Author: Ndubisi Ijeoma

Why undergraduates need to think space – Foundation

Space

By Ijeoma Olorunfemi

Abuja, June 27, 2024 (NAN) Learnspace Foundation, an NGO, on Thursday, encouraged students to develop interest in space, saying that it appears abstract but has diverse opportunities.

Dr Anne Agi, President of the foundation, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said that everything about human existence revolved around space science technology.

“Most people think that space is abstract and it doesn’t affect our country, but technically, that is not true, space is everything, space is bigger than what we think.

“The private sector is really engaging and the possibilities are endless, what you need to do is to equip yourself because the opportunities will come.

“You need to understand that times are changing, this is the time to get interested,’’ she said.

Agi, also a Space Law lecturer at the University of Calabar, Cross River, said that most thoughts about space science technology were at some point speculations until proven to be true.

The foundation’s president added that the globe was continuously engaging in writing papers, making arguments, having conferences, seminars, all to understand space science.

”The more we rub minds, go for mute courts competitions, the benefits will come.

“I am going to encourage anyone that is remotely interested in space to actively get interested.

“Since I got into space there has never been a down time and the opportunities keep opening, in spite of the non availability of funds,’’ she said.

Agi recognised that few Nigerian universities offered courses around space science technology like Space Law, Astronomy, Space Engineering, adding that interested students shouldn’t be discouraged.

She further said that the Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC), had given universities a certain percentage to grant courses that impacted their communities, hence Space law in UNICAL.

“NUC just adopted a new pattern of curriculum for universities where a certain percentage are the recommended courses and 35 per cent is for the university.

“Whatever courses the university wants to do within that 35 per cent impact in their community is left for them.

“NUC has given universities that leeway, it is left for the universities to recognise that it is a viable branch of law and undertake it under their elective courses,’’ she said.

Agi added that the Learnspace foundation was committed to propagating space education, engaging relevant stakeholders to promote space activities in the country and globally.

She said that the major challenge towards understanding space among the people, was poor awareness, but they were advancing in creating the awareness, in spite of paucity of funds.

Agi said, “We have raised an entire generation of students who are very interested in space and knowledge because they went for space law competitions.

“We are still contending with the disbelief of people but we are doing our best.’’ (NAN)www.nannews.ng

NIU/BRM

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Edited by Bashir Rabe Mani

Spelling

By Ijeoma Olorunfemi

Abuja, June 20, 2024 (NAN)Young Educators Foundation, an NGO, has announced  that Nigeria and Ghana will represent Africa at the prestigious Scripps National Spelling Bee, that will be hosted in the U.S. in 2025.

Mrs Eugenia Tachie-Menson, Chief Executive Officer of the foundation, disclosed this in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja.

Tachie-Menson said that the spelling competition that tested students’ competence in spelling and vocabulary prowess had seen Ghana representing the continent for about two decades.

She said that the foundation in collaboration with Lucid Education Initiative, Nigeria, facilitated for Nigeria to join the representation.

“This collaboration aims to ignite a passion for spelling and literacy among Nigerian youths.

“The Scripps National Spelling Bee is more than a contest; it is a celebration of discipline, word mastery and academic excellence.

“Beyond giving Nigerian students and schools a global spotlight, it will boost cognitive skills, critical thinking, and mental agility in young learners.

“It will also spark curiosity and a lifelong love for language and learning.’’

According to her, the foundation is already working on a selection process of students to compete at the national level for the global representation.

The chief executive officer added that they had begun the selection from some private schools and later to public schools.

“The champion of this yet-to-be-unveiled spelling contest will earn a spot in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., in May 2025,” she said.

On his part, Mr Afolajimi Akinyoyenu, Chief Executive Officer, Lucid Education Initiative, said that Nigeria’s participation in the competition would highlight the importance of literacy and spelling education among young students.

“This programme offers a platform for Nigerian youths to showcase their literacy prowess on a global stage.

“It will change the tired and erroneous narrative that the African child only hungers for food,” he said.

The 2024 edition had no fewer than 245 national competitors from schools across the U.S., in Europe, Ghana, Canada and others.

The Scripps National Spelling Bee is a thrilling mental challenge, with spellers having just 75 seconds to ask questions and 90 seconds to spell each word.(NAN)www.nannews.ng

NIU/CJ/

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Edited by Chijioke Okoronkwo

Nigeria, U.S. coy to launch first human spaceflight in Africa

Space

By Ijeoma Olorunfemi

Abuja, June 19, 2024 (NAN) Nigerian government and the Space Exploration and Research Agency (SERA) from Delaware, USA, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to send the first Nigerian to space.

