A Chinese company, Huawei, has denied any plans to sue the Federal Government over its e-customs project.
A statement by the company’s Director of Public Relations, Mr Kelvin Yang,  recently in Abuja, said the company remained committed to its long-term partnership with Nigeria.
“Our attention has been drawn to a news story with the headline ‘$176b Revenue at Risk as Huawei moves to sue FG in London over $304M e-customs project’.
“Huawei wishes to clarify that it has no intention of suing the Nigerian government over this matter”, he said.
Yang said rather the firm would continue exploring opportunities to support Nigeria’s technological development.
He also said Huawei remained committed to transparency and open communication with all its stakeholders and would continue to provide accurate and timely information to the public as appropriate.
According to him, Huawei is a technical partner in e-custom project, and that its role was to support the project with technical expertise to improve digitalisation of custom processes in Nigeria.
“It is essential to state that Huawei Technologies Nigeria Limited is the technical partner in the e-custom project. As the technical partner, our role is to support the project with our technical expertise to improve the digitalisation of the customs process.
“As a global technology leader, Huawei has always been committed to partnering with governments, businesses, and communities around the world to drive innovation and foster sustainable growth”, he said.
He explained that Huawei believed technology could play a transformative role to improve people’s lives and help other countries achieve their development goals.
“The company is committed to working with the Nigerian government and other partners in the country to advance the digital transformation agenda and unlock new opportunities for economic growth and social development,’’ he added.
“We urge media outlets to exercise caution and verify their sources before publishing news related to Huawei or any other company”, he said.

He also informed that false or misleading news has serious consequences, including damaging the reputation of companies and harming their relationships with partners and customers.

The  Expert Supervisor at the Centre for Excellence in Science and Technology Innovation (STI) and African Union Development Agency  ( AUDA- NEPAD), Prof. Olalekan Akinbo, has said STI is the key to  poverty and economic development challenges.
Speaking recently on the role of STI to national development in an interview with The Tide source in Abuja, Akinbo said, “STI has been central in the progress and development of virtually all the nations of the world, contributing immensely to all sectors of the economy.
“STI are intimately connected with development because they have a historical record of bringing advances that have led to healthie longer, wealthier and more productive lives.
“They are key ingredients of solutions to the most serious poverty alleviation and economic development challenges that we currently face and are likely to face in the future”, he said.
According to him, STI has been central in the progress made till date in the fight against poverty and in stimulating economic growth.
He said advances in STI were in many ways the ultimate global for good public use, adding, “because once discovered, their benefits could be extended to additional users at little or no marginal costs”.
Akinbo said in most basic and critical areas of human needs, STI has made significant progress till date, and that they hold the best prospects for continued progress, particularly in respect to agriculture, health, energy, among others.
Underscoring STI’s role in agriculture, the NEPAD Expert said advances in STI has facilitated higher yields, greater efficiency and nutritional content in the world’s food supply.
He added: “Food production, however, must double in the coming decades to meet rising demand and challenges entailed in inter alia improving resistance to drought, pests, salinity and temperature extremes”.

Akinbo also mentioned raising the nutritional content and reducing post-harvest losses all in an environmentally and socially sustainable manner.

“At the same time, the regulatory challenges of assuring safety in food production and consumption will increase exponentially”, he said.

Accordingly, he noted that although the necessary technology for increasing agricultural output was available in many developing countries including Nigeria, certain requisites were to be met.

Akinbo said these requisites were the will to advance economically, opportunity and organisation to use technology, elimination of political, social and economic obstacles to development, among others.

Explaining further, he said in the area of food security, advances in STI provided the foundation for the green revolution, and also allowed food prices to remain at historical lows for the past decades.

He stated that improved knowledge of plant biology and breeding techniques led to better seeds and cultivation practices that drastically increased yields.

In economic growth and rural development, Akinbo said STI stratigically important.

He said for many years, policy makers had suspected a close link between economic growth and productive investment in STI, and that now mounting evidence supported this.

Firstly, he explained, since the industrial revolution, developed countries have had the most STI capacity and have been the ones to grow fastest.

“From 1870 to the present, scientifically and technologically advanced countries have become increasingly wealthy, and their rates of growth have not diminished over the years.

“Second, returns to rural development have been shown to be consistently positive and high in countries where science and technology were properly established”, he said.

He added that in such cases, there was always a correlation between innovation and growth.

A  Smart device manufacturer and innovator,  OPPO, has   launched  its latest innovative technology on smart lifestyle in a bid to maintain its lead in the industry.
The OPPO President, Overseas Sales and Service, Mr Billy Zhang, said  in a statement that the announcement was made at the Mobile  World Congress.
Zhang said OPPO showcased a selection of flagship devices and introduced a number of industry-leading innovations based on its four smart initiatives.
He listed the initiatives as smart entertainment, smart productivity, smart health and smart learning.
‘’By delivering enhanced and connected experiences through these  innovations, OPPO, is reinforcing its position as a future-focused company with possibilities for smart living.
“As the world’s fourth largest mobile phone brand, OPPO has showcased a series of innovations at MWC23, from folding flagship phones to the latest technology behind the Internet of Experience.
“By bringing new technology breakthroughs to market, we are unlocking new possibilities for smart living to better serve our users worldwide”, he said.
According to him, focusing on smart living initiatives, OPPO showcases milestones in virtuous innovation.
He said OPPO had brought a number of technology breakthroughs, providing more ways to empower smart, connected experiences in the future.
Zhang stated that in smart productivity, OPPO had further expanded its communication technology product portfolios.
He added that OPPO was actively meeting sustainable development goals in accordance with its commitment to achieving carbon neutrality across its global operations.
He said that the company was  strengthening its global position with  reliable products and services.