In line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda to make Nigeria Food Secured, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Dr. Ernest Umakhihe has inaugurated the Inter-departmental Technical and Implementation Committee (The Working Group) for the National Animal Identification and Traceability System (NAITS) to identify, track and curb livestock rustling in Nigeria.

Speaking during the event that took place at the Hon. Minister’s Conference room, recently, the Permanent Secretary who was represented by Director Planning and Policy Coordination, Mr. Ibrahim Taminu said that the implementation of NAITS would support livestock owners to identify their animals, curb livestock rustling, facilitate interventions in the livestock sector, provision of credit and insurance, livestock movement control, animal recording for genetic improvement and research, ease of traceability, surveillance, animal disease control and enable trade.

He emphasized that the NAITS was a comprehensive animal information management system that would utilize forgery-proof ear tags and cattle passports combined with digital technology to identify and track livestock across Nigeria.

He added that technology advancement had rapidly enhanced productivity across all sectors of the economy, noting that the progress made so far to actualize Animal Identification and Traceability in Nigeria as well as other innovations in Agriculture have been largely driven by digital transformation which has produced exponential results.

The Permanent Secretary recalled that NAITS was officially launched by the immediate past Minister, Dr. Muhammed Abubakar on the 17th of November 2022 and its operational management Centre was based in the Department of Animal Husbandry Services.

He added that a lot of sensitization activities had been going on in selected states for their buy-in and adoption for national coherence of efforts at achieving a robust livestock information database, improved production and efficient animal disease control.

In his remarks, the Chief Operating Officer, Mega Corp, Mr. Uchenna Ononye pointed out the benefits of NAITS to include; the ability to identify and trace all livestock in the country, security management, data collation, improved animal husbandry, increased employment amongst others, adding that an App had been developed to that effect and called on government for creation of more awareness and sensitization.

The Inter-Departmental Technical and Implementation Committee for NAITS was one of the required standing structures for full implementation of the system charged with the following Terms of Reference (ToR); to review the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for NAITS, review the existing MoU with MegaCorp (Technical Partner) and facilitate the buy-in and adoption of the system by MDAs and State governments.

The inauguration marks the kick-off of the committee’s activities for achieving the aforementioned functions and members of the Committee were drawn from the Ministry and its agencies, as well as

As organisations continue to become more digitised, throughout 2023 Africa remains one of the world regions most targeted by cybercrime. At a recent press conference in Johannesburg, Kaspersky (www.Kaspersky.co.za) shared some insights and statistics related to the regional threat landscape in the third quarter of 2023 and made forecasts on how the situation is going to develop in 2024.

Web threats
Web threats are Internet-based threats that expose people and computer systems to harm online. There was a 24% increase in the number of corporate users affected by web threats from Q2 to Q3 2023 in South Africa. However, comparing Q3 2022 to Q3 2023, there was an 8% decline in the number of corporate users affected by web threats.

Phishing
Phishing is a type of Internet fraud that seeks to acquire a user’s credentials by deception. It includes theft of passwords, credit card numbers, bank account details and other confidential information.

Phishing attacks detected in Kenya in Q3 2023 increased by 32% compared to Q2 2023 and by 12% compared to Q3 2022. In Nigeria, there was a 12% increase in phishing attack detections in Q3 2023 compared to Q2; however, compared to Q3 2022, the number of phishing detects decreased by 8%.

Attacks on Industrial Control Systems
Africa is among the regions with the highest number of detected attacks on industrial control systems (ICS computers). ICS computers are used in energy and mining sectors, automotive manufacturing, building automation infrastructures and other spheres to perform a range of operational technology functions – from the workstations of engineers and operators to supervisory control and data acquisition servers.

In Q3 2023, according to Kaspersky ICS CERT¹, attacks were detected on 32% of ICS computers in Africa. In South Africa, attacks were detected on 22% of machines, in Kenya – on 28%, in Nigeria – on 25%. Globally, malicious objects were detected on 25% of ICS machines in Q3 2023.

