By Abbas Badmus

TECHDIGEST – The Federal Government has signed an agreement with tech giants, Huawei and CISCO, to establish a minimum of 300 academies in Nigeria and to train about of 30,000 citizens in advanced ICT.

This is even as the country pushes its digital economy through partnerships with various global tech companies.

Earlier this year, the government had also signed an agreement with Microsoft to train 5 million Nigerians, especially in the area of Artificial Intelligence (AI).

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The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Pantami, who disclosed this said all these are part of the government’s efforts towards achieving the target of attaining 95% digital literacy in the country by 2030.

While delivering a keynote address at the CISCO SAFARI International Conference 2022 organised by National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) in collaboration with CISCO in Abuja, Pantami said: “Of recent, we have had an agreement with Huawei and CISCO to establish a minimum of 300 academies in Nigeria and to train a minimum of 30,000 citizens on advanced training. In addition to this, we have another agreement with Microsoft in which 5 million citizens are going to be trained on ICT, particularly in the area of Artificial Intelligence.”

Speaking on the theme of the conference: ‘Digital Skills in the 4th Industrial Revolution, the Impact on National Development,’ Pantami said digital skills and the 4th Industrial Revolution have been highlighted in the country’s National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy as key pillars in diversify the economy.

“If you look at our National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy for a digital Nigeria 2020- 2030 which was unveiled by His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari GCFR, on the 28th of November 2019, you will discover that these two components of the theme have been effectively mentioned and captured in the policy under pillars number 2 and 7. Pillar number 2 is digital skills and literacy while pillar number 7 is digital society and emerging technologies”, he noted.

Arguing that the world is already in the 4th Industrial Revolution, Pantami averred that those emerging technologies such as the Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, and Blockchain Technology among many others have replaced existing computers, worldwide webs and the internet which came around during the 3rd Industrial Revolution.

The conference is an annual event where experts converge on to discuss the progress and achievements of CISCO Academy in mentorship and career development programmes in the country and to strengthen the partnership it has enjoyed with the NITDA over the years.

ASUU on February 14, 2022 embarked on another strike action to force the government to address its demands which include the government’s investment in the nation’s university infrastructure and payment of members’ salaries through the recommended University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS).

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TECHDIGEST – The unresolved disagreement between the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the federal government weighs heavily on Nigerian youth out of school.  While some have taken to vocational skills others still lay idle in the discomfort of the economy finding it hard to support themselves and family.

In light of enjoying the free time created by the strike, digital learning has entrenched so wide for many to unravel their potential and access the web of technology for self-development.

It is an indisputable aphorism that “an idle mind is a devil’s workshop”. This continual strike by university lecturers with no compromise from both parties anytime soon can push many “stay-at-home” students into heinous acts.

At this juncture, most students are not practically engaged in ongoing digital skill acquisition initiatives/programs organised by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and other stakeholders in Nigeria’s tech ecosystem.

In all honesty, the strike might turn out beneficial to some students because they have used the time to engage in virtual studies and digital skill development while others still struggle to fit into the digital trend due to financial challenges and others.

Even at this, delay in academics, long reversal of projects, university clearance, mobilization into national service, and the overburdened labour market are many of the challenges Nigerian students foresee within the academic terrain.

NITDA in its effort to digitalise the nation and de-institutionalize learning had developed digital channels for free e-learning through the NITDA Academy for Research and Training (NART) to build capacity, develop skills, and reduce unemployment in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector.

The platform, in operation since 2020 with fully operational centers across the country, has been a blessing to promote e-learning in the country. In addition to bridging the skill gap between industry and academia, the program is also promoting a more inclusive ICT-driven for various segments of the Nigerian populace.

NART was developed to boost the capacity of Nigerians with courses that will help them to be creative and find their calling in the labour market.

Propagation of digital literacy or technological knowledge is a strategic effort by NITDA to engage many Nigerians to acquire the skills that will help them harness the abundant opportunities to become job providers and wealth creators. Also, it will build capacity and develop skills of Nigerians in emerging IT sectors and reduce the unemployment rate by bridging the widening skills gap in the sector.

The fate of Nigerian students during this strike is reflective of the saying “when two elephants fight the grass suffers”. The unique difference is that there is a platform (NART) for students to engage in the attainment of productive skills with no financial challenge.

Thus, NITDA provision for self-development and skills acquisition online or at their community digital centres can be described as a digital solution to curb the effect of idleness on students during the strike.

The NART e-learning facilities and vocational training programs are scheduled into four categories. They are Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) Training, Students Training, General Training, and Digital skills are like realms of digital abilities for youth with preference to their disciplines to help them function better and achieve self-employment at the end of the training.

