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Saturday, 12 October 2013

Promasidor Donates Borehole to Isolo Community

As part of its corporate social responsibility, Promasidor Nigeria Limited, makers of Cowbell milk, has donated a borehole and water treatment plant to Isolo community in Lagos.

The managing Director of the company, Chief Kieth Richards speaking at the commissioning ceremony also pledged continuous support to the development and empowerment of the youth in the community.

Richards noted that Promasidor as a young company of 20 years  is trying to build up innovation and relationship to be close to the community by understanding the need of consumers in a given community.
According to him, one good thing about the commissioning of the borehole was to provide clean water for the community, adding that erecting the borehole in the palace of Oba symbolizes a great partnership with the community.

“We want to demonstrate that Promasidor is a good corporate citizen, drinking water is a fundamental human right of any citizen hence, we will be committed to the monitoring of the project in a bid to keep the water running. In Isolo we have done something in the area of health care, street light and security. So this project is just one of them, we also work with communities around the federation, we have worked with people that had been impacted by disaster, those affected by floods in the middle belt and the in southern part of Nigeria,” he said.

Oba Kabiru Kolawole, Osolo of Isolo Kingdom earlier in an address of welcome commended Promasidor for its support to the cause of empowering the active poor in the community, describing the company as greatest financier, supporter and source of inspiration due to its passion and concern for the downtrodden.

Kolawole who also described the water project as another most thoughtful, generous and kindest corporate act said Promasidor has been the only corporate positive voice in the kingdom who has demonstrated an unmatched and unprecedented corporate concern and action by providing borehole and water treatment plant that cost millions of naira.

Tuesday, 8 October 2013

Nokia Announced as Platinum Sponsor of DEMO Africa: Six finalists from West Africa to compete

Nokia has confirmed its participation and support once again as the platinum sponsor for this year’s DEMO Africa to be hosted in Nairobi in October.

The newest addition to DEMO's Global Launch Program, DEMO Africa in its second year will provide the most innovative new and established companies from across Africa the opportunity to launch their products on stage at this high profile event.

“Nokia has a long and rich history on the African continent,” says Nick Imudia, Managing Director for Nokia West Africa. “Our core strength comes from our local presence, deep consumer understanding and the ability to ignite and enable the local innovation ecosystem. DEMO Africa is the perfect showcase for this innovation, and we are extremely proud of our association with this flagship event and with our ongoing support for local developers”.

Nokia and DEMO are also members of Liberalizing Innovation Opportunity Nations (LIONS@FRICA) Partnership with the U.S. Department of State, Microsoft, African Development Bank and USAID. This is a public-private alliance aimed at enhancing Africa's startup and innovation ecosystems.

16 Finalists Emerge in Nokia Don’t Break Da Beat

The contest in the ongoing Nokia Don’t Break Da Beat rap completion put together in conjunction with Trace TV, the number music urban channel is approaching the peak with 16 lucky finalists from Nigeria and Ghana set to battle for the ultimate prize.

Marketing Manager, Nokia West Africa, Ogbemi Kesiena, said “the 16 finalists got this far by posting a rap line on Facebook and Twitter, using one of the key features of the Nokia Asha 210 Smartphone launched in July 2013.”

On the progress of the competition, Ogbemi explained that from the audition stage it has been really interesting with many youths from Nigeria and Ghana entering for the audition with creative rap lines. “We decided to take the competition online to give more youths the opportunity to participate and win the cash prize of $20,000. We had over 3,000 entries at the audition which the judges have scaled down from 300 to 32 and now 16 lucky finalists.”

The 16 finalists include Frank Kwarteng, Charles Ugochukwu Opara, Muyiwa Adebayo, Francis Ikhine, Chukwuebuka Dusten Anyasie, Bobai Bitiyong, Henry Chukwu, Samuel Falowo, Idowu Michael Kayode, Anthony Chukwuma Isamade, Muhammed Nasir Abubakar, Henry Onazi, Oshodin Imadeode Israel, Golden Worlu, Emmanuel Egwere and Miekharry Adefemi Brice.

At this stage, the 16 contestants will now have to video-record their rap performance to get votes. The video will be uploaded on Nokia Nigeria and Trace YouTube page so viewers can watch and vote for their favourite contestants. Voting will commence on the 14th of October.

Nokia Don’t break Da Beat rap competition was introduced in 2012 to inspire consumers to express themselves and appreciate Nokia’s range of Asha devices. The show was warmly received by youths in Nigeria and produced TKO as the winner of last year’s competition. Round II of the competition was introduced this year along with the launch of two new cool, sleek, social, youthful and colorful Asha devices, Asha 210 and Asha 501.

Photo: Ecobank Day Celebration in Nigeria

Ecobank boss giving our souvenir to students

Some of the Ecobank staff at a school construction site

Another student receiving a souvenir from Ecobank boss

Beckham earns over £16.5m in final football year

David Beckham reportedly earned £16.5m from sponsorship deals during his final year in football.

