NAIJAFEED

Thursday, November 3, 2022

Amazon Web Services opens office in Nigeria

Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS) has announced the opening of its first office in Lagos, Nigeria.

Disclosing this in a statement on Wednesday, the company said the new office was part of its support for the growing number of customers and partners in Nigeria.

AWS is a subsidiary of Amazon, an American e-commerce company, that provides on-demand cloud computing platforms and APIs to individuals, companies, and governments, on a metered pay-as-you-go basis.

The development is Amazon’s latest investment in Africa, and it comes five years after its first office was opened in Johannesburg in 2017.

The e-commerce company said the office will support organisations of all sizes, including startups, enterprises, and public sector agencies as they make the transition to AWS cloud.

With the Lagos office, it said, AWS can better address the increase in customer and partner adoption of its services in Nigeria.

Commenting on the development, Amrote Abdella, regional manager of Sub-Saharan Africa, AWS, said with its local presence, the company will support new and existing clients looking to use its products and services to innovate, lower their information technology (IT) costs, and grow their organisations in the cloud.

“We are excited to open our first AWS office in Nigeria. Lagos offers a highly skilled and creative talent pool, and the area is home to many fast-growing startups and notable Nigerian enterprises leading the way in digital innovation,” Abdella said.

“We look forward to fostering the country’s pioneering spirit and helping our customers accelerate their digital transformation as they deliver innovative new products and services to the Nigerian community.”

Regarding plans for businesses, Amazon said it would actively support Nigerian startups and the community with educational programmes.

“AWS activate provides startups with the resources they need to get started on AWS, including up to $100,000 in AWS credits, training, support, and contact with incubators, accelerators, and venture capital firms. AWS academy helps university students and educators develop knowledge and skills about AWS cloud computing, to accelerate cloud-related learning,” it added.

“…member institutions in Nigeria include the University of Benin, University of Jos, and Igbinedion University. AWS re/Start is a 12-week, in-person, skills-based training program that covers fundamental AWS cloud skills and practical career skills, such as interviewing and resume writing, to help prepare individuals for entry-level cloud positions.

“AWS also has a vibrant user group in Lagos, with hundreds of members that organise local meetups for developers to network and share best practices and knowledge. To join the AWS Nigeria user group, visit the AWS User Group page.”

On his part, Isa Pantami, minister of communications and digital economy, said having such a development will boost the digital economy of the country.

Pantami said the service infrastructure pillar of the national digital economy policy and strategy (NDEPS) emphasises the importance of “digital platforms in the development of a robust digital economy”.

“The programs of Amazon Web Services support the development of such platforms and we look forward to partnering with AWS to accelerate the implementation of NDEPS,” he said.

The Cable, by Busola Aro

Video - Amazon Prime Video signs deal with Nollywood

Dozens of children kidnapped from farm by Gunmen

Dozens of children were abducted by gunmen from a farm in northern Katsina state and the kidnappers were demanding a ransom for their release, police and residents said on Wednesday.

Katsina is the home state of President Muhammadu Buhari and is among states in northwestern and north central Nigeria where armed gangs on motorbikes have killed people or kidnapped them for ransom from villages and highways.

Police spokesman for Katsina Gambo Isah confirmed the abduction of the children but did not give details.

Residents told Reuters that the children were taken on Sunday while harvesting crops at a farm located between Kamfanin Mailafiya and Kurmin Doka villages in Katsina.

A resident whose son was among those kidnapped said 30 children were abducted but that at least two escaped while another one was released because she was sick.

"Only four of the children are boys, the rest are girls aged below fourteen (years)," said the resident, who declined to be named for safety reasons.

A village head from the area said the gunmen were demanding 30 million naira ($68,435) as ransom. Police records showed that at least 22 children were missing.

The use of underage children as farm labourers is common in some states in northern Nigeria, which has the highest number of children out of school in the country, according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

The military has been bombing suspected hideouts of the gunmen, known locally as bandits, as the government seeks to end the attacks that have raised concerns ahead of a general election next February to choose Buhari's successor.

