By Ignatius Chukwu & Onyeche Igwe
The Kiisi Trust Foundation (KTF) which was set up to with $5m support from fallout of the Ogoni martyrs case in New York may have scored once again the bull eye in community development and galvanization. It thought out what looks like a novel idea, a technology fair, to push brains in Ogoni to compete globally in the emerging science aspect, high-tech, which is regarded as a leveler.
The Board reasoned that Ogoni cannot afford to stay behind in the global race in ICT and high-tech, thus, the search to begin with mapping and identification of Ogoni persons in the tech space became compelling.
Details:
It is now known that top talents exist in Ogoni areas of Rivers State in high tech and ICT. The realization emerged last weekend at the Kiisi Trust Foundation (KTF) Tech Fair in Port Harcourt.
At the event which was declared open by the chairman of KTF, Barr Uche Onyeagucha, also an activist that fought for the late Ken Saro Wiwa and the others, seven finalists who emerged through rigorous screening shook the audience.
Onyeagucha, who is the chairman of the KTF, named other projects carried out by the Foundation and explained why the tech fair was arrived at.
Onyeagucha stated during his opening speech thus: “At the end of today, the gaps in Ogoni tech will also be apparent. It will be interesting to see what these gaps are: would they be in capacity improvement, funding innovation, awareness creation , creating links between ‘big tech’ and existing tech knowledge and innovation in Ogoni ? I am sure that the report of the event will highlight these gaps, and what can be built on in the future. It is with joy that I have noticed the interest and buzz this event has generated. Notable tech organisations have reached out to KTF and me regarding this fair, and in addition to following this event , some have also requested that recordings of the segments showing the exhibitions proper be sent to them later. This is a thing of joy.”
Exhibitors:
The first exhibitor to mount the stage was Kote Justice with his product, KEGTA, which he said is an online hub for everything Ogoni. He said it is unique because it brings online solution to human resource, skill centre, digital learning hub, collaboration, and marketplace.
He was followed by Lemene Cyril Sam-Bariepie, who talked about his product: School Monitor. “This is a proposed mobile app for school data management that performs the following; manages students results, helps parents monitor children’s performance in class, tracks students attendance in school, E-learning platform where students can learn how to spell using a feature called “word arranger”, take quiz, get general health tips. They can watch skill training for kids during holidays. Others who can use it are teachers or instructors. Business people can go live for their audience to watch as they teach just like YouTube.”
The third was SchoolSuite by Bel-Aanen Leemabari Precious. He called it learning support that provides personalized learning pathways for students with diverse needs, including learning disabilities. He also commented on data analytics engine: how it processes school data to generate valuable reports and insights for better decision-making and affordable pricing for an average school.
Tooba Torbari mounted the centre stage with his Accounts Management App to save clients from high fees of up to $7,500. His firm is ‘Prominent Services Ltd. He highlighted the unique benefits of his product: to automate financial statements, to give real time dashboard of data analysis, how it needs no server to function, requires no monthly or yearly subscription and back-in-time inventory position.
Dinee-Laago Legborsi came next with his product, ZaraPay Fintech Mobile Payment App. The unique features of the fintech mobile application, according to him, include ability to transfer funds between mobile money wallet and bank account, as well as to the wallet/account of another user, the ability to pay for products and services. It also supports debit/credit card, customizing mobile software into point of sale (POS) devices and standard security measures & fraud detection.
Enyie Peter Kere, another exhibitor, developed an e-commerce platform where Ogoni people will showcase their products. The main feature is Ogoni Market. “It will also be used for Quiz Grant to reward students who are working hard in school. The platform will serve as Ogoni data bank.”
Kue Barinor Paul came with Blocklex Academy from Blocklex Consulting. He said it would be offering education, trainings and certifications for blockchains, crypto, and digital assets; thereby empowering trainees to pursue various careers paths and embark on business projects leveraging the ecosystem.
Wise counsel:
Speaking after the exhibitions, the professor, Barineme Beke Fakae, a former Vice Chancellor of the then Rivers State University of Science and Technology (UST), now Rivers State University, and a member of the Board of Trustees of KTF, said that looking at the number of persons that participated and the type of presentations they exhibited, the Tech Fair was a huge success.
He said it is because it was the first of its kind. He noted that when they started the scholarship scheme, it was with 18 scholars but today they have given scholarships to over 1,700 persons.
Onyeagucha, also a former member of the Federal House of Representatives, a former Secretary to Imo State Government, said the Fair would open up opportunities for people to identify problems facing Ogoni, Rivers State, Nigeria, and the world at large and proffer solutions to these problems. He said that in every community, that there are people who are brilliant enough to help to throw up solutions to global affairs, especially with regards to Tech World, which was the reason for the Tech Fair.
One of the exhibitors, Bel-Aanen Leemabari Precious, confessed that the Tech Fair meant a lot to them. He said it was one of the platforms he had been expecting to come up and that he was excited because it has given him the opportunity to connect with Ogoni people and others who are into Tech.
Precious thanked God for the opportunity and appreciated Kiisi Trust Foundation for making his dream come true.
According to the Executive Director of KTF, Lebatam Ndegwe, a medical doctor and administrator, the areas of focus in the maiden Ogoni Tech Fair include Web development, Cloud Architecture, Cloud Engineering, Software Development, Data Analysis, Data Engineering, and Database Administration.
Others include Network Security Engineering, Cyber Security, AI Development, Blockchain technology, And Computer Systems Analysis.