Chief Uche Nnaji, Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, said on Wednesday at the signing of the MoU in Abuja, that human spaceflight was a major aspiration of Nigeria.

“Human spaceflight is not just a random aspiration of our country but a major objective of the Nigeria Space Policy and Programme which was approved by the Federal Executive Council in 2001.

“Reviving and implementing all abandoned national plans is a cardinal point of the Renewed Hope Agenda of the administration of President Bola Tinubu.

“This partnership provides a way of achieving our long-time aspiration as a nation,’’ he said.

The minister said the slot could be available from now till December, or in 2025, as SERA would still be test-running the platform.

Dr Matthew Adepoju, Director- General of NASRDA, said the cost of sending a Nigerian to space had been fully sponsored by SERA.

Adepoju said the event marked the commencement of the agency’s efforts to implement part of its roadmap of having a human spaceflight.

He also said the event was worth celebrating at a time that Nigeria was marking the 25 years of its space programme.

“The Human Spaceflight programme is one of the cardinal objectives of National Space Policy and Programme.

“It was with this in mind that we established the Department of Physical and Life Sciences about three years ago to forge this mandate.

“This is also coming as one of our deep space explorations because there are many spinoffs that will come from the collaboration and opportunities opened for Nigerians,’’ he said.

Mr Joshua Skurla, Co-Founder of SERA, said that 80 per cent of astronauts, globally, had exclusively emanated from three countries.

Skurla said that Nigeria had a rich history of scientific, technological innovation, thus, SERA was excited to partner with NASRDA to extend the legacy into space and create new opportunities for Nigerian space explorers.

Mr Sam Hutchison, Founder of SERA, said that the application to be in space was open to any Nigerian older than 18 years, in spite of their discipline.

“The Nigerian people will choose the citizen to go to space, the process of application will be open to anybody who is over 18 years, and there are no other qualifications required.

“You will be able to sign up and then encourage others to vote for you; as part of democratic process, the Nigerian people will select four potential astronaut candidates before a final selection process.

“The important thing to understand is that anybody can apply, you don’t have to be a Scientist, Mathematician or Engineer.

“This is about opening up access to ordinary Nigerians and giving them the opportunity of being the first Nigerian in space,’’ he said.

He added that they chose Nigeria because the country had already indicated serious intent towards space exploration through its obvious space programmes and initiatives.

Hutchison further said that they paid attention to the country knowing that it is a country of Scientists, Engineers and most importantly entrepreneurs.

“We hope to raise the awareness of young Nigerians that by choosing careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, they can go to space.”

Hutchison noted that the selection process would be through SERA’s platform, and that it would be open and transparent.

Dr Anne Agi, President, Learnspace Foundation, who was instrumental to executing the partnership, advocated for Nigeria to be chosen for the mission.

Agi who expressed optimism that the mission would serve as a beacon of hope and inspiration for Nigerian youths noted that space had the power to inspire future generations.

“It will show that even in challenging times, with global collaboration, great achievements are possible.

“We are therefore thrilled to have played a part in this groundbreaking partnership and we encourage Nigerians to key in.”

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that under the partnership, SERA will reserve a seat for a Nigerian citizen, on an upcoming Blue Origin New Shepard suborbital spaceflight.

This is part of a broader SERA-led initiative, in partnership with Blue Origin, to send six individuals from nations historically underrepresented in space exploration.

SERA, is a company from Delaware, U.S., and was founded to build a global community dedicated to space exploration, research and democratising space exploration and exploitation for all nations of the world.

The SERA-NASRDA collaboration builds upon SERA’s previous success in sending Victor Hespanha, a 28-year-old Brazilian Civil Engineer, to space in 2022, which demonstrates the transformative power of an inclusive and accessible space ecosystem. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

NIU/EMAF
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Edited by Emmanuel Afonne

Award

By Ijeoma Olorunfemi

Abuja, June 16, 2024 (NAN) Dr Bonaventure Okere, an astronomer with the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), has won the 2024  International Astronomical Union (IAU) prize for astronomy education in Africa.

Guido Schwarz, IAU’s Press Officer, announced the prize winners in a statement issued on the union’s official website page, a copy of which was obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja.

The prizes were in three categories, which included the IAU Astronomy Outreach, Development and Education (ODE).

“The IAU has announced the 2024 winners of three IAU prizes that were created in 2022.

“The three awards recognise individuals and organisations who have made outstanding contributions to the fields of astronomy outreach, development and education.

“The 2024 ODE Education prize is awarded to Linda Strubbe and Okere for their leadership in creating high-quality educational experiences in astronomy for African university students.