NART’s resolve to increase access to learning opportunities and enhance the general quality of teaching/learning has continued to keep its training free, accessible, and impactful for students and youth in skills required in their discipline, profession, or career.

With hundreds of courses available, the e-learning resources have helped many to envision a realistic future of gainful entrepreneurial and digital competence. For students with little digital knowledge of the internet, programs like digital literacy, introduction to Packet Tracer, Entrepreneurship Courses, and many more are basics to knowing the web of technologies.

Over 47 different courses can be accessed on the NART website, and there is virtually every course that a student can delve into and learn. Introduction to computer science for lawyers is another interesting platform for upcoming legal practitioner’s to digitalise the profession and become self-competent before post-graduation.

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NART’S achievements include training of more than 26,000 active students and over 200 women in ICT, provision of tools at the end of the training, development of tech startups, and efficiency in artificial intelligence, among others. These have helped many Nigerians to spend their time meaningfully and get trained on new technologies that will build and develop their capacity in the tech world.

While out of the realm of academics, learning must never stop. In this regard, the Director-General of NITDA, Mallam Kashifu Inuwa, recently challenged Universities in the country to devote greater attention to entrepreneurship training to produce graduates that will create job opportunities, rather than become job seekers.

Considering the large number of young Nigerians graduating yearly, NITDA must strengthen collaboration with Nigeria University to mandate students to partake in one or two courses that can serve as industrial training in digital communication to widen their scope of knowledge beyond their course of study.

Again, as part of NITDA’s agenda to foster entrepreneurship training and create more jobs, both tertiary and vocational institutions should raise awareness to encourage virtual learning, building innovations, and developing digital skills among students and lecturers. This will enable Nigeria to produce more job creators and solution providers in no distant future.

It is impactful to be able to learn in the comfort of digital devices and be certified in a course/s in capacity building. With over 20 free training centers in Nigeria, the opportunities are available and awaiting more youths to delve into. With set priorities and digital education, the breach in academic activities due to the ongoing strike will not be so wearisome to students when they are gainfully engaged.

A society with multiple dimensions to learning always produces the right thinking, visionary and effective leaders. ASUU in its fight to be heard does not have to burn off the intelligence of students but should enable them to engage in numerous knowledge-building opportunities created by the federal government.

Zeenat O. Sambo writes from Wuye District Abuja

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TECHDIGEST – The Transparency Advocacy for Development Initiative (TADI), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), has urged the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to address the issues surrounding the University Transparency Accountability Solution (UTAS).

In March, Kashifu Inuwa, director-general of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), had said UTAS — the union’s proposed payment solution — failed three integrity tests.

But ASUU had insisted that UTAS scored 85 and 77 percent, which it said are “high-class grades in any known evaluation”.

Also, the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU) chapter of ASUU had criticised the NITDA DG over his comments on UTAS and threatened to withdraw his degree certificate.

Reacting to the development in a statement signed by Yomi David and Adeniran Taiwo, TADI executive director and director of public relations, respectively, the group urged ASUU to review the proposed software and make the necessary adjustments for excellent performance.

“It should be noted that NITDA has a constitutional right as the only agency with the mandate to create a framework for the planning, research, development, standardisation, application, coordination, monitoring, evaluation and regulation of information technology practices, activities and systems in Nigeria,” the statement reads.

“In 2016, the agency issued Software Testing and Quality Assurance Framework and Guideline and furthermore, Section 10 of the Guidelines for Nigerian Content Development in ICT, 2019 provides detailed guidelines and expectations for Indigenous Software Development and Software Enabled Products and Services.

“Therefore, the rule of law and due process should not be jettisoned in the bid to get better service solutions for our university system. The testimonial of competence of NITDA in discharging her vital constitutional role over the years speaks for itself with the level of NITDA’s commitment and professionalism exhibited in carrying out its responsibilities.

“Several other indigenous software solution patents have enjoyed the verification and certification process through these quality assurance guidelines as stipulated by NITDA.

READ ALSO : ASUU Threatens To Withdraw NITDA Boss Degree Certificate

“It should be noted that quality assurance testing of any product is done to ensure the delivery of a high-quality end product and assures that the product is glitch-free before it is released. In view of this, we found out that the agency had to carry out 3 out of the 8 tests specified in the Software Testing and Quality Assurance Framework and Guideline.

“These tests are User Acceptance Test (UAT), Stress Test, and Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Test (VAPT) in which a total of 687 test cases were generated with which 529 passed, 156 failed and 2 cautionary warnings were the outcome. However, this alone reveals that, for a payment solution platform which should be near 100% in default, has several loopholes of high risk vulnerabilities and informational risks that were identified.”