Attacks on the Internet of Things
The number of attacks on Internet of Things (IoT) devices has been increasing exponentially over the last years globally. This is related both to the activity of criminal actors and to the increasing number of IoT devices that are in use by individual users, businesses, and production facilities. IoT devices include not only wearables and smart home appliances, but also smart city systems, self-driving cars, automated retail checkouts, and other smart devices for home and business use. These devices can collect and transfer data over a wireless network without human input. Cybercriminals use networks of infected smart devices to conduct DDoS attacks or as a proxy for other types of malicious actions.

In Q3 2023, South Africa accounts for 28% of attacks on IoT devices that were detected by Kaspersky in the African region. Kenya accounts for 12% of attacks on IoT devices, and Nigeria – for 6%. All these attacks were spotted on Kaspersky IoT honeypots – decoy devices used to attract the attention of cybercriminals and analyse their activities.

“In forecasting the development of the cyberthreat landscape for 2024, we anticipate a dynamic evolution of cyberthreats marked by an upsurge in state-sponsored cyber-attacks, and ‘hacktivism’ will become one of the norms of cyber-warfare,” comments Bethwel Opil, Enterprise Client Lead at Kaspersky in Africa. “The prevalence of accessible generative AI is set to fuel an expansion of spear-phishing tactics, while the creative exploitation of vulnerabilities in mobile and IoT devices will be on the rise. Businesses today should be proactive and counter these cyberthreats with advanced technologies such as threat feeds, security information and event management systems, endpoint detection and response solutions, and tools with digital forensics and incident response features.”

To protect organisations from cyberthreats, Kaspersky experts recommend:

• Organisations should conduct regular cyber skill checkups among employees and offer competent training. Kaspersky Security Awareness (https://apo-opa.co/3Ni4NeD) portfolio offers flexible ways to train staff, is easily customisable and scalable to meet the needs of any company size.
• Corporate users should be educated on potential privacy risks when working in virtual environments. Organisations should implement best practices in safeguarding personal and corporate data.
• Install updates for the firmware used on digital devices (including virtual headsets) as soon as they become available.
• Use Cyber Immune (https://apo-opa.co/4a9jx9I) solutions for IoT protection on corporate networks. Use a dedicated IoT gateway that ensures inbuilt security and reliability of data transferring.
• Use Kaspersky Threat Intelligence (https://apo-opa.co/4a9sf7B) to block network connections originating from malicious network addresses detected by security researchers.
• Establishing continuous vulnerability assessment and triage as a basement for effective vulnerability management process. Dedicated solutions like Kaspersky Industrial CyberSecurity (https://apo-opa.co/46ZA6lH) may become an efficient assistant and a source of unique actionable information, not fully available in public.

Tony Elumelu Foundation (https://www.TonyElumeluFoundation.org) Hosts US Administration, WTO, UNDP, IFC, UNICEF, Rockefeller Foundation Leaders; Champions equitable partnerships to catalyse a new generation of green entrepreneurs; Announces partnership to fund young African entrepreneurs in Green sector with Ikea Foundation, Dutch Government, and UNICEF Generation Unlimited; Secures commitments to support Africa’s youth to drive climate resilience from World Trade Organisation, World Bank, UNDP, Government of Sweden, IFC, US State Department, and others.

At a series of events across COP28, Tony Elumelu delivered a single message to world leaders: Africa needs to be heard, Africa’s future is the world’s future and the continent that is most impacted by and the least contributor to climate change, needs our attention. With African youth set to make up one third of global population later this century, the future of Africa’s youth, entrepreneurial, ambitious, resilient, needs to be given the highest priority.

Elumelu offered the infrastructure and experience of his own Foundation’s 10 year $100m entrepreneurship programme to partners, to catalyse a further generation of African entrepreneurs; entrepreneurs who can address climate change and drive the broader wealth creation that Africa requires. Reaching and funding young entrepreneurs in every African country, the Elumelu approach of sector agnostic seed funding, mentoring, and networking has delivered robust impact.

The annual COP UN Climate Change Conferences unites the world to assess progress in combatting climate change. Elumelu is one of Africa’s leading advocates for an equitable agenda for climate action and through the Tony Elumelu Foundation has empowered thousands of green entrepreneurs, shaping a more sustainable future for Africa.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation, in partnership with the United Bank for Africa (UBA), hosted a high-level session, bringing together Africans, and key players in the Gulf, Europe, and Americas, where UBA operates, underscoring the urgent need for innovative approaches to climate adaptation and mitigation, while fostering sustainable development, and bringing attention to Africa’s unique position.

