A radiologist from University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, Dr Wilson Effiong said 5G is non-ionizing radiation, which means it lacks sufficient energy to break apart DNA and cause cellular damage, saying that 5G had more speed and capability.,’

Effiong made this assertion as Electrical and electronic experts have called for adoption of 5G mobile technology for Nigeria not to be left out of the ongoing global technological industrialisation and development evolution.

Effiong said it was also an improvement of all other technologies , which Nigeria must adopt for growth.

He said that 5G does not cause COVID-19 stating that, “5G is non-ionizing radiation, which means it lacks sufficient energy to break apart DNA and cause cellular damage,’’

Nigerian Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (NIEEE) made a 5G Health Symposium webinar on Saturday to clarify some myth about the 5G technology. adsbygoogle || []).push({});

Speaking on controversies around 5G and radiation from antennas, they said that 5G mobile technology was faster and safer and used less oxidation and energy, making it safer than its predecessors.

Mr Bako Wakil, Director, Technical Standards and Network Integrity, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), said Nigeria had no 5G technology at the moment and stressed the need for policy formulation towards its adoption.

Wakil said that MTN was given the opportunity to try the capability of the network in two cities in 2019 after which the 5G was “decommissioned“.

He explained that 5G was safer than its predecessors because it has far less radiation than that of 1G, 2G, 3G and 4G networks.

Wakil said that NCC was measuring exposure limits from mobile frequencies in line with global standards, to ensure safety stating that, as safe as water was for human use, its abuse could cause harm.

“In NCC we have been measuring and assessing base station radiations. All equipment coming into Nigeria are allowed after they are certified.

“Radiation coming from mobile base stations or mobile sets are not harmful. We should as a country have a policy, 5G is going to transform our people and country.

“We have been carrying out measurements of 5G radiations at NCC and it is safe. Although it is safe, it is important to adopt safety measures, even water, if not properly used can harm you.

“NCC has feedback mechanisms where we go round the country in our consumer outreach programmes as well as our town hall meetings, where we ensure stakeholders and consumers meet to address all consumer needs and complaints,’’ he said.

He said that by 2025 over a billion machines were expected to be connected globally carrying out complex operations like surgeries, self-driving cars, etc which Nigeria must key into.

While taking questions from participants, Wakil said that radiation from microwave ovens was far higher than that required by the 5G mobile network.

He noted that microwave ovens needed more than 10 times the energy frequency needed by 5G mobile technology to function, thereby making 5G much safer.

Earlier, Prince Akeem Adeyemi, Chairman House of Representative Committee on Communications, while declaring the webinar open, said that there was currently no approval for 5G in Nigeria.

Mr Uwazie Kingsley, Technical Director, Huawei Technical Support Centre, Nigeria, while making his presentation, said that 5G had the key to the fourth industrial revolution driven by efficient effective machines operations.

Kingsley said that the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the need for working remotely, adding that 5G was the platform needed for other industries to inter-twine with telecommunication.

Citing drones as example, Kingsley said that the device was limited because it uses Wifi adding that, 5G would remove the current limitation of heights and speed to drones operations.

“5G is going to remove those limitations of height and speed, it will mean that the drones can no longer be brought down and the Police can use it for surveillance,’’ he said.

He said that Nigeria cannot afford to be left behind as researches have begun into 6G, which is expected to use holograms.

Dr Abayomi Afe, Public Health Physician, a specialist in infectious diseases, a researcher and Consultant, said that disease needed an environment, agent and a human host to enable it to thrive.

Afe who spoke on the topic, “Health and Radiation Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic“ said COVID-19 was a new pattern of the respiratory disease, which is unknown.

“The only way to know anyone who has the virus is through laboratory test which includes collection of swaps from the nose and deep down in the throat,” he said.

He said that the country was making progress in its effort to flatten the COVID-19 curve, while listing various health guidelines on curbing COVID-19 and how to stay safe.

“As at last week a new symptom was discovered in children that is why you must seek medical help for all health issues and not self-medication,” Afe said.

Author Profile

Abdulrahman Obaje

Prince Abdulrahman Obaje is a Media and ICT Consultant, Journalist, online marketer, social media strategist, Mathematician and Computer Scientist based in Abuja, Nigeria. He is the Founder and the Publisher of The Informavores!. You can reach me on +234 805 939 5252 or send i-witness report directly to me on news@informavores.com.ng.

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“Budget of Sustaining Growth and Job Creation” is the year 2020 executive budget proposal of President Mohammadu Buhari presented to joint session of the National Assembly, Abuja on Tuesday, October 8, 2019 with N10.33 trillion been the total budget. However, N10.33 trillion is estimated as the total Federal Government revenue in 2020 and comprises oil revenue N2.64 trillion, non-oil tax revenues of N1.81 trillion and other revenues of N3.7 trillion. This is 7 percent higher than the 2019 comparative estimate of N7.594 trillion inclusive of the Government Owned Enterprises. According to President Buhari “investing in critical infrastructure is a key component of our fiscal strategy under the 2020 Budget Proposals.