The group added that ASUU as an organisation is known to comprise personalities of high academic excellence and standards, and as such, the union should seek to embrace diligence in all its actions.

The post Don’t Jettison Due Process, Test Score For UTAS Should Near 100% – TADI appeared first on Tech Digest News.

TECHDIGEST – Kashifu Inuwa, the Director-General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), has challenged Universities in the country to devote greater​​ attention to entrepreneurship training in order to produce graduates that will create job opportunities, not job seekers.

Inuwa made the challenge while receiving the management of Federal University of Agriculture Zuru, Kebbi State, under the leadership of Professor Musa Isyaku Ahmed, the Vice Chancellor.

READ ALSO : ASUU Threatens To Withdraw NITDA Boss Degree Certificate

The NITDA boss described University’s role in finding lasting solution to Nigeria’s unemployment as critical, in view of the large number of young people graduating annually.

“I urge you to continue to emphasize more on entrepreneurship trainings so that graduates will be able to become job creators instead of job seekers.

“Mr President has the passion for job creation, a passion of diversifying our economy and so on, moving from resource based economy to knowledge based or Digital Economy, and for Nigeria to achieve that, we need to have the human capital, which our population is the greatest resources,” he added.

He said most of the people coming out from the universities are becoming liability to the country, because they will come and start waiting for jobs. Instead, why not us start producing people that will create jobs, and to do that you have to start from the universities.

“Universities can be used as mentoring, training and couching grounds to the students, encouraging them to start their own business while in school,” he said.

Commenting on NITDA ‘s National Adopted Village for Smart Agriculture (NAVSA) programme, Inuwa stated that it was an initiative of the Agency designed to support the Nigerian young farmers that are very passionate about making a career in farming.

“Firstly, we all need to eat to survive, how can we increase our produce, how can we use technology to change the way we do our farming, and how can we make it a more fancy job, so that these young graduates can also embrace farming as a career,” he noted.

NITDA, he said, has concluded arrangements to engaging Universities’ research works practically on the farms with a view to achieving the set goal.

“This year, we are going to re-strategise our process and say why not work with Universities’ research institutions, where most of their works end on the shelves, why can’t we convert those researches and move into the farm to experiment”, added.

Earlier, Professor Musa Isyaku Ahmed, the Vice Chancellor, Federal University of Agriculture Zuru, said they were at the Agency’s Corporate Headquarters on a familiarisation visit to further avail themselves with what they have been seeing and hearing about NITDA’s impactful interventions on so many sectors, particularly the tertiary institutions.

Professor Musa who informed that, Federal University of Agriculture Zuru is the only University that came into being from a Bill by the National Assembly, and was assented to by the President as the Agric based, which came on board during the lockdown as a result of COVID-19 Pandemic.

He said the newly established institution has as its mandate, the injection of entrepreneurship and IT into its curriculum.

While soliciting for the collaborative support of NITDA in its intervention programmes, the Prof also called for paradigm shift in the nation’s education system.

“We are aware of NITDA’s finger prints in many Nigerian tertiary institutions, we here soliciting for same to our newly established Institution,” he pleaded.

The post DG NITDA To Nigerian Varsities: Focus On Producing Job Providers appeared first on Tech Digest News.

TECHDIGEST – A youth led coalition of civil society group, the Youth and Civil Society Coalition for Development (YCSCD) has cautioned the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU)over it’s threat to withdraw degree certificate of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA)’s Boss, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi.

In a statement signed by it’s National President, Comrade Aminu Aminu which was made available to newsmen, the group said ASUU was threatening the DG for simply discharging his statutory duties.

READ ALSO : ASUU Threatens To Withdraw NITDA Boss Degree Certificate

According to YCSCD, even although the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has developed its parallel payment platform to the nationally accepted Integrated Payroll and Personel Information System (IPPIS) the University’s Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS), it should be humbled to accept in good faith NITDA’s constructive criticism and collaborate with the agency to make the platform more effective and enable it stand the test of time and world dynamics.

“ASUU cannot claim ignorance of the fact that, NITDA has acted on the mandates bestowed on it by its establishing act which requires it to create a framework for the planning, research,development, standardization, application, coordination, monitoring, evaluation and regulation of Information Technology practices in Nigeria,” the group argued.

It said far from ASUU’s claim that NITDA is working to frustrate the operability of its newly developed payment platform UTAS, it is not news to enlightened Nigerians that NITDA has over the years issued several regulatory instruments which include software testing and quality assurance framework as well as guidelines for the design,development and testing of software projects in the country.

