News

SMEDAN Trains 30 Business Men, Women On Digital Skills Marketing

Published

3 years ago

October 6, 2022

Our Correspondent, Bauchi

The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has commenced a 2-day training of 30 business men and women in Bauchi on digital skills marketing of their businesses.

Speaking during the training in Bauchi on Thursday, Mr Abdulrasheed Aliyu, the Manager, SMEDAN, Bauchi Office, said the programme was designed under the digital skill training of the agency in collaboration with a digital institution known as ‘Mind the Gap Nigeria’.

Aliyu, who said that 19 states were picked across the country for the training, added that the participants are representatives of various unions in the markets.

According to him, things are changing in the business world where more people embrace online shopping, hence the training to equip the participants with skills to operate their businesses online and to compete with their counterparts from other developed countries.

“We understand that most businesses now go online and most people are doing their businesses virtually traditionally and one of the mission of SMEDAN is to develop small and medium enterprises to boost their businesses.

“That’s why we introduced this training to give them knowledge on how they can go online to do their businesses both nationally and internationally, and that’s why we call it digital skill marketing.

“We want to train our small business owners how to go online and do their businesses by marketing their products and get more customers for them to get more profit,” he said.

Aliyu also said that the trainer, who is an expert in Information Communication Technology (ICT) would not only teach the participants how to go online, but also how to protect their websites as well as how to evade hackers or scammers.

He advised the trainees to take the training very seriously, adding that they would have spent nothing less than N50,000 to acquire the training from a private individual but they were now being given free of charge.

Also speaking, Mr Zack Ibrahim, the trainer and the Community Manager, Mind the Gap Nigeria, Bauchi state chapter, said the trainees would be trained how to operate an online presence so that their businesses would not only operate locally but also they would be able to provide their services to the people beyond their reach and locality.

“A time will come when people won’t go physically to buy things and this is already happening especially in advanced countries.

“They should take the training very seriously because by the time they know how to make use of the skills, it will help their businesses.

“It would grow their businesses very well, in fact even in their finances, they will see changes,” he said.

Speaking on behalf of the participants, Malam Bala Winti, appreciated the federal government and SMEDAN for the ‘laudable’ training, adding that it would enhance their businesses.

He promised to pass the knowledge acquired during the training to other business people who were not lucky to have been selected for the training.

News

Published

1 minute ago

November 22, 2025

Editor

For the first time, TikTok has shared data on its enforcement of Live Monetization guidelines, following a surge in users going live during sexual activity. The platform released the figures during its West Africa Safety Summit in Dakar, Senegal, held in partnership with AfricTivistes.

In the second quarter of 2025, TikTok took action, including warnings and demonetization, against 2,321,813 Live sessions and 1,040,356 Live creators for violating its Live Monetization guidelines.

In Nigeria alone, 49,512 Live sessions were banned during the same period.

The Summit brought together senior government officials, policy experts, NGOs, regulators, media representatives, and industry leaders from West African nations, including Nigeria, Senegal, Mali, Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Chad, and Ethiopia.

Delegates discussed strategies to strengthen user protection and content moderation frameworks tailored to regional challenges.

The event marked a pivotal moment for TikTok’s regional safety efforts and its commitment to upholding global safety standards across Sub-Saharan Africa.

Experts shared insights, examined online safety challenges, and explored collaborative measures under TikTok’s #SaferTogether initiative.

TikTok’s Outreach and Partnerships Manager for Sub-Saharan Africa, Duduzile Mkhize, emphasized the platform’s commitment to enhancing user security through stakeholder collaboration.

She stated: “While global, we remain hyper-local in our day-to-day efforts. The dialogue at this Summit is invaluable because only through insights sharing and collaboration with policymakers and local partners across West Africa can we prevent a fragmented and insecure digital environment.

“United action can help us guarantee a safe space for our community to discover, create, and connect responsibly.”

A key partner in this effort is Nigeria’s Dr. Akinola Olojo, expert on preventing and countering violent extremism, and member of TikTok’s Sub-Saharan Africa Safety Advisory Council.

He said: “The convening of various stakeholders in Dakar, sharing insights for collaborative action, proves that the work we do alongside TikTok is not in vain.

“We must move beyond reactive measures and continue to build proactive systems that empower communities to resist radicalization and leverage online spaces for positive social impact.”

