Govt mulls free varsity Internet services
From Isah Ibrahim, Gusau

WORRIED by low access to cutting-edge Information and Communications Technology (ICT) resources among Nigerian students, the Federal Government has resolved to establish free Universal Internet Service and viewing centres across tertiary institutions in the country.



http://odili.net/news/source/2009/nov/17/21.html

Minister of State for Information and Communications, Ikra Bilbis, announced this yesterday in Gusau, Zamfara State while commissioning a public viewing centre built by his ministry in collaboration with the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF).

According to him, the idea aims at putting information at the fingertips of the Nigerian students and their school communities in order to equip them to meet global challenges.

Bilbis said: "We are committed to ensuring that facilities of these nature are provided in all the tertiary institutions in the country. Already, we have finished constructing the first phase of the centres in all the six geo-political zones of the country and very soon, we are going to ensure that all schools, including some secondary schools across the six geo-political zones, benefited from the community-based communication programme."

The minister, however, declined to state the total sum set aside for the project.

He re-affirmed the commitment of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua to ensuring that Nigerians leverage on current ICT resources for national development.

Nairaland will soon be flooded with half baked Nigerian graduates of electricity engineering.

Aloy~Emeka:

Nairaland will soon be flooded with half baked Nigerian graduates of electricity engineering.

maps have never harmed anyone. bring it on.

bawomolo:

maps have never harmed anyone. bring it on.

but a million satellite images can

Good move if they ever decide to.

Good Moves by the Federal governement. Hope is gonna be efficient and effective.

Aloy~Emeka:

Govt mulls free varsity Internet services
From Isah Ibrahim, Gusau

WORRIED by low access to cutting-edge Information and Communications Technology (ICT) resources among Nigerian students, the Federal Government has resolved to establish free Universal Internet Service and viewing centres across tertiary institutions in the country.



http://odili.net/news/source/2009/nov/17/21.html

Minister of State for Information and Communications, Ikra Bilbis, announced this yesterday in Gusau, Zamfara State while commissioning a public viewing centre built by his ministry in collaboration with the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF).

According to him, the idea aims at putting information at the fingertips of the Nigerian students and their school communities in order to equip them to meet global challenges.

Bilbis said: "We are committed to ensuring that facilities of these nature are provided in all the tertiary institutions in the country. Already, we have finished constructing the first phase of the centres in all the six geo-political zones of the country and very soon, we are going to ensure that all schools, including some secondary schools across the six geo-political zones, benefited from the community-based communication programme."

The minister, however, declined to state the total sum set aside for the project.

He re-affirmed the commitment of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua to ensuring that Nigerians leverage on current ICT resources for national development.

I cant see any reference to "Free Internet to all higher institutions" in the post above  

Great idea.

I hope they have allocated money to run the project. It is not free and it will not run itself.

I hope it is not just words. Words without adequate funding is worse than useless.

The more the merrier. It is foolish  and selfish to  rejoice in living in a vacuum.

people who indulge in spewing insults and bigotry will meet their match in these young men

that have been restricted to few hours of access to the internet. This is a good development.

This is really a welcome development

hmmmmm, i dnt believe dis  

Bothers& sisters read between the lines:

1. Alhaji has just awarded ^{(or is about to award)} another lucrative but ineffective Kwantract to one of his cronies

2. Enough porn dowloads added to an already precarious educational system.

We should not be celebrating issues like this. Internet is not a privilege, but a right in our modern day living. Soon, we shall be having such issues on manifestos, which is wrong. Electricity, pipe borne water, good roads, basic social amenities are not worth celebrating, but they are our rights. What is worth celebrating, is convictions like that of the Bode George's of this world.

Promises! Promises!! Promises!!! Another budget allocation on the way!

The overfed diasporians will tell you it is not necessary.

na there campus boys go dey do their yahoo shit

I hope they have made provision for yahoo boys 'n' girls, lol!! Those undergrads know there are no jobs out there!!

Vision 2025 i guess.

I did not see any reference to the free internet access to all higher institutions.
Maybe i'm missing something.

Nonetheless, i bet the minister had a very good night sleep when the contract was approved.

Im not excited, stuff like that shoulvde been un place long ago. And what'd the motivation for the move? Isnt it more of lining pockets, than of providing internet access? As always, time will tell. . . But imagine the size of the contract? Even the man no fit talk am!

illusion2:

Bothers& sisters read between the lines:

1. Alhaji has just awarded ^{(or is about to award)} another lucrative but ineffective Kwantract to one of his cronies  

2. Enough porn dowloads added to an already precarious educational system.  

Love your post

toba1909:

Vision 2025 i guess.

LOL
Ye are right, if its not more than that.

They've started with 108 schools most of which are Polytechnics and Monotechnics. I think is a good one if they can be sustained.

Tales by møonlight!

Anyhow sha, if it's true, those 'facebookddicted' students won't do anything except to browse & chat on facebook all day.

Its not just the free internet the universities need. Will they have enough computers and desktops and computer labs to go round? And, and and that is not all o, will there be electricity to 'coo' these rooms and labs because if there is no electricity in these labs, the computers will go kaput. And and and, that is not all, will there be effective power, electricity provided to keep these computers alive. Further more, will be power be stable enough to keep these computers in working order because unecessary power surges will kill these computers.

Like other posters have stated, how will they provide enough security in these computer labs? There will be more yahoo yahoo boys (educated ones now) on the prowl as well as plenty of porn and wrong use of these systems.

Good idea sha, by the federal govt but they should provide A COMPREHENSIVE PACKAGE OF ALL THE ABOVE and not just the 'free internet'.

good idea but if only ideas are as good as actions.
how many of such invissible promises have been fulfilled in nigeria?
yar adua promised to give us light within six months in office but this is 2 yrs 6 months on. what a shame of a group of imbeciles turned leaders?
that idiot who made the promise must learn to keep his mouth shut while his actions speak for him.
we are bored with these unfulfilled promises here and there.
no wonder the other made in anambra idiot promised to turn anambra into dubai if made the gov.
can someone let that stupid man know that he is only provoking bored people.

Nothing good is ever applauded by these mis creants- who placed them in Nigeria realy/

What is so special about free internet in university,,govt has really dealt with us that we dont the difference between our rights and privileges, Education is a right to all nigeria,internet inclusive,.this is come at a belated time.,abeg free me jo

The federal government is actually "mulling" over the idea! Do you guys have any idea how many projects the government is currently "mulling" over?

Overfed diasporians at their best- they see nothing good about Nigeria, want nothing good in Nigeria, think nothing good about Nigeria - the internet is a learning tool, if the goverment sees it as such and want to provide it, why not, why berating government for that/ I dont understand these goats, they shout nothing is done, and when there is a semblance of something being done, they still open their butts wide and shout! Whats wrong with them?

it's just too early to rejoice.
these politicians do always have an ulterior motive. me thinks this is another white elephant project & conduit to siphone tax-payers funds. . . .

internet ought ot be a necessity or so i think. . . . .

its white elephant, yet you say it is a necessity?

I dont get you o!

WALAKOLOBO

to me, this is just misplace priorities,

is this wot these universities need now?

the infrastructures are decaying, the lab/workshops are archaic and there is no 24 hrs electricity and they are wasting money on projects they cant sustain,

these centers, wont they run on generators? where will the funding for desiel come so the government will be funding power to supply 108 centers per week?

this is just a waste of money.

trust yahoo boys

in campuses, to browsw for an hr is 150. is that tooo musch

why dont they use these money and build hostels and sports facilities that will benefit a broad spectrum of people

instead of awarding KWANTRACTS to their cronies

be wise,