“On this note, it is counterproductive for an academic Bloc like ASUU to resort to threat instead of finding a workable solution to address the issues raised by NITDA’s integrity test results on UTAS

“ASUU’S reaction to the professorial title awarded to the minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, by the Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO), and the present one trailing the UTAS’ failure to meet the NITDA’S vulnerability test, user acceptance test and stress load test leading to the issuance of threat to withdraw Malam Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi’s degree certificate by the ATBU branch of the ASUU, could amount to witch-hunting of its own successful products as both are alumni’s of the University.

YCSCD called on ASUU to channel the same energy it is using to issues degree withdrawal threats, to explore workable solutions bedevilleing the country especially the lingering insecurity, youth restiveness and ongoing strike action.

It vowed that no amount of threat can deter the DG NITDA from doing the right thing as far as the discharge of his mandate is concerned.

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TECHDIGEST  – The Network of Advocates for Digital Reporting (NADIR) says it is alarmed by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU) Chapter’s move to withdraw the Degree Certificate of Mr Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi.

This according to NADIR, is simply because Kashifu is discharging his duties as Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).

The group, through its Publicity Secretary, Bello Shehu, described the threat of the ATBU ASUU as ‘laughable and ill-advised’.

NADIR, made this known in a statement titled, “ASUU and Its Empty Threats Against NITDA’s DG”.

The “withdrawal” of Kashifu’s certificate was been considered by ATBU ASUU after the NITDA boss’ submission that “the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS), has failed integrity test, vulnerability test (security integrity), User Acceptance Test and stress load test, as well as the hardware requirements,” PRNigeria learnt.

READ ALSO: ASUU Threatens To Withdraw NITDA Boss Degree Certificate

But in the statement released by Shehu, NADIR noted that it is a total disregard for common sense that ASUU, who should know better, will throw caution to the wind, and make a fundamental blunder that seeks to portray it as a sole authority in conferring or retracting degree awards, rather than limiting itself to its scope of protecting and furthering the rights of University workers.

“By this goof, we can only conclude that ASUU is not childishly arrogant but confused as usual,” it said.

According to the statement obtained by PRNigeria, NADIR, further explained that, “as bizarre and empty as the threat sounds, it is shocking that in a desperate bid to blackmail a public official into lowering the bars of his official mandate and succumbing to its selfish inclinations, ASUU, a supposed union of university academic staff have resorted to using cheap blackmail and hallow threats that have no real value, worth, or effectiveness in order to hound it’s prey.”

Part of the statement reads: “After unsuccessfully hounding the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Professor Isah Ali Ibrahim Pantami, the union has now turned to his prodigy, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, thereby successfully establishing that it is not only out against this two individuals, but against Nigeria’s digital transformation agenda.

“We are not sure to what extent ASUU is willing to bare its fangs as a clog in the wheels of Nigeria’s progress but before it self destruct ASUU needs to answer some fundamental questions as follows:

“Has the union now usurped the mandate of University’s Senate in awarding degree certificates?

“Is there a legally recognised marriage of convenience between labour unionism and award of degree certificates in ATBU?

“Isn’t ASUU overstepping it’s boundaries and arrogating to itself an authority outside its jurisdiction?

“Isn’t ASUU deducing itself to mere community of jokers with irresponsible activists?

“Beyond the NUC regulations, each university self-regulates its academic programmes through the power vested in its senate. Precedents have severally shown that only the University’s Senate has the powers to do what ASUU is ignorantly threatening to do.

“…From the foregoing, despite its meddlesome and unbecoming attitude, ASUU is a non entity in the scheme of things.

“NITDA on the other hand acted within its establishing act which mandates it to create a framework for the planning, research, development, standardization, application, coordination, monitoring, evaluation and regulation of Information Technology (IT) practices in Nigeria.

“The Agency has, over the years, issued series of regulatory instruments including the Software Testing and Quality Assurance Framework and Guideline, issued in 2016. This regulatory instrument, currently being reviewed, provides guidelines for the design, development and testing of software projects in Nigeria.

“Despite this glaring facts, to say that the network is shocked that ASUU would use the instrumentalities of empty threat and dirty fight to harass a public official for carrying out his duty is to say the least.”

According to NADIR, if Institutions can threaten their products for standing up for what is right in line with the discharge of their duties and get away with it, then excellence and sterling track record is endangered.

“By the way, why is ASUU ATBU chapter notoriously attacking some of their graduates in top public offices from Minister of Communication, Isa Pantami to now DG NITDA Kashifu Inuwa?

“Nonetheless, ASUU should be careful not to render itself as a collection of numerous hunting breeds whose barking is only a characteristics of its diminished integrity,” the group warned.

By PRNigeria

The post NADIR Blasts ASUU Over Threat To Withdraw Kashifu’s Degree appeared first on Tech Digest News.

