The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has welcomed the proposal of Nile University seeking collaboration in the areas of software engineering, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and programming.

As the Commission is set to announce the winner of its one year guest research fellow from the university next week.

During a courtesy Visit from Nile University Nigeria, led by the Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Osman Nuri Aras, the Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Professor Umar Danbatta, said the proposal for collaboration between the two institutions is one the Commission welcomes.

“One of the cardinal pillars underpinning the Commission’s Strategic Management Plan is strategic partnership with relevant stakeholders, through mutually sustainable collaborations. At the Commission, we are always open to ideas and innovations, which is the hallmark of the academic community which the University represents.

Represented by the Director Human Capital and Administration NCC, Usman Malah, Danbatta restated commitment to bridge the knowledge gap between theories and practice. “As a life-long diligent member of the academic community, I look forward to every opportunity for bridging the knowledge gap between the academia and the practice community. As different sectors of our nation’s economy struggle to overcome the temporary challenges occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic, we shall continue to build the necessary relationships and also establish the measures that will enhance the performance of critical stakeholders within different sectors of the Nigerian economy,” he explained.

According to Him, “in the wake of the lockdowns and other restrictions occasioned by Covid-19, we have all witnessed, first hand, the potential positive impact of telecommunications and ICTs across all the key sectors of the Nigerian economy, with the education sector becoming a major participant in the phenomenal use of ICTs to drive performance.

We are also witnessing how the need for further self-development in a Covid-19 era, has prompted our staff to seek further capacity enhancement programs with educational institutions, such as the Nile University of Nigeria.”

Danbatta assured the Management of Nile University of the Commission’s determination to partner all stakeholders for development of the country. “The Commission, will therefore, continue to remain fully committed to ensuring synergy, through its strategic collaborations with relevant stakeholders, such as the Nile University of Nigeria, in order to ensure that the overall socio-economic development objectives of the Federal Government of Nigeria are met”

Meanwhile, the Head Academia Research Support, Research and Development department, NCC, Mr. Kelechi Nwakwo, revealed,
that the Commission will by next week announce the winner of the university lecturer that will spend one year in the Commission’s research and development department as a research fellow.

“We invite university lecturers to come and spend one year as research fellows in the Research and Development department of the Commission. This has been approved by management and request was sent to all universities in Nigeria and a winner has emerged and will be announced next week.”

Professor Aras said they are here to improve Nile University’s relationship with the NCC which in turn will favour Nigeria and the future of Nigeria. “We want to improve our relationship with public and private institutions and that’s why we are here. Our collaboration is in favour of Nigeria and the future of Nigeria, he said.

He added that Human capital resources is key to socio-economic and peaceful coexistence in developing countries which can only be achieved through synergy and collaboration.

Dominica Nwabufo

The Nigerian Federal Capital Territory, FCT, has been chosen to serve as the pilot State for the implementation of the National Emergency Medical Service and Ambulance System (NEMSAS).

This was disclosed during a courtesy visit of the NEMSAS Working Group led by the Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire to the FCTA.

Speaking during the visit, the Minister of Health, Dr Osagie said that the availability of an Emergency Medical and Ambulance service in the country could save up to 50% of lives lost due to the non-availability of such services.

Dr Ehanire also revealed that section 18 of the National Health Act empowers the Minister to engage the private sector to work with the public sector in any endeavor for the benefit of the country.

The Minister said the Association of General Private Medical Practitioners and the Guild of Medical Directors were already engaged, as 60%-70% of medical services in the country were provided by the private sector.

The Minister also said that the ambulances that would participate in the scheme would be drawn from the private and public sectors which would be accredited and paid from a laid down mechanism that would guarantee payment for providers of such services.

Speaking during his presentation on the workings of NEMSAS, the Chairman of its Emergency Treatment Committee, Dr Felix Ogedegbe said that the FCT was selected as the pilot for the programme.

Competent leadership
He said the FCT was chosen due to the availability of competent leadership, pre-hospital and in-hospital emergency services and an adequate monitoring and evaluation environment.