An aggregate sum of N2. 46 trillion (inclusive of N318.06 billion in statutory transfers) is proposed for capital projects in 2020”. Although the 2020 capital budget is N721.33 billion (or 23 percent) lower than the 2019 budget provision of N3.18 trillion, it is still higher than the actual and projected capital expenditure outturns for both the 2018 and 2019 fiscal years, respectively. However, at 24 percent of aggregate projected expenditure, the 2020 provision falls significantly short of the 30 percent target in the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) 2017-2020. Budget deficit is projected to be N2.18 trillion in 2020. This includes draw downs on project-tied loans and the related capital expenditure. This represents 1.52 percent of estimated GDP, well below the 3 percent threshold set by the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2007, and in line with the ERGP target of 1.96 percent.

The deficit will be financed by new foreign and domestic borrowings, Privatization Proceeds, signature bonuses and draw downs on the loans secured for specific development projects. In terms of debt servicing which has become one of this administration big criticism.2020 budgets, provide the sum of N2.45 trillion for debt service. Of this amount, 71 percent is to service domestic debt which accounts for about 68 percent of the total debt. The sum of N296 billion is provided for the Sinking Fund to retire maturing bonds issued to local contractors.

The foregoing on 2020 budget is to provide an over view of what the proposal key details entails. However, the concern of this piece is to address cogent aspect of the budget as its affect science and technology in Nigeria. The pattern of budget allocation for the science and technology sector over the last few years’ shows that the allocation to this sector, as not been encouraging, especially if we must consider how critical this sector is to the overall economy development of our nation. For instance in the appropriation bill for the year 2020 N87.35 Billion is allocated for the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology (FMST). A breakdown of this show that for capital project N37.55.billion and recurrent expenditure N49.80 billion. A review of the outgoing year 2019 budget N66, 823,303,434 in the 2019 for the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology (FMST). According to the Appropriation Bill 2019, N35, 020,953,172 is proposed for recurrent expenditure and N31, 802,350,262 for capital expenditure.

According to the 2020 budget details, Federal Ministry of Science and Technology (FMST) are among the top 12 capital and recurrent allocations in the 2020 budget. But unfortunately, it occupied the 12^th position on both side. This portrayed that budget for S&T is still not a cardinal priority for us in Appropriation Bill 2020 just as it happen in 2019 budget and others before now. While we acknowledge the importance of all sectors and their relevance, we must also prioritise our development agenda as S&T remains critical. The top 12 capital allocations in 2020 budget are; Works and Housing N259.20 billion; Education N162.74billion; Power N127.67billion;TransportN123.07billion;DefenceN99.87billion;HealthN90.88;AgricultureN79.79billion;Water resourceN78.34billion;Humanitarian affairs and Disaster N54.45billion;Aviation N53.85billion;Industry,trade and investment; Science and Technology N37.55billion

At recurrent allocations side Defence top the table with N778.59 billion as the war against boko Haram is still much around, one would not expect less for that sector. Education followed next with N490.20 billion; Police affairs N395.83billion; Health N336.32 billion; Interior N219.46 billion; Youth and Sport N168.33 billion; Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) N114.91 billion; Petroleum ResourcesN75.60billion; Foreign Affairs N67.56 billion; Office of the Secretary to the Government of the of the Federation (OSGF) N59.60billion; Agriculture & Rural Development N58.67 billion; while Science and Technology N49.80 billion occupied the 12^th position.

The ministry as established has the following mandates:
*Formulation, monitoring and review of the National Policy on Science, Technology and Innovation to attain the macro-economic and social objectives of Vision 20:2020 as it relates to science and technology; *Acquisition and application of science, technology and innovation contribution to increase agricultural and livestock productivity; *Increasing energy reliance through sustainable R&D in nuclear, renewable and alternative energy sources for peaceful and development purposes; *Promotion of wealth creation through support to key industrial and manufacturing sectors; *Creation of technology infrastructure and knowledge base of facilitate its wide application for development; *Application of natural medicine resources and technologies for health sector development; *Acquisition and application of Space Science and Technology as a key driver of economic development; and *Ensuring the impact of R&D results in the Nigerian economy through the promotion of indigenous research capacity to facilitate technology transfer. With Seventeen (17) key agencies

At a time the current government planning to diversify the economy away from crude oil and seek for alternative means to leverage its growth and jobs creation target as well as revenue generation. Critical sectors like Science, Technology, Innovation and Research potentials are nonetheless real and cannot be easily written off. Unlocking this potentials as well as achieving sustainable development is also pragmatically hinged on Science, Technology, and Innovation and Research development.