TECHDIGEST – I remember vividly how I was recruited into Setraco Construction Company at Igobiri-Toru-Ebeni project in Bayelsa State as a young and fresh Geology graduate coming from school. I had this notion that being a graduate, every other person who was not one was to bow and take orders from me.

It didn’t take long when I figured out that my school degree was merely an advantage but that the world of experience was an entirely different one that required me to be low headed to learn.

READ ALSO : ASUU Threatens To Withdraw NITDA Boss Degree Certificate

Consequently, I found myself being humble to Mr Samuel who was a secondary school leaver but had put in over 20 years of experience in the firm’s laboratory.

The practical analysis and laboratory skills he had on construction materials was enough to humble me into accepting my rightful place as a Laboratory Technician way under him and others who possessed much more experience than I did.

I humbled myself and learnt enough from these individuals perhaps at a faster rate than someone who’s not a university graduate would require. The rest is history today.

I brought the above narrative to explain why I feel ASUU went overboard by intending to withdraw the academic certificate of Kashifu Inuwa over the performance of his statutory responsibility and one that is systemic at that.

ASUU is made up of all cadres of lecturers ranging from Professors to Graduate Assistants but in all honesty that is not enough to guarantee that they possess enough practical experience to insist on the efficacy of their own developed ICT Application which aimed to aid the payment of their remunerations.

NITDA as an agency is statutorily established to aid the government in the area of developing the ICT sector. One would also understand the popular notion that everything goes in Nigeria and where it goes wrong along the line, tongues go wagging, blames are shared, monies are lost and a repeat of the mistake is made again.

We are a people that have been used to producing half-baked solutions to issues just to pass over situations. Unfortunately, the current NITDA DG feels otherwise, he feels the mentality to work has to change in such a way that the organization has been rejuvenated into a result driven one.

Little wonder why he has worked to earn the confidence of the Federal Government into believing the judgement of the Agency in the UTAS matter was going to be an objective one that would guarantee a long term operability.

However, while the young man is genuinely patriotic at trying to ensure the workability of the Agency he has been saddled to superintend over, he equally has to deal with the nature of the country’s people that hardly appreciate genuine efforts.

This is a country that prefers hypocrisy and mediocrity and I do not envy anyone who attempts to put in those kinds of critical patriotic efforts. Even president Muhammadu Buhari who has given so much had to relax at some point and agreed that Nigerians were hilarious people.

The issue around UTAS was purely a technical one that may not necessarily be understood when looked at strictly from the books point of view.

NITDA boasts of staffs that have years and tonnes of experience over practical matters that relate to UTAS and many others alike or bigger. They understand practical challenges that could result from the handling of big data; they understand the resource constraint that could result from a long term point of view.

Was ASUU expecting NITDA to simply approve a solution that has truly not ticked all the boxes it was supposed just so ASUU would clap and probably sheath their arm-twisting like press releases?

We do appreciate our lecturers who have worked hard to ensure we obtain the appropriate essays needed to understand the rudiments of the various courses we read.

However, we equally appreciate the tons of informal experiences we obtained from everyday life at the various universities. Overall, we mostly appreciate the practical experiences we have obtained as well as the advanced additional qualifications we have obtained.

ASUU could leverage the various experiences at NITDA and forge a partnership that could afford them the needed expertise that could develop a workable application that could solve the remuneration debacle of ASUU amongst others.

Hashim Suleiman writes from Abuja. He tweets via oneheartnaija@yahoo.com

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TECHDIGEST – The Academic Staff Union of Universities, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Branch, has threatened to initiate the process of withdrawing the degree certificate of the Director-General, National Information Technology Development Agency, Kashifu Inuwa, as an alumnus of the university.

This withdrawal, the union said, was been considered after Inuwa’s submission that “the University Transparency and Accountability Solution, had failed integrity test, vulnerability test (security integrity), User Acceptance Test and stress load test, as well as the hardware requirements.”

The union described his submission, which it claimed, was made on March 9th, 2022, after the Federal Executive Council meeting at the prompting of his boss the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, as an “unguarded statement”.

In a press release, on Thursday, titled: UTAS AND NITDA’S LIES, which was read to journalists by the ASUU ATBU Branch Chairperson, Ibrahim Inuwa, the union advised the NITDA boss to retrace his steps to the path of truth and academic excellence.

READ ALSO : Finally, NITDA Reacts to ASUU Over UTAS Platform

Failure to align with academic excellence and the path of truth for which the university had awarded him a degree, the union said, it will be left with no option than to carry out its threats.

According to the union, we are not surprised at the calculated attempt by agents of government particularly the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy and DG, NITDA to kill UTAS.