Reuters, by Hamza Ibrahim

Video - Is Nigeria's security crisis out of control?

3-year-old son of Davido drowns in home pool in Nigeria

Singer Davido's 3-year-old son appears to have drowned at his home in Nigeria, police said.

The incident happened Monday night, two weeks after Ifeanyi David Adeleke celebrated his birthday.

Davido, the Nigerian music star whose real name is David Adedeji Adeleke, and the child's mother, Chioma Rowland, were not home at the time, Lagos police spokesman Benjamin Hundeyin said in an emailed statement.

Authorities questioned eight members of Davido's team who were at the home and released six of them. A nanny and another unidentified person are still being questioned, Hundeyin said.

He said the investigation continues to "ascertain if it was truly drowning or otherwise."

Lagos Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu said Tuesday on Twitter that the child had a smile that "made the world smile" and offered his condolences to the grieving parents.

"Death leaves a heartache no words can heal and today, I express my deepest condolences to David and Chioma, over the death of their son," he wrote. "I pray that God grants you strength even as my thoughts and prayers are with you."

Davido, 29, and Rowland, a popular chef, have not publicly commented on the death. His representative could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday.

Last month, they shared pictures of their son as he celebrated his birthday.

"I pray with all my heart that God grants you perfect health and pure happiness for as long as humanly possible. You will grow to be greater than Me, Happy birthday, son #BIG3," Davido wrote in an Oct. 20 post.

Rowland called her son the "love of my life.

"Mummy loves you so much, may God always bless you for me. God has been so faithful to us and I’m so grateful to be called your mummy," she posted. "May you be greater than your parents in Jesus’ name, amen. Love you twin! #big3."

Davido, who was born in Atlanta, has more than 25 million Instagram followers and is one of Africa's most prominent artists. His 2018 single "Fall" became the longest-charting Nigerian song in history in 2019, Billboard reported. He has collaborated with several high-profile artists, including Chris Brown, Nicki Minaj, Nas, Stefflon Don, Young Thug and Lil Baby.

NBC News, by Minyvonne Burke

Nigeria loses $12.6b worth of crude oil in nine months

Nigeria has lost nothing less than 120 million barrels of crude oil from January and September this year amidst revenue crisis.

The level of crude oil loss in production translates to $12.6 billion going by crude oil production data obtained from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).

While Nigeria had proposed a budget of N20.5 trillion ($47.3 billion) in 2023 with the feasibility of relying heavily on borrowing amidst the country’s debt crisis, the $12.6 billion loss from the oil production would have provided a quarter of what is needed to finance the budget.

Infrastructure issues, pipeline leaks and oil theft have squeezed Nigerian output this year, leaving the country consistently below its OPEC+ crude targets. Nigeria’s own submission to the OPEC Secretariat put September crude output at just 938,000 b/d, just over half its quota for the month, while total liquids production was only 1.14mn b/d, according to the NUPRC.

Notwithstanding the challenges, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited is hopeful the country’s oil production will rebound to 1.8mn b/d by the end of the year and to increase further in 2023.

If Nigeria is successful in increasing its oil production, it may again broach the subject of adjusting the baseline production figure that determines its quotas within the OPEC+ group.

In 2021, the country produced 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd) in January, 1.76 million bpd in February and 1.74 million bpd in March. Production volume dropped slightly to 1.68 million bpd in April, went down to 1.65 million bpd in May and went to 1.63mbpd in June and July before dropping to 1.5 million bpd in August and September.

Compared to the same period in 2022, January production figure in terms of daily average was 1.67 million bpd, 1.52 million in February. In March, it dropped to 1.49 million bpd, went down slightly to 1.48mbpd in April before dropping sharply to 1.27 million bpd in May, 1.40 million bpd in June. It crashed to 1.31mbpd in July and worsened to 1.1 million bpd in August and September.

The total production from January to September of 2021, which included crude oil and condensate, stood at 452,051,631 barrels.

