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GITEX 2025: Let’s Use AI, Fintech, Others to Grow Economy, Says Sanwo-Olu

GITEX 2025: Let’s Use AI, Fintech, Others to Grow Economy, Says Sanwo-Olu

Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has urged innovators, investors and policymakers to leverage artificial intelligence, fintech, healthtech, edtech, agritech and other emerging sectors to grow Nigeria’s economy.

Sanwo-Olu made the call during the opening ceremony of the two-day GITEX Nigeria Tech Expo and Future Economy Conference 2025 in Lagos.

The conference was organised in partnership with KAOUN International and the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy.

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) is also a partner in organising the conference.

The governor said GITEX Nigeria was more than a showcase of technology, describing it as a platform for building partnerships and sparking innovation.

He said that it was also an opportunity to lay the groundwork for Nigeria’s ambition to become a $1 trillion economy by 2030.

“We are not just crafting a digital Nigeria; we are shaping a digital Africa that will inspire the world,” Sanwo-Olu said.

He said that Lagos was already positioning itself as the hub of Africa’s digital future.

Quoting the Financial Times, he said Nigeria was home to 23 of the fastest-growing companies.

According to the governor, this is evidence of a strong innovation ecosystem powered by government policies, private sector investment and resilient startups.

Sanwo-Olu noted that events such as GITEX created opportunities for talent development, expansion of digital infrastructure, and strategic partnerships.

He added that these opportunities would help transform traditional sectors such as education, healthcare and agriculture.

He urged participants to explore new technologies and ideas that could uplift underserved communities and promote inclusive growth.

According to him, the future economy conference and the startup festival at the Landmark Centre are designed to provide a platform where visionaries, investors and decision-makers can connect to shape Africa’s digital future.

Sanwo-Olu said Lagos was not just a city but a movement for innovation, adding that the outcomes from GITEX Nigeria would play a role in creating jobs and scaling local startups.

He stressed that it would also strengthen Nigeria’s competitiveness in the global economy. (NAN)

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Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has urged innovators, investors and policymakers to leverage artificial intelligence, fintech, healthtech, edtech, agritech and other emerging sectors to grow Nigeria’s economy. Sanwo-Olu made the
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Badaru: Terrorism Exploits Porous Borders, Socio-economic Disparities to Wreak Havoc in W/Africa, Sahel 

Badaru: Terrorism Exploits Porous Borders, Socio-economic Disparities to Wreak Havoc in W/Africa, Sahel 

Linus Aleke in Abuja 

The Minister of Defence, Mohammed Abubakar Badaru, has said that terrorism exploits porous borders, weak governance, and deep socio-economic disparities to wreak havoc in West Africa and the Sahel region.

He stated that modern-day terrorism has assumed a more complex and dangerous character.

Declaring open the Regional Conference on Combating Emerging Terrorist Groups and Strengthening Sustainable Security in the ECOWAS Region and the Sahel, organised by the National Counter Terrorism Centre, Office of the National Security Adviser (NCTC-ONSA) in collaboration with the ECOWAS Commission in Abuja Wednesday, the minister also noted that terrorism has become one of the greatest threats to peace and stability in West Africa and the Sahel.

He stressed that terrorism takes root in communities where grievances are left unaddressed and spreads through ungoverned spaces where institutions are absent.

While acknowledging that these realities are stark, the minister emphasised that they do not define the region’s destiny, rather, they are challenges that governments must confront collectively – with determination, innovation, and solidarity.

He said: “We are dealing with adversaries who are adaptive, highly networked, and increasingly sophisticated in their methods. Their collaboration with international terrorist organisations has created a web of instability that stretches across borders. They exploit encrypted communication platforms, deploy unmanned aerial systems, and radicalise vulnerable youth online.

“This evolution underscores the urgency of our meeting today. Terrorism, insurgency and insecurity are not abstract threats – they are existential challenges that endanger our people, our economies and our shared future.

“This conference is therefore more than an opportunity for dialogue; it is a call to action. We are gathered here to forge consensus, mobilise resources and design strategies that are both proactive and region-specific. The future stability of ECOWAS and the Sahel will depend on the decisions we take here – and the commitments we follow through afterwards.”

Preferring workable solutions,  Badaru said the operationalisation of the ECOWAS Standby Force must be pursued with renewed vigour.

According to him, “Harmonisation of legal frameworks across member states will ensure that terrorists and their support networks find no safe haven. The creation of a regional counterterrorism task force, fully trained and equipped for rapid deployment is an initiative we must embrace.