The statement read in part, “They both have demonstrated severe nationalism deficiency syndrome in their dealings and handling of critical issues as it concerns their offices and positions in government, revealing how ill-equipped they are with the current status of public Universities in Nigeria.

“The Union views the comments of the DG NITDA as highly misleading, unwarranted and totally unacceptable, it is a deliberate act to frustrate the deployment of UTAS. We observe that at the time the DG NITDA was making such statements (i.e on the 9th March 2022), he was aware of a joint test of the UTAS application by the ASUU Technical Team and NITDA to iron out discrepancies in the initial NITDA report.

“The current test was arranged at a meeting involving NITDA, Ministry of Labour, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy. To put the record straight, we are obliged to enlighten the public that UTAS was applauded and received positive commendations at different levels of government during its presentation to the leadership of the National Assembly, Joint Committee of NITDA, Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, Vice-Chancellors and Bursars of Federal Universities (end users), to say the least, UTAS has gone through seven different presentations, reports from the previous test by NITDA scored UTAS 85% in User Acceptance Test.

“ASUU, therefore, wonders why agents of government are insisting on an IPPIS in spite of its obvious weaknesses, maybe this will allow them to continue to steal public funds. We will therefore no longer tolerate the delay tactics of NITDA Technical Team and their collaborators for the endless test on UTAS,” it warned.

“ASUU ATBU Bauchi is particularly sad that both the Minister of Communications Isa Ali Pantami and DG, NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa are products of our prestigious University, known for its high standards of learning and discipline.

The Minister of Communication and Digital Economy should be able to separate his official responsibility from his personal interest. It is our hope that there is no attempt by the Minister and his agents to frustrate UTAS due to ASUUS’ principled stand on the failure of his appointment as a Professor by Federal University of Technology Owerri to satisfy the laid down rules and regulations governing such appointments of the University.

“The DG of NITDA is requested to retrace his steps to the path of truth and academic excellence for which the University had awarded him a degree, failure of which the Union will be left with no option but to initiates the process of withdrawal of his degree certificate as an alumnus of ATBU, Bauchi.”

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TECHDIGEST  – The attention of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has been drawn to series of media statements about NITDA’s role on the assessment of the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS). It is imperative therefore that the Agency puts the records straight for the interest of stakeholders and the general public.

It may be recalled that the Act establishing NITDA mandates it to create a framework for the planning, research, development, standardization, application, coordination, monitoring, evaluation and regulation of Information Technology (IT) practices in Nigeria. The Agency has, over the years, issued series of regulatory instruments including the Software Testing and Quality Assurance Framework and Guideline, issued in 2016. This regulatory instrument, currently being reviewed, provides guidelines for the design, development and testing of software projects in Nigeria. Furthermore, Section 10 of the Guidelines for Nigerian Content Development in ICT, 2019 provided detailed guidelines and expectations for Indigenous Software Development and Software Enabled Products and Services.

In line with its mandate, the Agency has been registering indigenous software solutions. Part of the registration process requires that solutions are subjected to tests in line with the requirements of the Software Testing and Quality Assurance Framework and Guideline and the Guidelines for Nigerian Content Development in ICT.

It is common knowledge that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has been engaging the Federal Government on a number of issues including payment of promotion arrears, earned academic allowance, funding for revitalisation of public Universities, and adoption of UTAS as payment platform for universities. On the 14th October, 2020, NITDA was invited to participate in an interactive session between ASUU, Federal Government and the Legislature. The session, held at the Conference Hall of Accountant General of the Federation’s office, was to avail ASUU the opportunity to demonstrate the UTAS platform.

As part of the conditions for acceptance of UTAS as payment platform for public universities by Federal Government, NITDA was directed to subject the platform to Integrity Test and advise Government appropriately. In doing so, the Agency decided to carry out 3 out of the 8 tests specified in the Software Testing and Quality Assurance Framework and Guideline. These tests are:

1.   User Acceptance Test (UAT);
2.   Stress Test; and
3.   Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Test (VAPT).

As part of the process, NITDA held its first meeting with ASUU on the 22nd October, 2020 and discussions centred on the modalities of the assessment. Furthermore, documents necessary for effective planning and execution of the tests were requested. As critical stakeholders to the implementation and deployment of the Solution, both the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation were also engaged. The main aim of this engagement was to obtain software requirements from their perspective.