Speakers included Dr. Okonjo Iweala, Director General, World Trade Organization; Ahunna Eziakonwa, Assistant Administrator and Regional Director for Africa, UNDP, Kevin Frey, CEO, UNICEF Generation Unlimited; Sergio Pimenta, VP Africa, IFC; Wendy Teleki, Head of the Women Entrepreneurs Financial Initiative, World Bank; Adam Wang-Levine, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for Climate; Joseph Nganga, Vice President, Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, Rockefeller Foundation; Hassan Al Hashemi, VP International Relations, Dubai Chambers; Serge Ekué, Chairman, West African Development Bank (BOAD); Muyiwa Akinyemi, Deputy Group Managing Director, United Bank for Africa; and Mattias Frumerie, Swedish Climate Ambassador and Head of Delegation, UNFCCC.

“Addressing climate change is the paramount challenge of our era. The urgency is unmistakable.”  Elumelu stated. “It is critical that Africa, as a continent, and African voices, play a key role in global climate conversations, as meaningful participants, and no longer as bystanders. Africa is least responsible and is disproportionately impacted by climate change. I am investing in a generation of green entrepreneurs, and we are extending the hand of partnership, so that others can benefit and use the infrastructure and platform we have created to reach entrepreneurs across Africa.”

Elumelu represented the African private sector at the 2023 New Global Financing Pact in Paris at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron, and the Climate Finance Mobilisation Forum in London, at the invitation of King Charles III of the United Kingdom and U.S. President Biden. At the 78th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA78) in New York, the Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) launched a first-of-its-kind Green Entrepreneurship Programme, the #BeGreenAfrica Initiative, in partnership with the IKEA Foundation, Dutch Government and UNICEF GenU, to support green entrepreneurship and youth development.

Tony Elumelu Entrepreneur from Madagascar in the green economy, Marie-Christiana Kola, shared a compelling impact story.  “As a beneficiary of the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship programme, I was able to create a recycled and 100% biodegradable hand soap made with waste cooked oil – the number one water polluter of water in African urban cities. These soaps do not only protect the environment, but they are also solidarity soaps.  I was also able to attend the COP27 conference in Egypt, where I won the Innovation Prize. Today, I have employed over 30 people because of the Tony Elumelu Foundation.”

Speaking at the TEF #COP28 high-level event, Dr. Okonjo Iweala, DG, World Trade Organisation stated, “I am proud of what my brother, Tony Elumelu, has done in empowering and inspiring so many young entrepreneurs. We have no choice; the future is green. The future of growth is two things – it is green, and it must be inclusive. I am very interested in partnerships with organisations like TEF.”

Ahunna Eziakonwa, Assistant Administrator and Regional Director for Africa, UNDP added, “The reason why UNDP associated itself with the Tony Elumelu Foundation years ago is because of the leadership and courage of the Foundation to trust and invest in young Africans. It was one of the first organisation to do so at that scale.”

The Foundation partnered with the UNDP to empower thousands in the Sahel, with an ambitious project to impact the lives one million young Africans.

Sergio Pimenta, VP, Africa at the IFC, also stated, “Tony, I salute you and your Foundation for what you have been doing to support young entrepreneurs in Africa. The IFC has deployed $2billion in funding for African SMEs in the last fiscal year and we are very excited to be able to do more, working with you.”

Kevin Frey, CEO UNICEF Generation Unlimited added, “With TEF, we have moved in a concerted way into the entrepreneurial space. Generation Unlimited now have a flagship programme with the Tony Elumelu Foundation called #BeGreenAfrica, launched in Kenya, and now with the support of the IKEA Foundation and the Dutch Government, we have scaled to Nigeria, Morocco, South Africa, and Senegal. We will train and seed 500 green entrepreneurs this year in the pilot project across those countries. So Tony, thank you so much, you are right it is all about partnerships.”

Wendy Teleki, Head of the Women Entrepreneurs Financial Initiative at the World Bank, announced, “Our women-focused initiative has been able to secure $3.6 billion to finance women entrepreneurs in 67 countries across the world, and is set to launch a new programme focused on financing African women entrepreneurs to drive the continent’s green energy transition, and we are keen to work with the Tony Elumelu Foundation.”

