The Pan African Digital Initiative Summit & Expo (P.A.D.I.S.E) 2022 which held in Lagos Nigeria last week with attendance from the biggest names in Nigeria’s technology and security space has identified collaboration as the major way forward in the quest to curb the rising threats of insecurity, whether cyber or physical. The seminal conference had the theme: Leveraging the Right Policies and Technologies in Taming Insecurity and Cyber Threats.
Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Pantami, who delivered the lead paper, noted that combating cybersecurity is a collective effort that demands a multi-sector approach. He stated that every component of society from the government at the highest level to private individuals has a role to play in achieving secure cyberspace.
According to him: “Many intelligent learning techniques, like deep learning and reinforcement learning, are now being added to cybersecurity systems to make them safer and better at protecting privacy for both personal and ubiquitous systems.”
Head of Computer Emergency Readiness and Response Team (CERRT) Unit at NITDA, Dr. Lawan Mohammed, who represented the Minister, added that artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to change security and the way cyber-attacks are tackled.
Executive Vice Chairman, Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC), Prof Umar Danbatta, in his speech, observed that it would be beneficial to establish partnerships and collaboration with relevant stakeholders to improve security. He revealed that efforts are already underway including initiatives such as linking NIN with SIMs, the Cybersecurity incidence team and the Internet Code of Practice among others.
Prof Danbatta was represented by Director of Digital Economy at the NCC, Engineer Austine Nwanoli.
According to Executive Governor, Nasarawa State, Eng Abdullahi Sule, who presented the keynote: “In considering how to leverage the right policies and technologies in taming insecurity and cyber-threats, one word that comes to mind is vulnerabilities. The scale of ransomware attacks and the large scope of threats shows that no organization, no state, no company is immune.” He added that we must train and retrain ourselves, collaborate with partners and work to mitigate the threats. Shehu Ibrahim, DG, Bureau for ICT, Nasarawa State, who represented the governor insisted that technology can solve insecurity.
Secretary to The Lagos State Government, Mrs. Folashade Jaji, in her goodwill message, praised Governor Babajide SanwoOlu for T.H.E.M.E.S Development agenda, which stands for Transportation & Traffic Management, Health and Environment, Education and Technology, Making Lagos a 21st Century Economy, Entertainment and Tourism, Security and Governance. Security, she noted, is a cardinal pillar for this administration.
She revealed that the government has a lot of initiatives in the works to tackle insecurity including the Unmanned Area Vehicle (UAV) for the Geo-mapping of the State’s landscape and to manage emergency, security and disaster recovery management amongst others. In addition, cameras are being deployed on major routes for better traffic management and security of road users across Lagos State. Mrs. Tolani Oshodi, Permanent secretary, cabinet office of the SSG, represented the SSG.
President Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), Engineer Ikechukwu Nnamani, called for closer collaboration between services providers and regulators. We must endeavour to digitize our methods to mitigate the impact of insecurity, he remarked.
While speaking at the event, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alabi, revealed that the NPF Force HQ has a Technical Intelligence Unit (T.I.U) to combat cybercrime and physical threats to Nigerians noting that the police is collaborating with the West African Police Information System (WAPIS) to begin data collation of all nefarious individuals across the West African region, NCC and Interpol.
SP Police, Benjamin Hundeyin, who represented the CP, said that there is a national crime and incidence centre in Lagos, the NPF social media unit is now fully operational and the Rescue me App has also been launched.
Veteran Tech Journalist and Managing Partner, Africa Telecom and IT news Prince Bayo Abiodun Chaired Day One while Amos Emmanuel, Founder, Innovationbed Africa chaired Day Two.
The Convener of PADISE 2022, Don Pedro Aganbi, posited that insecurity affects every country today, as they hamper efforts to promote and protect human rights and are an obstacle to sustainable development.
The Summit held side by side with an exhibition which featured companies like Zoho Technologies, Africa Data Centres, IHS towers, itel, Ethnos IT Solutions, OneData, TeleAfrica, Medallion Communications, OneData, Cloudflex, Alpha Technologies, EcoExcel and ICSL among others.
