GRTech
Sanwo-Olu Announces Winner Of Lagos Smart Meter Hackaton


The Team Power Bit Crunchers and Team Zeena Platform have won the Hardware and Software categories of the Lagos Smart Meter Hackathon respectively with a combined prize of N10 Million and working space at Eko Innovation Centre among others.
The Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, announced that the hackathon is in line with the administration’s pursuit to improve the welfare of the people and a key pillar of the T.H.E.M.E.S Agenda to make Lagos a 21st Century Economy as it combines innovation, creativity and local capacity to deliver solutions that will improve access to electricity in Lagos.
In his words: “The Smart Meter Initiative is another demonstration of a promise kept by the State government as it aligns with the present administration’s T.H.E.M.E.S Agenda to make Lagos a 21st Century Economy. The result of the initiative would drive local capacity that for homegrown solutions to solve our challenges, which is a great move in transforming the electricity sector in the State”.
Governor Sanwo-Olu promised that his administration would continue to support the initiative and that the outcome of the programme has inspired the desire to do even more to drive local capacity and find homegrown solutions, while taking advantage of global opportunities to solve more challenges.
“The young people in Lagos and Nigeria have proven to be hardworking and brilliant and we will do all we can to support them through our various Ministries, Agencies with enabling policies and incentives”, he stated.
While encouraging all participants, especially those that were not declared winners to never give up, he urged them to continue to persevere and improve as the present administration is always ready to support creative and innovative ideas that would improve living standards of Lagosians while contributing positively to the growth of the economy.
On his part, the Deputy Governor, Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, stated that the Lagos Smart Meter Programme is an important way for the government to demonstrate its commitment to improving access to reliable and affordable smart meters.
Dr. Hamzat said, “The Lagos Smart Meter Hackathon, which is driving local talents to explore innovative and affordable ways to deliver smart meters for Lagos and Nigeria, is a key priority for our administration and we truly appreciate the support of all the sponsors and partners of the initiative”.
Also speaking at the event, the Honourable Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources, Mr. Olalere Odusote said that the Hackathon received 274 registrations, comprising of 127 in the hardware category and 147 for the software group, stressing that 65 hardware and software prototypes were, however, submitted by applicants.
According to him, the shortlisted five finalists from hardware category were: Cosmo Automation, Smart Energy, Techwizard, Power Bit Crunchers and Gadozz Electricals, while the five shortlisted software finalists were: Vectorians, Zeena Platform, Magnitronics Chosen, Soft Tech and Gideon from Lagos, Enugu, Kaduna, Benin and Oyo States respectively.
Speaking on their software prototype design, the representatives of Team Zeena Platform, Oluwasemi Oreoluwa and Adenitire Ayonikun, said that their smart meter software solution could fix tariffs and usage restrictions to guide electricity consumption by users, adding that administrators can control pricing, check working meters, energy consumption and perform oversight functions.
Olonma Ibrahim and Peter Okonma of Power Bit Crunchers, winners in the hardware category team, explained that their prototype smart meter can be monitored and controlled remotely, with additional tamper-proof functionalities which protect against bypass and other fraudulent activities.
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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