Beckham's company Footwork Productions have revealed that their turnover rose to £16.5m from the ex-midfielder's personal sponsorships in his final full year as a footballer, according to the Daily Mail.

The former England captain, who retired from the game following a five-month stint at Paris Saint-Germain, left Los Angeles Galaxy in December 2012.

FIC set to acquire Setanta Africa

Fox International Channels (FIC) is set to acquire Setanta Africa, the broadcaster whose television channel bouquet takes football, rugby, martial arts and other sports to a million homes in sub-Saharan Africa.

According to reports, the deal will allow FIC to take control of the Setanta Africa, Zuku Sports and Setanta Action channels.

"The incorporation of Setanta Africa into our FIC Africa operation, which already includes leading entertainment, factual, lifestyle and children's channels further reinforces our overall desire to invest and grow our presence in this rapidly expanding region. Our commitment to deliver high quality content across all of our channels naturally extends to this new addition to our family," Alessandro Tucci, senior vice president and general manager, Fox International Channels Africa.

The agreement is subject to approval by the Irish Competition Authority in the homeland of Setanta Africa’s parent company Setanta Sports.

Federal Reserve Board Issues Redesigned $100 Note

The Federal Reserve on Tuesday began supplying financial institutions with a redesigned $100 note that incorporates new security features to deter counterfeiters and help businesses and consumers tell whether a note is genuine.

Distance, demand, and the policies of individual financial institutions will influence how quickly the redesigned notes reach businesses and consumers around the world.

“The new design incorporates security features that make it easier to authenticate, but harder to replicate,” said Federal Reserve Board Governor Jerome H. Powell. “As the new note transitions into daily transactions, the user-friendly security features will allow the public to more easily verify its authenticity.”

The Federal Reserve, U.S. Department of the Treasury, U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing, and the U.S. Secret Service partner to redesign Federal Reserve notes to stay ahead of counterfeiting threats.

The redesigned $100 note includes two new security features: a blue 3-D security ribbon with images of bells and 100s, and a color-changing bell in an inkwell. The new features, and additional features retained from the previous design, such as a watermark, offer the public a simple way to visually authenticate the redesigned $100 note.

Consumers worldwide are advised that it is not necessary to trade in older-design $100 notes for new ones. It is U.S. government policy that all designs of U.S. currency remain legal tender, regardless of when they were issued.

Emirates Offers Special Fares to select destinations

Emirates, one of the fastest growing airlines in the world, is offering travellers in Nigeria the chance to visit some of the world’s most popular destinations at reduced fares for a limited period only. This offer is open to both Economy Class and Business Class travellers, and runs from 7th October to 18th October for stays up to a month. The reduced fares are valid for travel up to 10th April, 2014.

The Regional Manager for West Africa at Emirates, Manoj Nair stated that, travellers can take advantage of this special offer to select destinations on certain Emirates flights, with Economy class fares starting from $894 for a return ticket to Moscow from Lagos. Other destinations included in this limited-time offer for return tickets are: Singapore for $1,580, Tokyo Haneda for $2,046; Cochin for $1,050 and Thiruvananthapuram for $1,059. Other destinations included in the special promotion are Dhaka, Colombo, Lahore, Islamabad, Karachi, Ho Chi Minh City, Kolkota Seoul and Jarkata. Fares are inclusive of taxes and fuel surcharge.

Business class fares start from $3,118 for return ticket to Chennai. Other business class destinations included in this offer are New Delhi for $3,262; Tokyo Haneda for $5,324; Seoul for $5,847 and Singapore for $5,287. The offer also covers other destinations like Manila, Bangkok, Beijing and Shanghai, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong and Bengaluru.

Children aged two to 11 years are charged 75% of the adult fare and must be accompanied by an adult aged 18 or above in the same class of travel. Infants must be under the age of two years for the entire journey (not occupying a seat) and pay 10% of the applicable adult fare for the journey travelled.

 The offer has some restrictions on specific routes and is not valid for travel during the Canton Fair (12-31 October), Christmas period (05-23 December), New Year (01-12 January 2014), and the Chinese New Year (08-15 February 2014). Please contact your local Emirates sales office or travel agent for full terms and conditions.

Mr. Nair further disclosed that, “this promotional offer gives travellers the opportunity to experience Emirates award-winning service from its international cabin crew from more than 120 countries, gourmet cuisine and its renowned ice inflight entertainment system, which offers passengers hundreds of audio and visual channels on demand. Customers travelling with Emirates benefit from a generous baggage allowance of 30 kg in Economy Class and 40 kg in Business Class.”