Upon receipt of the documents from ASUU as well as access details of the UTAS platform in January, 2021, the Agency’s team carried out basic Functionality/User Acceptance Test on the platform. As NUC conducted UAT, NITDA felt it can use the report produced by NUC for its report. However, upon review, it was observed that the Solution was demonstrated to the Principal Officers in a similar way it was demonstrated at the Accountant General’s Office.  The Agency decided that further UAT be carried out with actual end-users from the University System. As a result, arrangements were made and 46 staff members from 28 Federal Universities, mainly from Vice Chancellor’s Office, Human Resources, Accounts and Bursary participated in the UAT, held at NUC, on the 10th August, 2021.

Although the UAT was carried out as planned, challenges were encountered that negatively impacted on the outcome of the assessment. For instance, although the invitation emphasised the need for prospective participants to come with ICT tools for the exercise, very few of the participants had these tools. This resulted into grouping the participants and very limited hands-on interaction with the Solution was possible. Furthermore, there was limited connectivity thereby making it difficult for the participants with the relevant tools to follow the demonstration by ASUU. These issues were adequately reported to key stakeholders.

The Agency’s team also carried out series of Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Tests on the UTAS platform.

One of these assessments revealed five (5) High Risk vulnerabilities that are likely to negatively impact on the platform if exploited. Furthermore, two (2) Low Risk vulnerabilities were identified. These were discussed with the ASUU team and a further assessment carried out on the updated version of the Solution revealed that the High Risk Vulnerabilities have been addressed. However, one (1) Medium Risk, three (3) Low Risks and forty four (44) Informational Risks were identified. These also, were adequately communicated to the relevant stakeholders including ASUU.

A detailed Functionality/User Acceptance Test on the platform was carried out by our team. A total of 687 test cases were generated in which 529 passed, 156 failed and 2 cautionary warnings. As some of the failed cases are critical to the overall functionality of the Solution, the Agency could not recommend for the solution to be deployed in production environment. ASUU was therefore requested to work on the Solution and submit it for further assessment. Furthermore, a comprehensive report outlining all the tests carried out and issues identified was submitted to the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy on the 3rd December, 2021. This was in turn submitted to the chief conciliator, the Honourable Minister of Labour and Employment as well as other stakeholders in ASUU.

During the conciliation meeting held at the instance of the Honourable Minister of Labour and Employment on Tuesday, 22nd February, 2022, it resolved that NITDA works with ASUU and subject UTAS to re-assessment. Furthermore, it was resolved that key members of the conciliation team be in attendance during the Technical Team’s sessions as observers.

It may interest the Agency’s stakeholders to know that NITDA, as a responsible Agency of Government, made all arrangements to ensure that the exercise was carried out successfully. The interaction commenced on the 8th March, 2022 with discussion on the methodology to be used as specified in the Software Testing and Quality Assurance Framework and Guideline. Upon reaching agreement and starting the actual test on the Solution, a critical error occurred and the test could not continue.  As a result, the interaction had to be postponed to enable the ASUU Team rectify the issue.

Considering the challenge encountered, the assessment methodology had to be reviewed to facilitate daily remediation of critical issues as they occur. This, although not in NITDA’s Standard Operating Procedure for exercises such as this, was adopted. Consideration was made to the national importance attached to the exercise as well as the need to complete it in a reasonably shorter period of time.

It is important to note that despite making all efforts to fast-track the exercise, it took the team two weeks of continuous interaction on a daily basis. There is no doubt that the exercise has positively impacted on the functionality and robustness of the UTAS platform. Furthermore, we believe that the interaction availed ASUU the opportunity to understand and appreciate NITDA’s commitment and level of professionalism exhibited in carrying out its responsibilities.

The attention of stakeholders and the general public is drawn to the need for the UTAS platform to be sufficiently robust with key functionalities implemented before being deployed to the production environment. However, the assessment revealed that the Solution, as it is currently implemented, is limited. There are critical functionalities that have to be implemented, tested and passed before the Solution can considered to meet NITDA’s due diligence requirements. These areas of improvement have been fully documented and shared with the ASUU team for necessary action. It is expected that ASUU will improve on the areas identified, work on the security issues flagged and resubmit the Solution for further assessment.

The Agency wishes to use this opportunity to assure stakeholders and the general public of its commitment to its mandate and the vision of proactively facilitating the development of Nigeria into a sustainable digital economy by creating an enabling environment where Nigerians develop, adopt and derive value from digital technology.

