GRTech
NCC supports Nigeria Innovation Summit 2019; top speakers announced


The Nigeria Innovation Summit [NIS] 2019 has continued to garner supports and endorsements ahead of the August 20 and 21 event in Lagos.
The latest partnership came from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC); the country’s telecom regulator that has been on the vanguard for innovations, research and developments.
According to NCC, supporting NIS is in line with its commitment to promoting ICT innovation and investment opportunities and facilitating strategic collaboration and partnerships to grow the economy.
NIS is another unique opportunity to bring together key players/actors in the Nigerian technology ecosystem to deliberate and suggest policy, framework/strategy that could further deepen the sectorial contribution to other industries.
The collaborative Summit is a unique annual event that focuses on the need for the country, businesses, organisations, entrepreneurs to become more innovative and use innovation to drive sustainable development.
The Summit which is open to participation and sponsorship by Federal and State Government Agencies, indigenous and international organisations and individuals, helps Nigeria embrace innovation and move in the direction of digital transformation through the use of Emerging Technologies and Trends, Research, Development, Commercialization, Entrepreneurship and Investments as the key drivers of an innovation ecosystem.
This platform creates awareness on the need for Open Innovation in Nigeria, and challenges Nigeria to leverage innovation to become more competitive in the global economy.
The Summit holds Tuesday, August 20 and Wednesday August 21, 2019 at Sheraton Hotels, Ikeja Lagos, Nigeria, starting 9am each day. Registration is already on via the event website.
NIS, now in the fourth year, is an initiative led by Emerging Media and Advertising Services, New York, and Emerging Media Nigeria with support from TechEconomy.ng.
Confirmed speakers for the event include Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, EVC/CEO, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC); Obinnia Abajue, CEO, Hygeia HMO; Bruno Woeran, European Union Affairs Manager, Merinova Technology Centre (Finland); Tosin Faniro-Dada, Head, Startups (Lagos Innovates), Lagos State Employment Trust Fund; Prof Nii Quaynor, Africa Internet Pioneer
Chairman, Ghana Dot Com; Adesola Alli, Head, Renewable Energy, Strategy and Innovation at Sterling Bank Plc., Prof Wellington Oyibo
Director,Research and Innovation office, University of Lagos, amongst others.
Also, Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), Lagos State University (LASU), Landmark University, Mountain Top University, Igbinedion University, University of Port Harcourt, have all confirmed attendance with Bauchi, Kano, Edo and Ondo States indicated interest to participate aside other corporate organisations.
“We encourage world’s leading innovation providers from academic community, government and industry to partner with us in order to connect Nigerian businesses and innovators to global innovation ecosystems.
“We feel elated by NCC’s visionary approach in terms of supporting innovation in the country. Just recently, the Commission doled out millions of Nairs to support Universities to conduct R&D. this is what the country needs, especially to lift the economy from the quagmires of yesteryears.
Recall that Nigeria is placed 114th out of 129th in the recent Global Innovation Index. This is not acceptable. So, we call on all stakeholders to emulate NCC’s gestures towards supporting innovation in the country,” said the lead convener and Founder of Emerging Media, Kenneth Omeruo.
The key features of the Nigeria Innovation Summit are the Keynote Presentations and Panel Discussions from Industry/Business Leaders, Government, Investors, International Organisations, Top Entrepreneurs, CEOs and Innovation Managers across the world and across the focus sectors.
The Summit Focus for 2019:
Discussions at the Summit will drive attention to build an Innovation Ecosystem in Nigeria and connect with global innovation opportunities around the world and Exploring Open Innovation in Nigeria such as Innovation in Manufacturing Industry; Innovation through Emerging Technology Trends like Big Data and Data Centers, Cloud Computing, Internet of Things and Wearable Technologies.
Others are Innovation in Power and Energy, Agriculture, Banking, Finance and Investment, Oil and Gas, Education and Entrepreneurship, Health, Media and Entertainment, Women Technology and Entrepreneurship in Nigeria and Youths Technology and Entrepreneurship Development.
Similarly, the Nigeria Innovation Awards is another feature of the Summit, which recognizes and promotes States, Ministries, Companies, Organisations, Institutions, and Innovators that have embraced innovation to move Nigeria forward.
“Great Innovations come out of great Innovation Ecosystems. An innovation Ecosystem is made up of the Government/Public Sector participation, Businesses/Private and Industry participation, the academic/Research and development institutions, Entrepreneurs/Innovators and Startups.
“Each plays key roles and working together towards the goal of innovation and technology development in Nigeria. This is what Nigeria Innovation Summit is fostering.
“This year leading local and international organisations, government agencies, businesses will host workshops to educate, inform and empower Nigerians”, said Mr. Tony Ajah, the National Coordinator of NIS, explained.
GRTech
The Economics of Product Decisions: Applying Behavioural Economics and Game Theory in PM


