device.

    “The world is going wireless and wearable,” says GE’s Erno Muuranto. “We could run hospitals like smart factories. Wireless sensors and data analytics will help correctly diagnose patients in the ambulance.”

    1-Image 4_1
    Image credit: GE Reports

    The sensors would draw power from a tiny integrated battery and use radio waves to communicate with a receiver either in the patient’s pocket or in his hospital room. Outside the hospital, the information aggregated locally from the sensors could be relayed into a cellular network and automatically provide doctors and hospitals with round-the-clock patient monitoring and an uninterrupted flow of data. 

    1-Image 5_1
    GE Healthcare’s head office in Helsinki has the feel of a startup. It includes Warrior Coffee, an artisanal espresso joint complete with tattooed baristas piping Nirvana and Joy Division into the sitting area. Image credit: GE Reports

     

    GE and other companies are already building so-called medical body area networks (MBANs) and have applied to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission for access to the radio spectrum, where wireless medical devices could operate.

    “This is the digital health we’ve been talking about,” says Mikko Kauppinen, finance director at GE Healthcare Finland and cofounder of the Health Innovation Village. “This is different from gadgets. We already know how to build super-robust monitoring devices you see today in hospitals that meet FDA standards. This is a platform. Mobile phones got smaller and our devices will also shrink. We are building an ecosystem for Industrial Internet for the body.” Says Kauppinen: “It will transform patient monitoring. Before long, you could see these devices everywhere.”

    1-Image 6_1
    The future of wireless healthcare is dawning in Helsinki. Image credit: GE Reports 

    This post originally appeared on GE Reports.

    General Electric

    , , , , ,

  • MTN Foundation and Oracle to Equip Nigerian students with Exclusive ICT skills

    DSC_9740

    MTN Foundation just partnered with Oracle to kick off the second phase of its collaboration plan to empower up to 2,000 MTNF scholars in the areas of Java Fundamental and Oracle Database trainings.

    This phase focuses on teaching database design and SQL and Java programming skills to MTN Foundation Scholars, using Oracle Academy curriculum and hosted on-line learning materials.

    This program is part of the foundation’s initiative to encourage Nigerian students to take interest in science and technology-related courses for the ultimate benefit of the country.

    The training program, which is solely online based, will run for 18 weeks with 2 lectures per week and participants are expected to log on to the online classrooms.

    DSC_9846
    Mufutau Akuruyejo

    One of the beneficiaries of this programme, Mufutau Akuruyejo, who left for Switzerland to participate in the nine-week CERN open-lab program, is the first Nigerian to participate in this intensive program, which was made possible with the support of MTN Foundation and Oracle.

    MTN Nigeria