Author: Akin Naphtal

The Director-General of the National Identity Management Commission, NIMC, Abisoye Coker-Odusote, has said that NIMC and the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, are synergising with security agencies to track down kidnappers and rescue the victims. The disclosure was made by the DG, Odusote recently in Abuja at the Stakeholders Consultation Forum in Nigeria Digital Identification for Development Project, NDID4D. She said they were going to use the National Identity Numbers, NIN, and Subscribers Identity Modules, SIM, databases to track them down. The theme of the forum is, “Fostering Inclusion and Feedback Mechanism in the Nigeria Digital (ID4D) Project.” Odusote did not…

The Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems Limited (GhIPSS) has announced a strategic partnership with Visa to enable the processing of domestic transactions in Ghana Cedi with Visa cards issued in Ghana. GhIPSS posted a press release on 16th January 2024, noting that as Ghana’s National Payment Systems Infrastructure Provider, it will handle switching, clearing, and settling domestic Visa transactions between acquirers and issuers in the country. This collaboration aligns with the Bank of Ghana’s Guidelines for Domestic Processing of Payment Card Transactions with Payment Cards Issued in Ghana, published in August 2021. The guidelines aim to facilitate the processing…

Commvault has appointed Darren Thomson as its new Field Chief Technology Officer, EMEA & India. With over 30 years of industry experience, Thomson will contribute to shaping Commvault’s cyber resilience offerings, emphasizing data protection, threat detection, and rapid recovery capabilities. His extensive background includes leadership roles at One Identity, CyberCube, and Lloyds of London, as well as senior executive positions at Symantec and Veritas. ”I am incredibly excited to join a company that is truly redefining modern data protection and putting cyber resilience first,” said Thomson. “The recent unification of the Commvault Cloud platform powered by Metallic AI allows us…

Samsung Electronics has unveiled the Galaxy S24 Ultra, Galaxy S24+ and Galaxy S24, unleashing new mobile experiences with Galaxy AI. The Galaxy S series leads the way into a new era that will forever change how mobile devices empower users. AI amplifies nearly every experience on Galaxy S24 series, from enabling barrier-free communication with intelligent text and call translations, to maximizing creative freedom with Galaxy’s ProVisual Engine, to setting a new standard for search that will change how Galaxy users discover the world around them. “The Galaxy S24 series transforms our connection with the world and ignites the next decade…

Ghana’s Minister for Communications and Digitalisation, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, has officially launched the National Communications Authority (NCA) Five-Year Strategic Plan (2024-2028), aimed at making the Authority a more effective communications regulator. A press release posted by the NCA noted that the five-year plan, launched on 16th January 2024 at the NCA Tower, was developed in accordance with Section 3(b) of the NCA Act, 2008 (Act 769). Section 3(b) aims to “formulate a strategic plan”, which in turn sets clear goals and measurable steps for the Authority. During her keynote address, Hon. Owusu-Ekuful noted the necessity of the NCA’s regulatory work over…

Ukheshe, a South African fintech company, has disclosed to the public it has acquired the entire stake in EFT Corporation (EFTCorp), a payment solutions provider, from Loita Transaction Services (LXS) with the support of Development Partners International (DPI). This was revealed after Ukheshe acquired a South African startup, Oltio — the Masterpass developer — from Mastercard in 2020. Following this, Ukheshe and EFTCorp will continue to operate independently without losing their brand identities. Also, EFTCorp’s management and CEO, Stephen Enderby, will retain their involvement. Ukheshe Technologies, founded in 2018, is a financial services enabler that works with banks, telcos, and…

Google has announced a $1 billion investment in building a data centre just outside of London to address the growing demand for internet services in the region. The data centre will be situated on a 33-acre site in Waltham Cross, approximately 15 miles north of central London, which Google acquired in 2020. The investment is seen as a strategic move by the US technology giant to bolster its presence in the UK. The British government views Google’s investment as a “huge vote of confidence” in the country. The investment aligns with the government’s efforts to attract business investments, especially in…

Amazon Prime Video plans to layoff staff and cut content in Africa and the Middle East to focus primarily on European originals, as part of the restructuring efforts to improve its international business. Shows from the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region that have already been greenlit or contracted will proceed as planned, but there may be a halt in greenlighting local originals in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, and North Africa. Prime Video will continue to operate in these regions, but redundancies in local teams are anticipated. Simultaneously, the European team will be divided into two segments, both…

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has granted telco, Globacom, an additional 21-day grace period to resolve and settle outstanding interconnect fees owed to MTN, which has saved the telco from a phased disconnection. The NCC announced the extension in a press statement revealing that both MTN and Globacom, popularly known as Glo, “have now reached an agreement to resolve all outstanding issues between them.” The release also added that the NCC “expects MTN and Glo to resolve all outstanding issues within the 21 days.” On 8th January, the NCC issued a disconnection notice to Glo, granting MTN the authority to…

The National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA) has granted Telecom Egypt its license to install and operate fifth generation (5G) networks for mobile phones at a cost of USD 150m. The 5G license will be valid for a 15-year period. Telecom Egypt stated that 5G “will ultimately benefit the entire economy and improve Egypt’s international ranking in the ICT sector”. It added the network technology would enable domestic enterprises to better analyse large volumes of data and scale up their operations. 5G technology will provide lower latency, higher capacity, and increased bandwidth, which will improve the overall customer experience thanks to…