Mattias Frumerie, Swedish Climate Ambassador and Head of UNFCCC Delegation stated, “My Government and I commend the Tony Elumelu Foundation’s incredible impact across Africa, and will facilitate connections between the Tony Elumelu Foundation, and the Swedish embassies across Africa to drive innovation, digitalisation, and green-energy transition, which promises to bring about new jobs and growth.”

Adam Wang-Levine, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for Climate, added” Before coming to the United States Treasury, I was working in venture capital, and I know first-hand that it is incredibly important what the Tony Elumelu Foundation is doing. I have seen two pillars of their work – financing and the mentorship – just as I have seen with Silicon Valley, which helps to drive innovation and jobs creation. We are excited to begin partnership conversations.”

Muyiwa Akinyemi, Deputy GMD, United Bank for Africa, announced, “For us, UBA, we give market access into 20 geographies in Africa.  Everything that we do is around Africa, and that is why we have partnered with the Afrexim Bank to launch the $6billion fund for SMEs with a focus on import substitution, working in four key areas including climate emission reduction.”

Earlier in the day, Tony Elumelu joined Ajay Banga, President of World Bank Group; Brian Moynihan, Chair of the Board and CEO of Bank of America; Ms. Ruth Porat, President, Alphabet and Google; and Ms. Laurene Powell Jobs, Founder & President of Emerson Collective as a panelist in a session titled “Big, Audacious and Green: A Convergence of Visionaries”, moderated by Børge Brende, President of World Economic Forum.

On Sunday December 3 Mr. Tony Elumelu, also participated in a fireside conversation with Ms. Teresa Ribera, Vice President of the Government of Spain and Minister for Ecological Transition and Demographic Change, moderated by Sec. Hillary Rodham Clinton, and with closing remarks from Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, World Health Organization.

  Deepgram, a leading provider of cutting-edge speech recognition technology, and Black Box, a renowned innovator in delivering communication and technology solutions, are partnering to bring the latest in automated speech recognition (ASR) technology to customer experience (CX) solutions and services. Leveraging Deepgram’s advanced ASR technology, this strategic partnership will empower Black Box’s CX customers with state-of-the-art tools to enhance communication, streamline operations and ultimately elevate the overall customer experience.

“This collaboration marks a significant milestone in the evolution of CX, as we join forces to bring the latest in ASR technology to Black Box’s valued customers,” said Abe Pursell, vice president, business development and partnerships at Deepgram Inc. “Together, we aim to redefine the standards of customer experience.”

“Our strategic partnership with Deepgram represents a significant step forward in our mission to provide the very best CX solutions,” said Reid Puckett, Black Box vice president of customer experience. “Offering exceptional accuracy and efficiency in speech recognition, Deepgram’s advanced ASR technology is poised to revolutionize the way businesses engage with their customers. By integrating this technology into our portfolio of cutting-edge Conversational AI solutions, we are enhancing our ability to deliver exceptional value to our CX customers, and empowering them to achieve new levels of efficiency and customer satisfaction.”

Key benefits of the partnership between Deepgram and Black Box include:

1. Exceptional Accuracy: Deepgram’s ASR technology boasts industry-leading accuracy, ensuring precise transcription and understanding of spoken language, even in challenging environments.
2. Increased Efficiency: By automating speech recognition processes, Black Box’s CX customers can streamline operations, reduce response times and enhance overall efficiency in communication.
3. Customizable Solutions: Deepgram’s flexible and customizable ASR solutions allow Black Box to tailor the technology to the unique needs of each customer, ensuring a seamless integration into existing workflows.
4. Worldwide Availability: Black Box is a global solutions integrator that supports more than 600 of the Fortune 1000 companies in various consulting, implementation and managed services capacities. Operating in over 140 countries with 75 support centers on six continents, the partnership extends the reach of Deepgram solutions around the world.

“Both Deepgram and Black Box share a commitment to innovation and delivering exceptional solutions to their customers, and this partnership aligns with that commitment, providing our CX customers with a competitive edge in an increasingly dynamic business landscape to leverage the latest AI solutions,” said JD Ackley, global CX services business development manager at Black Box. “This collaboration between Deepgram and Black Box sets the stage for a transformative era in customer experience, where the power of ASR technology is a cornerstone for businesses seeking to stay ahead in a rapidly evolving AI market.”