“At the same time, capacity building is essential. Our forces require not only modern equipment but also advanced training to meet the evolving challenges of counterterrorism. Thirdly, we must address the root causes of radicalisation. Military force is necessary but not sufficient. Poverty, unemployment, exclusion and poor governance provide fertile ground for extremist ideologies. Investing in education, strengthening community resilience, and ensuring good governance are equally critical to our long-term security. Winning the hearts and minds of our populations will deny extremist groups the local support they seek to exploit.”

In his welcome address, the National Coordinator of the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC), Major General Adamu Laka, stressed that these groups are not only multiplying but also exploiting digital spaces and new technologies to fight, radicalise and recruit, especially among the youth.

This evolving threat, Laka said, demands that the region match their adaptability with resilience, innovation and stronger collaboration across borders.

Noting that sustainable security is not solely about military action but about winning hearts and minds, restoring trust in governance and investing in human development, Laka stated that it is in this spirit that Nigeria established the National Counter Terrorism Centre under the Office of the National Security Adviser, to coordinate the country’s counterterrorism efforts.

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Linus Aleke in Abuja  The Minister of Defence, Mohammed Abubakar Badaru, has said that terrorism exploits porous borders, weak governance, and deep socio-economic disparities to wreak havoc in West Africa
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FG Tasks Information Commissioners on Partnership with ICPC to Fight Corruption

FG Tasks Information Commissioners on Partnership with ICPC to Fight Corruption

The Federal Government has called on state commissioners for information to join hands with the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Offences Commission (ICPC) to fight corruption.

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, made the call when he declared open a one-day Rountable Engagement on Strategic integration in fight against corruption on Wednesday in Abuja.

The Rountable with the theme, ‘Partnership for Strengthening Transparency and Accountability at State and Local Government Levels Through Strategic Communications’, was organised by ICPC.

Those in attendance included commissioners for information from Kaduna, Nasarawa, Oyo, Borno, Kwara, Ogun, Cross River, Taraba, Rivers, Kogi and Zamfara States.

Others were those of Adamawa, Kano, Bauchi, Yobe, Anambra and Gombe.

Also in attendance were the Directors-General of Voice of Nigeria, Malam Jibrin Ndace; Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, Dr. Mohammed Bulama; National Orientation Agency, Malam Lanre Issa-Onilu and some officials from the Presidency and National Assembly.

Idris said that the fight against corruption is in line with the eight-point priorities of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

He commended ICPC for the theme, adding that the presence of all the state commissioners for information, who have the onerous task of disseminating and cascading information to other strata of the Nigerian society, is remarkable.

“Fighting corruption is indeed one of the eight-point priority areas of President Tinubu’s administration and that is why the president is strengthening the institutional framework to fight corruption, especially through the ICPC and EFCC.

“By its policy of non-interference, the Tinubu administration has made it clear that anti-corruption agencies are not instruments of political witch-hunt; they operate with independence and professionalism in line with the established rule of law.

“However, the president has vowed that there will be no safe haven for corruption in Nigeria and he is also advancing far-reaching judicial reforms aimed at curbing unnecessary delays in corruption trials, ensuring that justice is neither denied nor endlessly deferred.

“I want to implore all of you that irrespective of the political parties you belong to, it is important you identify with the massive opportunities inherent in the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu.

“I want to draw our attention to the need to leverage the vast and effective assets of the agencies under the Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation to achieve effective outreach across Nigeria.

“I also want to implore you to partner with ICPC in this very important task they have in ridding Nigeria, not just of corruption but also the perception of corruption that is doing more harm than good to the people of this country,” Idris said.

Also speaking, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes, Senator Emmanuel Udende, described ICPC as custodian of public trust.

Udende urged the ICPC to continue to open its doors and share insights and see the machinery of information in the state not as a peripheral entity but as core operational power.

The lawmaker, who was represented at the event by Mr Uboh Emelike, challenged the commissioners to embrace the programme with zeal and creativity.

“See yourselves as generals in this war and with power of communication to win the hearts and minds of the people.

“Let us leave this room with a common agenda; a blueprint that will ensure our message of transparency, accountability and integrity to transverse the length and breadth of this country.

“Together, by strategically integrating communication into the anti-corruption architecture, we can build the Nigeria that we deserve,” Udende said.

The Chairman, House Committee on Anti-corruption, Hon. Kayode Akiola, urged the ICPC, information commissioners and other stakeholders to join and create a corrupt-free country where governance is transparent, accountable and true representative of the people.

The Commissioners for Information and Internal Security of Borno, Prof. Usman Tar, who spoke on behalf of his colleagues, appreciated ICPC and the Federal Government, promising they would collaborate with the relevant authorities to fight corruption. (NAN)

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The Federal Government has called on state commissioners for information to join hands with the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Offences Commission (ICPC) to fight corruption. The Minister of
The post FG Tasks Information Commissioners on Partnership with ICPC to Fight Corruption appeared first on THISDAYLIVE.