YNV Tech Talent Expands Service Offerings in Nigeria

By Aduragbemi Omiyale Three Nigerian startups are among the 11 small firms selected by Google for its Artificial Intelligence (AI) First Accelerator Program for Africa. The beneficiaries will undergo a 10-week accelerator journey and will get $350,000 as an allocation in Google Cloud Credits, and further enjoy mentorship sessions, technical guidance, and networking opportunities to enhance their reach and impact. The 11 startups were picked from a vast pool of innovative talent. At the end of the scheme, they would be required to use cutting-edge AI to address both the continent’s challenges and broader global issues. “At Google, we’ve been

By Adedapo Adesanya The newly appointed Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Mr Aminu Maida, has emphasized a need to focus on efforts that align with the Strategic Blueprint of the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Mr Bosun Tijani, and the digital economy drive of President Bola Tinubu. Mr Maida, who resumed duty on Tuesday, met with the Senior Management Staff of the commission where he highlighted his focus and emphasized all targets under his administration. Mr Maida started his day by taking a tour of the agency’s headquarters and held a productive meeting with

On Wednesday, Google rolled out its Search Generative Experience (SGE) in the SSA region as an opt-in experiment in Search Labs. This AI-powered experience is available in English. With new breakthroughs in generative AI, Google is reimagining what a search engine can do and is bringing these powerful new capabilities to Search in a bold and responsible way. This powerful new technology can unlock entirely new types of questions that Search could not previously answer and transforms the way information is organized in Search to help people sort through and make sense of what’s out there. Improving Search with generative

By Adedapo Adesanya The Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Mr Bosun Tijani, has revealed that plans to onboard three million tech talents in Nigeria will be done in phases, starting with the training of 30,000 persons in the next three months. Appearing as one of the lead guests at Moonshoot by TechCabal, a two-day event organised by the tech publication in Lagos on Wednesday, he said his ministry would apply a 1-10-100 model, which by definition is a three-phase model. “We are using a 1-10-100-model. We are starting with 1 per cent of our 3 million target, and

By Dipo Olowookere Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN), Mr Antonio Guterres, has strongly condemned the series of terrorists’ attacks, which occurred in Borno State on Sunday and Monday. A statement issued on Tuesday by spokesman of the UN scribe said Mr Guterres extended his condolences to the people and government of Nigeria for the loss of life. The press statement said the UN reiterates its support to the government of Nigeria in its fight against terrorism and violent extremism. “He wishes a quick recovery to those injured and hopes that those responsible for this act will be swiftly brought

By Investors Hub Asian stocks rose on Monday as strong U.S. jobs data helped investors shrug off renewed concerns over an escalating U.S.-China trade dispute. U.S. jobs increased more than expected in June but slowing wage growth helped reduce the probability of another Fed rate hike for September. China’s Shanghai Composite Index spiked 68.28 points or 2.5 percent to 2,815.51 after the U.S. punitive tariffs on Chinese goods kicked in and Beijing retaliated with equivalent measures. The yuan also rebounded ahead of trade data due later this week. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rallied 372.88 points or 1.3 percent to

By Ahmed Rahma The response of Emirates Airline to the COVID-19 pandemic, especially its adherence to the safety protocols, has earned it the World’s Safest Airline rating. The rating was assigned to the company, which resumed flight operations in Nigeria on November 1, 2020, by the Safe Travel Barometer. The performance indicator was launched in 2020 to monitor safety measures and hygiene standards across all touchpoints of a traveller’s journey. It was observed that at every step of the journey, Emirates spared no effort to prioritise the care, health and safety of its customers, employees and communities. Out of the

By Dipo Olowookere Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited has disclosed that the global, randomized, Phase 3 ALTA-1L (ALK in Lung Cancer Trial of AP26113 in 1st Line) trial met its primary endpoint at the first pre-specified interim analysis, with ALUNBRIG (brigatinib) demonstrating a statistically significant improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) compared to crizotinib in adults with anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive (ALK+) locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who had not received a prior ALK inhibitor. The trial was designed to assess the efficacy and safety of ALUNBRIG in comparison to crizotinib based on evaluation of the primary endpoint of

By Adedapo Adesanya The Naira recorded a 30 kobo or 0.06 per cent loss against the United States Dollar at the Investors and Exporters (I&E) segment of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Tuesday to trade at N415.10/$1 compared with N414.80/$1 it traded on Monday. At the investors’ segment of the market, the turnover, according to data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange, stood at $323.56 million compared with $360.18 million achieved on Monday, indicating a decline in the value of transactions by 10.2 per cent or $36.64 million. This high turnover, though lower than the preceding session, put the local

By Dipo Olowookere A fund/portfolio manager with Fragracons Limited, Mr Jonah Ekpone Chijor, has been arraigned by the Port Harcourt Zonal Office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for an alleged case of criminal breach of trust. The suspect was brought before Justice E.A Obile of the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State on a two- count charge bordering on conspiracy and obtaining money by false pretence contrary to Section 8 (a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act. The fund manager

By Dipo Olowookere The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has promised to work “closely with the new government” of Ghana “in their efforts to design the required policies for restoring macroeconomic stability, high and sustainable growth and job creation.” This assurance was given after a team from the world financial institution led by Mr Joël Toujas-Bernaté, visited Accra from February 6-10, 2017 to take stock of the 2016 economic developments and the outlook for 2017. During the visit, the team engaged in a dialogue about the new government’s economic plans, and discuss prospects for program engagement with the IMF. The IMF

By Investors Hub Asian stocks ended mixed on Wednesday as investors monitored oil price movements and looked ahead to the U.S. Federal Reserve’s monetary policy decision later in the day. The Fed is expected to sound a bit more dovish after raising rates by 25 basis points. China’s Shanghai Composite Index tumbled 27.09 points or 1.1 percent to 2,549.56, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 51.14 points or 0.2 percent to 25,865.39. Trade remained in focus after U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said U.S.-China trade talks to expand a tariff truce are planned for January. Japanese shares fell as