The total production from January to September of 2022, made up of crude oil, blended and unblended condensate stood at 331,825,054 barrels.

This development brought the level of loss in a space of nine months to 120,226,577 barrels.

While Brent was trading for $95.5 to barrel yesterday, the average between 2021 and 2022 stands at about $105 per barrel. The 120,226,577 barrels loss in the period under review translates to $12,623,790,585.

By Kingsley Jeremiah

The Guardian

Nigerian Authorities Launch App to Monitor Crude Oil Theft

Nigeria's Obasanjo clinches truce in Ethiopia

Olusegun Obasanjo has had mixed results as a mediator of intractable conflicts across Africa since he stepped down as Nigeria's president in 2007, although he has never tired of trying.

But on Wednesday the 85-year-old secured a surprise win, leading the team that announced a cessation of hostilities in Ethiopia, marking a diplomatic breakthrough in a conflict that has killed thousands, displaced millions and left many starving.

Aware that permanent progress in ending two years of fighting with roots that can be traced far further back in Ethiopia's history, the former army officer struck a cautious note.

"This moment is not the end of the peace process," the African Union mediator said. "Implementation of the peace agreement signed today is critical for its success."

Welcoming Ethiopia's government and the Tigray forces to a signing ceremony on Wednesday in South Africa's capital Pretoria, where talks have been held since Oct. 25, he said the agreement would allow the restoration of humanitarian supplies to Tigray.

Obasanjo stepped down from Nigeria's presidency in 2007 and presided over elections that marked the first handover of power from one civilian head of state to another in Nigeria since it became independent from Britain in 1960.

Many Nigerians wondered at the time of that vote whether the man who regularly spoke of his plans to retire to his chicken farm really meant to relinquish power, after his allies had at one stage sought a constitutional change to secure a third term for him.

In the end, he delivered on his promise, at least in part.

He gave up the presidency, but instead of heading off to tend his poultry he launched a new career trying to calm flare-ups across the continent, stretching from the Ivory Coast and Liberia to Congo, Angola, Burundi and Mozambique.

Some cooled down, others simmered on.

The test now is whether Ethiopia's conflict is on track for a permanent peace deal or just a temporary respite.

ONCE HAILED A DEMOCRATIC HERO

His own country, meanwhile, has remained prey to instability.

When president of Nigeria, an OPEC state which has struggled with violence across much of its territory, he faced insurrection in the oil-producing Niger Delta, which he was criticised for dealing with harshly.

He did all in his power to block a presidential bid by his estranged deputy, Vice President Atiku Abubakar.

That move was blocked by the Supreme Court, although Abubakar never managed to secure the top job.

In the eyes of many in Nigeria and abroad, these manoeuvres tarnished his reputation as a democrat.

Obasanjo first gained prominence during the 1967-1970 civil war over the Biafra region. As a young colonel in the federal army, he received the surrender of the secessionist Biafrans.

After a coup in 1975, Obasanjo was number two in the military government of Murtala Mohammed, and when Mohammed was assassinated the following year, he became head of state.

He presided over elections in 1979 and handed over power to an elected president -- the first Nigerian army ruler to do so.

Ater a long period out of the limelight, Obasanjo was convicted of plotting to overthrow dictator Sani Abacha, on what were widely seen as trumped-up charges, and jailed in 1995.

After Abacha's death in 1998, Obasanjo was released and was elected as civilian president in 1999.

As president, he restored Nigeria's status as a major African power after years of isolation under Abacha, sending peacekeepers into several war zones and being feted at international summits.

He brought in a team of economic reformers who introduced more budget discipline and launched a war on corruption, although critics at the time said that crackdown was aimed mainly at his opponents. Despite its oil wealth, Nigeria's economy has continued to falter.

Obasanjo, like others before and after him, failed to curb ethnic, religious and regional tensions, including the continuing instability in the Niger Delta, where oil production has been severely disrupted by kidnappings and violence.

Reuters