“ Okere led the foundation of the Pan-African School for Emerging Astronomers (PASEA) at the IAU 28th General Assembly, in Beijing to improve Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics education in Nigeria and Africa.’’

Schwarz said that Okere’s partner, Strubbe, had been central in creating very high-quality educational experiences in PASEA through her design, leadership and teaching.

According to Schwarz, Okere’s work draws on a particularly strong evidence base across the educational curriculum; from professional development for PASEA instructors to the evaluation of student’s learning.

“The inquiry-based curriculum intertwines teaching content with scientific practices, and is highly regarded by students, building on Bonaventure Okere’s vision of leveraging the world-class astronomy facilities on the continent.

“The impact of  Strubbe’s and  Okere’s initiative, leadership, and excellence in implementing PASEA is already enormous and will continue to grow into the future,” he said.

He said that PASEA had trained no fewer than 300 students across 18 African countries, with the sixth school being held in Tunisia this year.

Okere, in his response, said that with the many observatories across Africa, he had always pondered on how to contribute to the development of astronomers from Africa who would play key roles in the observatories.

He said the collaborative journey to build a critical mass of astronomers across Africa began in 2012 and led to the founding of PASEA, adding that he was honoured to receive the prize for team PASEA.

Other prize winners were Saran Poshyachinda for IAU Outreach and the Central American-Caribbean Bridge in Astrophysics for the IAU Development.

A total of 62 valid nominations were received, with both the nominators and nominees spanning the entire globe.

Schwarz said that the awards would be presented to the winners at the IAU 32nd General Assembly (IAUGA2024) in Cape Town, South Africa, in August.

Okere is presently the Director, Centre for Basic Space Science and Astronomy, an activity centre of NASRDA.

Strubbe is an Astrophysicist, who is currently consulting for a number of physics education projects in the U.S. and working to develop more ways to support African astronomy lecturers and students.(NAN)www.nannews.ng

NIU/CJ/

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Edited by Chijioke Okoronkwo

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Data

By Ijeoma Olorunfemi

Abuja, June 12, 2024 (NAN) The Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) says it is making efforts to create more awareness on the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA) to ensure organisations and relevant stakeholders comply with the Act.

NDPC’s National Commissioner, Dr Vincent Olatunji, said this on Wednesday while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the commission’s one year implementation of the NDPA in Abuja.

NAN reports that NDP bill, which was signed as an Act of parliament by President Bola Tinubu on June 12, 2023, provides a legal framework for the regulation of processing and protection of personal information, and other related matters

Olatunji said that organisations’ non compliance to the Act could result in public distrust and loss of business opportunities for the defaulting organisations.

He said though the law prescribed penalties and remediation fees for defaulting organisations but the commission was trying to build the culture of compliance and not out to look for those defaulting.

He attributed the low level compliance to lack of awareness and knowledge of the Act by organisations.

“The common challenge we have in propagating data privacy message is awareness; some organisations don’t even know about data protection law, while some don’t understand it.

“When we have interactions with them, they are willing to comply because we are approaching them from the perspective of the value in it for them.

“We tell them that when you are compliant, the perception, trust of people dealing with you to a large extent increase your business opportunities.

“But where there is no trust, nobody will believe you and we also let them know the repercussions, financial loss through their breaches.

“We are trying to build the culture of compliance; we are not necessarily out to look for those defaulting,” national commissioner said.

On the level of compliance, he said that the private sector had been more compliant than the public sector.

Olatunji disclosed that the commission was making efforts at engaging Chief Executive Officers of government institutions and relevant stakeholders across board to increase the awareness on data privacy.

“When we started, the level of compliance within the private sector was about 49 per cent while the public sector was four per cent.

“But today, private sector compliance level is above 55 per cent, while the public sector compliance level has reached 15 per cent,” Olatunji said.

He disclosed that the commission within the period under review, received about 1,000 complaints on data breaches.

“Out of the 1,000 cases, majority of them were on digital loan companies that we call loan sharks.

“But we have also conducted investigations in the education sector, financial institutions, real estate, insurance, consulting, and schools.

“As at today, we have finalised four major investigations, and some have paid their remediation fees.

“In the law, we can fine companies depending on the nature of the breach, impact on the subject, and level of cooperation; and we have gotten N400 million from remediation fees,” he said.

Olatunji noted that the country’s large population and its huge land mass were affecting the commission’s effective interventions on data privacy.

According to him, this is because some data privacy violators are operating from unknown locations.” (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

NIU/KOO/ADA

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Edited by Kevin Okunzuwa/Deji Abdulwahab

Identity