“We feel that the FCT has a very healthy environment to be able to pilot the scheme with a strong and competent leadership here that we can speak to, that we can actually work with, leadership in the political space and leadership in the medical space,” he said.

He continued “there is potentially available pre- hospital and in-hospital medical services that will be able to afford care to all the disease ranges that we can find. There is a well laid down structure in the FCT and we think this is the best place to start.”

The Permanent Secretary, FCTA, Mr Olusade Adesola who received the visiting health team on behalf of the FCT Minister, said that being chosen to serve as the pilot state for such an important national health programme was an honour to the FCT.

He said that there was the availability of good road network, functional communication systems and good urban facilities that can support the scheme.

Speaking further he said “from our part, we are ready. We will be willing to partner with the technical team so that we can take this service to the next level. We want to see it deployed early enough so that residents of the FCT, our unity city, will know that indeed, there is a government that cares for them.”

The Director General of the FCT Emergency Management Agency, Dr Idriss Abass, lauded the programme, saying  that it could not have come at a better time.

Also present at the event were the Chief of Staff to the FCT Minister, Malam Bashir Mai-Bornu, the Acting Secretary of the Health and Human Services Secretariat, Dr Muhammed Kawu, the General Manager of the Hospital Management Board, Dr Francis Alu.

Also present were the Director of the medical and diagnostics Department of the HHSS Dr Abubakar Ahmadu, Director, Department and Communication, Mrs Stella Ojeme  and other senior members of staff of the FCTA.

Lateefah Ibrahim

The House of Representatives’ Committee on Host Communities says it will use legislative measures to correct the acts of injustices meted on oil producing communities in Nigeria, particularly in the Niger Delta region.

The Chairman of the newly created Committee, Mr. Dekor Robinson who stated this at the inaugural sitting of the Committee in Abuja said actions against oil bearing communities in the region has caused untold poverty and deprivation among people of the region.

Mr. Robinson described the manner in which the government and oil companies treated host communities as “gross injustice,” a situation he said the committee was created to address.

The lawmaker who expressed appreciation to the leadership of the House for creating the committee, a first in the history of the National Assembly, said host communities have felt little or no impact from their oil in spite of the fact that much revenues had been derived from them.

“Nothing to show for their God given wealth, their social life has been neglected, how can people so endowed have little or nothing to show for it,” he queried.

Mr. Robinson urged members of the committee to come up with ideas that would enhance the implementation of their work plan.

“The inability of the government to protect host communities is a violation of their rights. Such injustice had led to their water being contaminated and ejection from their ancestral homes coupled with absolute denial of their means of livelihood.

Mr Robinson added that Part of what the committee was set up to achieve was to enhance peaceful coexistence between oil companies and the host communities.

Lateefah Ibrahim

The Federal Capital Territory, FCT branch of All Nigeria Confederation of Principals of Secondary School (ANCOPS) has inaugurated new leaders that would be running the affairs of the body for the next four years.

The executives, who were drawn from both Junior and Secondary Schools across the territory, promised a robust system that would add more value to the schools.

Fielding questions from Journalists after he was sworn-in as the new FCT ANCOPS  President, Alhaji Adam Bello Gupa said his leadership would consolidate on the gains of the previous leaders.

He explained that a new template would be developed to capture all the programmes needed to move the schools forward.

Gupa said all members of ANCOPS would be trained both within and abroad to meet up with the educational current realities.

“We will continue with the good work,  where our predecessors have stopped to ensure that basic education is achieved,” he stated.

He said the principals would stop at nothing to ensure that members put in their best.

Gupa further stated that, “Capacity building for teachers, the training will be within the country and abroad”.

In his farewell message, the outgoing ANCOPS President, Abdulkarim Abdulrahaman said his leadership recorded achievements that would stand the test of time.

He called on them to work in unity, and project education activities.

The new president currently is the Principal Government Secondary School, Kuje.

Lateefah Ibrahim