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) is the apex regulator for Information Technology in Nigeria under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy. NITDA was established in April 2001 to coordinate general IT development and regulation in the country. Specifically, Section 6(a & c) of the Act establishing the Agency mandates it to create a framework for the planning, research, development, standardization, application, coordination, monitoring, evaluation and regulation of Information Technology practices, activities and systems in Nigeria; develop guidelines for electronic governance and monitor the use of electronic data interchange and other forms of electronic communication transactions as an alternative to paper-based methods in government, commerce, education, the private and public sectors, labour, and other fields, where the use of electronic communication may improve the exchange of data and information.
Signed:

Mrs Hadiza Umar, MNIPR, M.APRA, MCIPR
Head, Corporate Affairs and External Relations
Corporate Headquarters, Garki, Abuja
Website: www.nitda.gov.ng, e-mail: info@nitda.gov.ng

The post Finally, NITDA Reacts to ASUU Over UTAS Platform appeared first on Tech Digest News.

TECHDIGEST  – The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has extended the 1 month warning strike to additional two months making a total of three months.

With the latest development, a whole quarter of a year, the lecturers would not work but would receive their monthly salaries and allowances while demoralized Nigerian students will remain idle and away from academic activities.

It is sad and irrational that at this point of economic meltdown, insecurity and educational challenges, students are at the receiving end of the fight between ASUU and the federal government.

We often blame political leaders for being self-centredness, lecturers too who are now becoming activists than scholars are not different with their nonchalant attitudes in regards to the plights of Nigerian students, especially the youths who are leaders of tomorrow.

ALSO READ : UTAS: ASUU’s Payment App Failed Integrity Test – NITDA

What is even more disturbing is needless controversy over payment platforms to be used for the lecturers.

The ASUU has demanded that the federal government should adopt the Universities Transparency Accountability Solution (UTAS) payment platform in place of the popular Integrated Personnel and Payments Information System (IPPIS).

IPPIS is a federal government-controlled platform which is being used by the federal government for its workers including those in the military, security and intelligence services. The platform combines and harmonizes the payments of federal employees’ salaries and wages directly into their bank accounts with the appropriate deductions and remittances of third-party payments.

The director-general of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa recently disclosed that UTAS) failed three integrity tests.

According to him, the tests were meant to qualify UTAS — which was brought forward by ASUU to IPPIS.

ASUU has been on strike since February 14, and part of the reasons for the industrial action is that the federal government has refused to accept UTAS as a payment platform to replace the IPPIS.

Speaking on the matter, Inuwa said ASUU is currently reviewing the system.

NITDA boss said building a complex system like UTAS that involves employees’ personal data, and also payment system, must be subjected to best practice tests before approving.

He added that NITDA conducted a user acceptance test, a vulnerability test to check for possibility of hacking, and a stress test to prevent the system from crashing.

“We did all these three tests with them and the system couldn’t pass. We wrote the reports and submitted it back to the honourable minister, which he forwarded to all relevant institutions, including ASUU. As we speak now, ASUU is working, trying to fix all the issues we highlighted with the system and we will review it again. But that is just one half of the story,” he said.

Reacting to the development, ASUU president, Emmanuel Osodeke, denied alleged failure of the integrity test on UTAS. He said integrity test was carried out by NITDA on August 10, 2021 in NUC where relevant government agencies and all the end-users in the university system were present.

“At the end of the exercise, all, without exception, expressed satisfaction with UTAS as a suitable solution for salary payment in our universities. This was attested to by the report coming from NITDA then to the effect that UTAS scored 85 per cent in User Acceptance Test (UAT),” he said.

According to him, in a curious twist of submission, the NITDA technical team, after conducting a comprehensive functionality test came out to say that out of 687 test cases, 529 cases were satisfactory, 156 cases queried and 2 cases cautioned.

He added that taking this report on its face value, the percentage score was 77 per cent.

I was a bit curious by the simplistic argument of ASUU President, an academic professor who insisted that 77 per cent in any known fair evaluation system cannot be categorized as failure. Really?

Technology advancement, especially that has to do with lives, finances by be 100% accurate. Can a perfect car for instance with Air Conditions, Electronic gadgets including Television, computers can operate with a small to operate the union?

Well, that is by the side. The fact is that over 700 MDAs have registration on IPPIS platform, including research institutions who do go on sabbatical, study and leaves do obtain with their allowances paid in due process. Not to forget that the National Executive Councils is as well part of the payment roll.

Even as it is known that not academics agree with the adoption of the UTAS payment platform to replace IPPIS, the precarious brawl between ASUU and FG has negatively affected students who are the leaders of tomorrow.

With the recent huge national depth, it is doubtful if the federal government could approve enormous amount of money ASUU demand in honor of their last in 2020 FGN/ASUU Memorandum of Action (MoA).

I pray and hope the government and ASUU will come up with a common ground to end this strike and enable the students return to school, because as much as the students are tired, the parents too will continue bear the monetary consequence of the battle of the two elephants.

Zeenat O. Sambo, Citec Estate, Jabi Abuja zeenatsambo@yahoo.com

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