Further information about Deepgram is available at www.deepgram.com. More information about Black Box is available at www.blackbox.com.

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About Deepgram Inc.
Deepgram Inc. is a leading provider of Automated Speech Recognition (ASR) technology, offering cutting-edge solutions that redefine the way businesses interact with spoken language. With a focus on accuracy, efficiency, and customization, Deepgram empowers organizations across industries to unlock the full potential of voice data.

About Black Box
Black Box® is a trusted global IT solutions provider offering cutting-edge technology solutions and consulting services that drive customer success by uniting people, ideas, and technology to solve business challenges. Our IT infrastructure solutions ensure secure connectivity and collaboration across major markets on six continents. We provide tailored support for your CX journey, whether it’s through versatile agent desktops, seamless digital channels, or strategic outbound initiatives aligned with your values to boost brand awareness.

To learn more, visit the Black Box website at www.blackbox.com. Follow the company on X, formerly known as Twitter, @BlackBox_ns. Black Box® and the Double Diamond logo are registered trademarks of BB Technologies, LLC.

DCSL Corporate Services Limited, a leading corporate service firm is set to celebrate a decade of professional excellence and launch an innovative boardroom app – “The DCSL e-Connect App” on Friday 8^th December 2023.

Bisi Adeyemi, Managing Director of DCSL, reflected on the significant milestones achieved in the past decade and reiterates the Company’s commitment to delivering unparalleled professional services across its bouquet of offerings to diverse sectors of the economy.

“Our ten-year journey has been propelled by an unwavering commitment to delivering exceptional professional service to a diverse range of corporate and individual clients across various business sectors. The introduction of the DCSL eConnect app marks a pivotal moment, as we embark on a new era of transformative possibilities, reinforcing our dedication to innovation and precision in communication and collaboration within the boardroom.

This celebration marks not only a milestone in our journey but also a testament to our commitment to excellence and innovation in the corporate services landscape”.

The DCSL eConnect App is designed to elevate boardroom communication, collaboration and redefine efficiency. The innovative App will empower Boards and c-suite executives to efficiently manage meetings, streamline access to and retrieval of documents, facilitate approvals, conduct polls and performance evaluation, all while ensuring compliance and tracking company plans.

The exclusive event will be graced by key stakeholders, clients, business leaders, and media partners.

Instagram, the leading social media platform for visual storytelling, has announced a significant update to its editing toolkit, aimed at empowering creators and users to elevate their content creation experience within the app.

The latest enhancements introduce a diverse range of tools tailored for reels, feed photos, carousels, and stories, fostering a seamless and dynamic creative process directly within the Instagram ecosystem.

For reels, users can now harness an array of advanced video editing features enabling greater creative expression and streamlined storytelling, all accessible within the app. Meanwhile, feed posts and carousels are set to receive a boost with new filters designed to explore varied tones and moods for posts, enriching visual content possibilities.

Notably, alongside these editing advancements, Instagram has developed new analytical tools to equip creators with deeper insights into their content’s performance.

Key highlights of the update include:

• Reels Editing Updates: Introducing an assortment of enhancements such as new fonts for text overlay, refined clip editing functionalities including zoom, crop, and rotation, the addition of undo and redo capabilities, and the integration of 10 fresh text-to-speech voices.
• Audio Updates: Rollout of an innovative feature allowing users to incorporate audio clips from movies, TV shows, or self-generated audio into reels, accessible via the new media clip hub.
• New Feed Photo Filters: Launching an exciting range of brand-new photo filters for feed posts and carousels, expanding creative options for visual content.
• Performance Insights for Creators: Unveiling a novel metric, ‘Reels Replays,’ enabling creators to gain comprehensive insights into their reels’ performance, empowering informed content optimization.
• Custom Stickers: Introducing the ability to transform any section of a photo or video into a personalized sticker, enhancing the visual appeal of Reels and Stories.

This comprehensive suite of updates underscores Instagram’s commitment to fostering creativity, enabling users to unlock new dimensions of expression, and providing creators with robust tools to drive engagement and performance.