Globally, TikTok removed over 189 million videos in the same quarter, representing just 0.7% of all content uploaded. Of these, 163.9 million were flagged by AI-driven moderation systems.

Notably, 99.1% of removals were detected proactively, and 94.4% were taken down within 24 hours. The platform also removed 76,991,660 fake accounts, alongside 25,904,708 accounts suspected to belong to users under the age of 13.

In Nigeria, TikTok removed 3,780,426 videos between April and June 2025 for violating Community Guidelines. Impressively, 98.7% were removed before being viewed, and 91.9% were taken down within 24 hours.

The data, released in TikTok’s Quarter 2 2025 Community Guidelines Enforcement Report, underscores the platform’s ongoing commitment to creating a safe digital space for its users.

News

Edo Seeks FG’s Intervention On Land Dispute With Delta

Published

3 hours ago

November 22, 2025

Editor

The Edo State Government has appealed to the Federal Government to, as a matter of urgency, intercede on the land dispute between the state and its neighboring Delta.

Deputy governor of the state, Hon. Dennis Idahosa made the appeal when he led a delegation comprising officials of the state government and members of the Edo State Boundary Committee on a fact finding mission to disputed communities.

A statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Friday Aghedo, said the fact finding mission was part of an effort to ensure peace,

Idahosa used the avenue to appeal to President Bola Tinubu to use his good office to ensure justice, equity, and fairness prevailed in the areas in dispute.

“I passionately call on the President to use all necessary demarcation agencies to resolve these lingering issues,” he appealed.

While suing for peace from the affected communities, Idahosa noted that the state government was determined to protect the territorial dignity of Edo State and that of the people of Orhionmwon.

He pointed out that the Jameson River is a natural demarcation landmark to the disputed Ugbakele boundary Community.

While calling on the state boundary committee to be diligent in their investigation, he stressed that the outcome of the investigation will guide the recommendations of the committee to the governor.

“We decided to ask questions and the history of this area. We found out that this Jameson River is the natural boundary between Edo and Delta States.

‘You can see the previous structures of the AT&P company. This land is clearly for Edo State.

“We thank the community people and settlers. We plead they continue to maintain the peace pending the outcome of the National Boundary Commission,” he pleaded.

Earlier, Idahosa and his team interfaced with stakeholders and community leaders of Oben, Ikobi, Iguelaba, and Obozogbe-Nugu communities to verify their claims and grievances.

News

Police Arrest, Charge Content Creator To Court In Edo

Published

5 hours ago

November 22, 2025

Editor

The Edo State Police Command says it has arrested a 24-year-old content creator identified as Osarobo Omoyemen, for allegedly sharing a content on Tiktok capable of “inciting hostility against the Police and triggering unnecessary tension within the state.”

In a statement made available to newsmen in Benin on Saturday, the command’s Police Public Relations Officer, Moses Yamu, said the suspect, popularly known as ‘Madam Oil Rice,’ recently circulated a “false claim on social media alleging that she was kidnapped along Upper Sakponba Road in Benin City and later rescued by Police operatives who purportedly detained her at Akpata Police Station and collected the sum of Ten Thousand Naira as bail.”

Yamu said worried by the allegation, the command immediately commenced investigation, adding that it was revealed that the entire story was completely fabricated and deliberate.

According to the police’s imagemaker, Madam Oil Rice fabricated the story just to attract followers and viewership, stressing that she had confessed to having fabricated the story.

“During interrogation, the 24year old female suspect, Osarobo Omoyemen confessed that she staged the incident solely to generate online content and attract followers to her TikTok page.

“It was also discovered that she deleted an earlier video in which an accomplice in the background was appealing to viewers to follow her page, clearly exposing the motive behind the false alarm.

“The content was not only misleading but capable of inciting hostility against the Police and triggering unnecessary tension within the state.”

Yamu, while noting that the “suspect has been identified, arrested, and charged to court on Thursday 20th November, 2025 for prosecution, said “efforts are ongoing to arrest her accomplices to ensure they face the full weight of the law.”

The PPRO, who said Madam Oil Rice’s arrest and charge to court was aimed at serving as a “deterrent to others who may attempt to misuse social media to create panic or disrupt public peace,” said “the Edo State Police Command strongly warns against the creation and circulation of fake news capable of disturbing the peace and security of the state.”

He urged members of the public “to verify information before sharing and to refrain from acts that may mislead the public or undermine the efforts of security agencies.”