Product managers often need to make a clear-cut decision: what should we build next? But the decisions which hold real importance go beyond adding features.
It’s about getting what makes people tick.
It goes way beyond what you would expect, getting into how people behave and using game theory.
These areas give insight into how users decide and how a product’s design can improve growth and keep people interested.
This is what Amarachi Nnochiri excels at. She is a senior product manager that knows how to use economics and psychology in her job.
She goes beyond simply managing product tasks; she develops whole product systems based on how users think, feel, and use a service. Her background shows how understanding human psychology and behaviour can give you a significant advantage in the competition.
One idea Amarachi uses is “loss aversion.” In this scenario, people feel worse about losing something than they feel good about gaining something of equal value.
She uses this when designing her products, mostly when it comes to pricing and getting people to try new strategies. For example, instead of giving a free trial, she might use a freemium setup where users get some stuff for free but could lose it if they don’t buy an upgrade. This pushes them to pay.
She might also use progress bars or streak counters, since losing progress gets people to keep using the product.
Amarachi also uses ideas from “game theory” to get how users act and change their behavior. She realizes that users are doing more than operating a product, but are playing a game with other users or with the product itself. She designs things that use ideas like “Nash equilibrium,” where nobody can do better by changing what they’re doing. For a social product, this could mean creating a system where doing something good for yourself (like inviting friends) also helps everyone else. This makes the whole thing stable and positive.
Her know-how in game theory also applies to making strong “network effects.” This means making stuff that gets better as more people use it.
A good example is a social network where each new user makes the product more helpful for everyone else. Amarachi endeavours to make things go viral on purpose, not just by luck.
She might use “commitment devices,” which are things that make a user stick with a behaviour by making them depend on it socially or functionally. For example, inviting team members to a tool makes the user stick with the platform and makes the product’s network stronger.
This way of thinking is better than just following the usual steps. By using these economic and psychological tricks, Amarachi develops competitive advantages which are difficult to replicate.
She knows that a company’s best thing is not just a simple interface, but a product that’s designed to sync with how people behave.
Her product choices aren’t just about the needs of users, but equally focus on motivating them to like the product, use it, and stick with it.
In her work, choosing a subscription price isn’t just a business thing; it’s about behaviour. Designing a social feed isn’t just about the content; it’s about balancing what people want and watching how they interact. Amarachi knows extensively about the economics of product decisions. This makes her products innovative and appealing to human behaviour, which leads to more use, keeps people around, and helps the product grow. She’s a leader in product management, where identifying customer desires is backed by understanding human motivation.


Technology Company, Globacom, has announced significant reductions in its International Direct Dialing (IDD) rates, making international calls more affordable for its existing and new customers across Nigeria.
Effective August 10, the new rates began applying to over 15 popular international destinations, including United States which will has moved to ₦30 per minute, down from ₦35, United Kingdom is now N350 from ₦400, while India also moved down to ₦40 from N45.
The rates for China, Saudi Arabia and Cameroon however recorded major reduction moving to N75, N300 and ₦700 respectively.
The reduction was also extended to African countries including Benin Republic which goes for ₦650 per minute, Niger Republic ₦750, Ghana ₦500, and Togo ₦650. United Arab Emirates also moved from ₦450 to ₦325, Germany to ₦550, Côte d’Ivoire ₦700, Libya ₦700, while calls to Malawi is now N1,100 from ₦1,200.
Glo aims to provide more value for its customers through these revised rates, encouraging them to make Glo their preferred network for international calls. New IDD bundles will also be introduced, offering frequent international callers even more attractive deals.
Globacom, which remained optimistic that frequent international callers will benefit immensely from the reductions in IDD bundles, enjoined customers to take advantage of the new rates to stay connected with friends and business associates across the globe.
GRTech
Oil subsidy removal freed up resources for infrastructure – Enugu Governor
By Orji Israel, South East Correspondent


The Executive Governor of Enugu State, Peter Mbah, has attributed the financing of numerous infrastructure projects embarked by the state government to the oil subsidy removal policy of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration.
He made this declaration at the Govermment House, Enugu, during a courtesy visit by a delegation of federal government led by Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, as part of activities lined up for the 2-day Citizens’ Engagement Series in the South East geo-political zone.
“For us in Enugu, we are able to accomplish all we promised our people during the campaign, thanks to the bold decision taken by President Bola Tinubu, which has freed up resources needed to execute humongous capital projects,” said Governor, while listing ongoing projects in the state, which include the construction of 7,000 classrooms, 3,300 hospital beds and 2,000-hectare of 260 farm estates across the 260 wards of the state.
Governor Mbah also pledged more support for the policies of the federal government, saying they are in the best interest of the people of the state.
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