With globalisation and its concomitant rapid changes in technology, a country's competitiveness and relevance in the global economy are increasingly determined by its capacity to effectively use information and technology to solve its immediate challenges. The recent IT Assembly forum, organised by the CPN, strategically focused on this tangential issue. ADEYEMI ADEPETUN, who was there, reports.THERE has been rapid development in information technologies internationally in the last two decades. Studies from Newly Industrialised Countries (NICs) and the developed world have shown that ICT can positively contribute to economic growth and solve myriads of challenges, including insecurity.It has been further argued that ICT has the potential to reduce poverty and improve livelihoods by empowering users with timely knowledge, reducing transaction costs, and appropriate skills for increasing productivity.Be that as it may, the dynamism of ICT promised fundamental change in all aspects of life, including knowledge dissemination, social networking, economic and business practices, political engagement, education, health, leisure, and entertainment. It is also believed that ICT are useful either as tangible goods in their own right or as value-adding services and they therefore assist the development efforts made by governments.As such, the recently held Information Technology assembly organised by the Computer Professional Registration Council of Nigeria (CPN) in Abuja, beamed search light on the importance of unleashing the IT potential to solve the myriads of problems confronting the existence of Nigeria.Different faculties, who presented papers at the Assembly, raised pertinent issues revolving on intelligence gathering and national security challenge, as well as, untapped opportunities that are abounds in the cash-less economy initiatives and need for human capital development in IT, to other germane industry issues.For emphasis, the CPN organised IT Assembly is a yearly gathering of IT practitioners in Nigeria and Diaspora with the objective of discussing and strategising on emergent issues in IT in order to come up with recommendations and decisions that will impact positively on the industry and the nation.With this year's theme focusing on: 'Information Technology and National Transformation,' experts believed that the IT sector has what was needed to resolve the various impediments to the country's goal, especially at a time that Nigeria aspires to be a leading economic bloc by year 2020.According to them, if Nigeria must be on top of the various challenges confronting it, it is imperative to build the needed human capital development with requisite knowledge in ICT. The association bemoaned the lip services paid to knowledge development in the sector.A communiqu signed by CPN Registrar, S.A Shehu further noted that it was necessary for the country to invest more in IT education system, stressing that the present low level of human capacity development is actually giving little or no input to the development of IT tools for intelligence gathering in the country.As such, if Nigeria must stem the tide of the increasing security loopholes, there must be efficient information gathering mechanism.The communiqu pointed out that poor infrastructural facilities, inadequate manpower, as well as absence of a national database are factors that are inhibiting IT contribution to intelligence gathering processed in Nigeria.'Since Information Technology profession is knowledge based, it is extremely difficult for the profession or IT professionals to play the role expected of them in Intelligence Gathering and National Security without a concomitant human capacity development. Therefore, there is a need to invest more in the IT education system', the communiqu stated.The professionals said there was little or no input to the development of IT tools for intelligence gathering.The ICT experts recommended that due to the importance of security for the survival and corporate existence of any nation, there is the need for IT-based organisations to collaborate and reach out to security agencies and intelligence gathering organisations with a view to developing a purpose built software and hardware to enable the nation enhance its security and intelligence gathering, stressing that this is very important for the profession and the nation.According to them, the country should endeavor to resort to local development of IT tools that will be useful in intelligence gathering and national security because continual patronage of foreign tools can compromise the country's security.'Necessary machinery should be put in motion for the setting up of a national database because the absence of a national database has been hindering the gathering and monitoring of intelligence in Nigeria,' the communiqu noted.They equally affirmed that, there was need for proper deployment of IT in tackling the security challenges in the country, adding that security agencies have extended an open invitation to IT professionals to collaborate for the developments of hardware and software solutions that could assist in providing solutions to various security problems in the country.Presenting a paper on National Security at the forum, which also coincided with the induction of about 376 members into various membership of CPN, Director-General of the Nigeria Governors' Forum, Abel Okauru, said, 'as the nation continues to face rising national security challenges, it is critical to embrace a digital transformation process that will help in tackling the national security challenges and achieve economic and social policy goal of a 21st century nation.'He listed areas where Information Communications Technology (ICT) could improve national security in the country to include financing, communication, surveillance, identification, intelligence gathering, and co-ordination, among others.For financing, Okauru said ICT remained a vital tool for tracking, tracing and investigating suspected financial transactions. 'With the recent introduction of cashless society, transactions will be forced to electronic platforms where suspicious cash movements can be identified and questioned. This would go a long way in curbing the financing of activities that constitute a threat to national security,' he said.In the area of communication, Okauru said intercepting communication between and within terror groups and enhancing interaction within security agencies could be achieved through the deployment of ICT, and for surveillance, he said computer surveillance involving the monitoring of data and traffic, such as phone calls and broadband internet traffic, should be available for unimpeded real-time monitoring by Federal law enforcement agencies.'So many forms and technologies can be used such as surveillance cameras, social network analysis, biometric surveillance, data mining and profiling, corporate surveillance, satellite imagery, among others.'In the area of intelligence gathering, he suggested the use of ICT Tools to engage the public in acquiring information that has the potential to enhance national security. The Internet, print and electronic media are useful in gathering useful information to assist in the nation security efforts, he said.Recognising the importance of security for the survival and corporate existence of any nation, it was stressed that the IT profession and the security agencies must create a synergy that is required to solve the nation's security problems, while calling for proper deployment of technology in tackling the security challenges in the country.Besides, the Central Bank of Nigeria's Cash-less economy initiative was seen as an initiativecapable of saving the country several billions of Naira in transaction cost, which constitute about 80 per cent of the total transactions of Nigerians in the banking industry.At an interaction in Lagos, the CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi had said that cash management cost was expected to hit N192 billion by December 2012.As such, the paper delivered by Group Head, Remita Services at SystemSpecs, Mr. Demola Igbalajobi, with the theme: 'Cashless Transactions: Platforms, Challenges and Opportunities,' said there was need for proper integration of rural people into the Nigerian banking system and the cash-less policy, as well as the need to step up customer education for it success, with proper security in place.While canvassing for improved education of the masses, he said the phobia for electronic mode of payment remained real, explaining that most people still prefer the usage of the traditional and manual system of carrying physical cash around to transact financial business that they are used to.
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