Emirates operates daily flights between Lagos and Dubai and onward to more than 130 destinations in 76 countries across six continents. For further details, go to http://www.emirates.com 

British Airways Appoints Kola Olayinka as Commercial Manager for West Africa

Kola Olayinka
British Airways is growing its presence in West Africa and has appointed Kola Olayinka as commercial manager for the region.

Olayinka, who was previously the country manager for Nigeria, will be responsible for the airline’s commercial operations in the country as well as Ghana, Sierra Leone and Liberia.

It is a growing portfolio. The airline only started flying to Sierra Leone and Liberia just under a year ago and is already planning to increase services from three to four a week later this month. At the same time, it will increase services to Ghana from seven to 10 a week. From 2014, it will begin operating a Boeing 747-400 on the route, further growing capacity.

This is in addition to the direct daily services it operates to Lagos and Abuja in Nigeria from London. “West Africa is an important growth market for us and our customers are better served by a commercial team which knows and understands the region and has the autonomy to respond promptly and effectively to local market conditions,” says Gavin Halliday, Area General Manager, Europe and Africa.

“With his extensive experience in the airline industry, the success he has achieved in Nigeria and first-hand knowledge of establishing new routes in Sierra Leone and Liberia, Kola was the obvious choice for the role,” Halliday said.

Olayinka will be based in Lagos and will report directly to the area general manager for Africa and Europe.

Moran Birger has been appointed as the new Country Commercial Manager in Ghana, based in Accra, and will report to Olayinka. 

In Nigeria, Adetutu Otuyalo will continue to oversee the company’s corporate portfolio while Ademola Sanya will continue looking after all trade-related business. Both will also report to Olayinka.

Rocket Internet Launches Real-Estate Listings Site Lamudi In Africa, Asia And Latin America

Following the early success, Rocket Internet has decided to continue its global roll out and adopt the Lamudi brand name globally.

The company has consolidated several of its real estate services under one brand called Lamudi, a real estate classifieds platform that officially began operating today in twelve countries within Asia, Africa and Latin America.

Lamudi launched several real estate services under different brand names in various markets over the past five months. Leveraging Rocket Internet’s expertise in IT and online marketing, Lamudi was able to reach market leadership in most countries shortly after opening its website.

Buyology.com.ng joins e-commerce platform Nigeria

Joining the likes of Konga and Jumia in the Nigerian e-commerce space, Buyology.com.ng has been launched to helping shoppers make informed purchase decision.

According to the company, its primary focus is to make online shopping earier for online savvy customers by empowering them with vital information that will help them get what they need at prices that will suit their budget.

According to Yeye Durojaiye-Arogundade, Executive Director of the platform, “Buyology.com.ng is not just a regular shopping site with product categories to choose from, it is one with a difference in its unique service offerings. All information on products and services are displayed on our website, www.buyology.com.ng, and we offer 24 hours service delivery of products purchased within Lagos and two to three days service delivery outside Lagos.”

Saturday, 5 October 2013

iDigital: Digital Marketing Seminar To Hold on October 23rd to 25rd

Cihan Group, a leading digital and marketing agency and the organizers of the Mastering Digital Marketing Seminar: iDigital has announced Wednesday, October 23rd to 25rd, 2013 for the Digital Marketing Seminar, giving more delegates enough time to register.

The seminar which was previously scheduled for October 2nd to 4th, 2013 will be held at Protea Hotel, Lagos. The event promises to be the most provocative and insightful digital media and marketing event in Nigeria.

Canada-based Sam Fiorella, who is ranked one of the top 50 marketers in the world by UK’s Kred, an influence marketing platform, has been confirmed as the lead facilitator for the iDigital Mastering Digital Marketing seminar, organised by Cihan Group and supported by Sendible. Sam is also the author of 'Influence Marketing: How To Create, Manage and Measure Brand Influencers in Social Media,' ranked among America’s top 100 business books by Neilsen Bookscan.

Sam is a partner at Sensei Marketing, a consulting and technology firm focused on aiding global companies grow their business value through improved customer experiences.

Sam will be in Lagos at the Mastering Digital Marketing Seminar 23rd to 25th of October, 2013.

Instagram To Start Allowing Ads In Photo Feeds

As a way of growing its business, Instagram is set to commence placing of adverts in users’ photo-streams.

"Our aim is to make any advertisements you see feel as natural to Instagram as the photos and videos many of you already enjoy from your favorite brands. After all, our team doesn’t just build Instagram, we use it each and every day. We want these ads to be enjoyable and creative in much the same way you see engaging, high-quality ads when you flip through your favorite magazine", a post on its official blog reads.

The company pledged to enable users to control the ads by enabling them to hide and provide feedback about what they didn’t feel right about.

The adverts will first appear for US users and Instagram said they will experience the “same way you see engaging, high-quality ads when you flip through your favorite magazine”.

It could be recalled that the company was acquired by Facebook for US$1 billion in April last year.