As this piece makes case for science and technology in Nigeria, it is in our opinion that for S&T, understanding the political economy and socio-economy context is off due diligence as a matter of course when it comes to budgeting for S&T, knowing the vast of opportunities that come with it. The non-transition over the years by Nigeria’s economy from traditional mono-cultural economy oil is bane her development economically. Nigeria needs a genuine transition, a change of orientation from a consuming nation to a manufacturing economy which creates jobs or bequeaths equitable wealth distribution on citizens.

While we must commend the president for early presentation of the budget to the national Assembly, also we must charge legislature to fulfill their own part to fast-tracking the debate and committee hearing from MDAs and Parastatals .As Nigerians would not entertain delayed passage of budgets that has done incalculable harm to the economy over the years. Infrastructure projects, which catalyse economic developments, suffer most with late implementation. Local investments are delayed as investors tarry to see how their businesses could be affected. This malaise cripples jobs and wealth creation.

According to a research carried out by the National Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM). Nigeria is now a recipient of obsolete and misfit technologies.

NACETEM, an agency of Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Science and Technology that provides critical knowledge support in the area of Science, Technology, Innovation (STI) management for sustainable development in a report made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja, the centre said the development was due to reliance of the country’s manufacturing and service firms on imported technologies.

Speaking to NAN on the issue, Dr Abiodun Egbetokun, Assistant Director of Research in NACETEM said a survey was jointly carried out by NACETEM and Centre for Innovation Indicators (CesTII) at the South Africa’s Human Sciences Research Council. adsbygoogle || []).push({});

He said the research focused on the innovation performances of Nigeria and South Africa and how the productive sector of the economies of both countries fare particularly in relation to the creation and application of knowledge.

He said findings revealed that both countries use technology acquisition as the key innovation strategy but South Africa used more technology in the manufacturing sector than Nigeria.

“We compared innovation in manufacturing between both countries; we found a slightly higher rate of innovation in South Africa than in Nigeria.

“But, firms in both countries rely on technology acquisition (that is, the purchase of embodied technology through machinery, equipment and software) to innovate.

“In the specific case of Nigeria, most of the technology is imported.

“In the comparison of service firms, the difference in innovation rates between both countries is not noticeable.

“While Nigerian service firms still rely on technology imports, South African firms emphasise staff training as the main innovation strategy,’’ he said.

The director said both countries used technology acquisition as key innovation strategy to improve the quantity and quality of their value propositions.

He noted that the two countries faced critical financial and other barriers to innovation.

On services sector, the official said the two countries used training and technology acquisition as key innovation strategies to improve the quantity and quality of their proposition.

According to him, the findings of the research show that the Gross Domestic Products (GDPs)of the two countries were stalled in recent years.

The director said there were several reasons why GDP growth rates could be stalled but the most plausible in the case of both Nigeria and South Africa is what economists term “middle income trap”.

“This happens when a country grows rapidly and attains middle income status (according to World Bank classification) but is unable to grow beyond that status.

“Often, what drives the pre-middle-income growth is connected to specific advantages that the country has, for instance in the export market for primary commodities (in the case of Nigeria, crude oil, and in South Africa, gold).

“Due to local wage increases that accompany middle income status, the country tends to become less competitive in the export market and is, at the same time, unable to compete with more advanced countries in the market for finished goods.

“That is the story of Nigeria and South Africa.

“Currently, both countries grapple with poor domestic labour market conditions, evidenced by incessant wage increases, worker protests, large share of workforce in indecent employment, etc among other characteristic middle income trap problems,’’ he said.

Egbetokun said data from the research was drawn from the South Africa Business Innovation survey (2008) and the Nigerian Business Innovation Survey (2010)

“These are the latest available data. The surveys stopped since then because funding of the NEPAD African Science, Technology and Innovation Indicators Initiative (ASTII) stopped and each country needed to fund its own innovation surveys.

“Unfortunately, NACETEM did not receive funding for the surveys from the Nigerian government until in the 2018 budget year.

“We are now embarking on the data collection process for another round, but any analysis for now will have to rely on the old 2008-2010 data.

“For comparability, we chose 2010-2012 data for South Africa. Other years would have been too far apart between both countries,’’ the director said.

According to him, an innovation survey is normally conducted periodically (typically once every three years) to assess how the productive sector of an economy fares, particularly in relation to the creation and application of knowledge.

“These surveys are useful because they help to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the industrial sector in a country, with a view to designing appropriate policies and structures to initiate and sustain growth.

“Innovation surveys have been carried out in Europe, where they are commonly known as Community Innovation Surveys (CIS), since 1991/92.

“In 1996, South Africa was the first African country to implement an innovation survey.’’

NAN reports that the recent research emerges from Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for joint research and training that NACETEM signed with CeSTII in 2017.

Author Profile

Abdulrahman Obaje

Prince Abdulrahman Obaje is a Media and ICT Consultant, Journalist, online marketer, social media strategist, Mathematician and Computer Scientist based in Abuja, Nigeria. He is the Founder and the Publisher of The Informavores!. You can reach me on +234 805 939 5252 or send i-witness report directly to me on news@informavores.com.ng.

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