Author: ITPulse

The era of consequence-free damage to Nigeria’s digital backbone has come to an end. The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) have issued a joint stern warning to construction companies and government contractors: the rising incidents of avoidable fiber-optic cable cuts due to negligence will no longer be excused. Under the Designation and Protection of Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII) Order 2024, telecommunication fiber is now officially classified as a critical national asset. This means any unauthorized digging or failure to coordinate with regulators that leads to damage is now a prosecutable criminal…

By Martin Ekpeke In a decade defined by rapid digital transformation, the Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN) has emerged as the bedrock of the nation’s digital economy, as newly released data reveals a staggering growth trajectory of IXPN’s aggregate peak traffic from a modest 4 Gbps in 2015 to a monumental 1.7 Tbps in 2025. This 42,400% increase is not just a statistical milestone; it is a testament to the success of local peering in domesticating Nigeria’s internet traffic. Reflecting on this ten-year journey, Muhammed Rudman, CEO of IXPN, noted that the shift toward local peering has fundamentally altered…

By Abdul Suleiman Nigeria may have lost over N400 billion in technical equipment, accessories, training, and first aid materials procured by the National Population Commission (NPC) for the botched 2023 census, investigations have shown. This is even as local contractors who supplied the materials and provided other logistics for the twice-postponed census have been lamenting the non-payment of debts owed them by the NPC. Three years after the supplies, contractors were said to have been owned a cumulative N100 billion, which some of the contractors argued should be reviewed in line with the devaluation of the Naira. Recall that in…

Global cloud communications giant Infobip is celebrating two decades of operations with a bold vision for the future of digital interaction. On its 20th anniversary, the AI-first company predicted a “seismic shift” in how brands and consumers interact, moving from traditional messaging to a world powered by autonomous AI agents. Since entering the West African market over five years ago, Infobip has become a cornerstone for digital transformation in Nigeria, supporting local banks, telcos, and retailers in adopting omnichannel solutions and positioning them to compete in a global, experience-driven economy. The tech landscape is currently moving away from Application-to-Person (A2P)…

MTN Foundation has solidified its position as Nigeria’s leading corporate social investment vehicle, announcing a cumulative spend of N32.3 billion since its inception. The figures, released in the Foundation’s “2025 Brag Sheet,” reveal an expansive footprint that now touches nearly every corner of the country. By focusing on sustainable development and community empowerment, the Foundation has successfully transitioned from a corporate CSR wing into a critical pillar of Nigeria’s social infrastructure. The Foundation reaches both urban hubs and rural heartlands through a hyper-local approach to development. Projects have been implemented across 590 Local Government Areas (LGAs) to ensure a wide…

By Martin Ekpeke In a major move to protect the backbone of the global digital economy, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has adopted a new suite of recommendations designed to shield submarine cables from disruption. The agreement was reached during the 2nd physical meeting of the International Advisory Body (IAB) on Submarine Cable Resilience, co-chaired by Nigeria’s Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, and Prof. Sandra Maximiano, Chairwoman of Portugal’s ANACOM. With submarine cables carrying over 99% of global internet data, the Porto summit underscored that these undersea lines are no longer just technical assets but…

The insurance industry, a sector famously built on the foundation of trust, is currently grappling with a paradox: while AI adoption is accelerating, a lack of robust data infrastructure and governance is keeping many firms from realizing the technology’s full potential. A new report by IDC, commissioned by SAS, reveals that insurers are taking a measured, and at times overly cautious, approach to AI compared to other sectors. Despite the buzz surrounding generative AI, the research indicates that many organizations are still struggling with “siloed” data and a shortage of specialized talent. The industry is often seen as a prime…

By the time you finish reading this article, the price of Bitcoin may have changed twice. That is the nature of cryptocurrency: fast, volatile, and borderless. Yet beyond price charts and trading apps lies a less discussed but critical pillar of Nigeria’s digital finance revolution: corporate communications. In the age of crypto, communication is no longer a support function. It is infrastructure. Nigeria is one of the world’s fastest-growing crypto markets. Chainalysis ranked the country second globally in cryptocurrency adoption in 2023, driven largely by everyday retail users rather than institutions. Between July 2023 and June 2024 alone, Nigerians received…

By Martin Ekpeke The leadership of ntel, the successor to the defunct NITEL, led by CEO Soji Maurice-Diya and CIO Anthony Adegbola, has met with the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, to discuss the future of the company and its role in Nigeria’s burgeoning digital economy. Though details of the outcome of the meeting are not disclosed, industry watchers and analysts believe the meeting earlier this month in Abuja could signal a major turning point for Nigeria’s telecommunications landscape. It is believed that the meeting, which also included Dr. Armstrong Ume Takang (MD/CEO of MOFI)…

In a landmark move for digital sovereignty, Google and a consortium of leading African research institutions announced the launch of WAXAL, a large-scale, open-access speech dataset. This initiative is designed to bridge the digital divide for over 100 million people across Sub-Saharan Africa by providing the foundational data needed to build inclusive AI technologies. While voice-enabled AI is common globally, a lack of high-quality data has historically sidelined Africa’s 2,000+ languages. WAXAL directly addresses this scarcity by offering resources for 21 languages, including Hausa, Yoruba, Luganda, and Swahili. Developed over three years with Google funding, the project features 1,250 hours…