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CITAD Launches the Nigerian School of Community Network

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As part of the Work Package 2 of the Supporting Community-led Approach to Addressing Digital Divide in Nigeria Project which the Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) is implementing with support from Foreign Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) through Association for Progressive Communication (APC), today CITAD launched the First Nigerian School of Community Networks for Micro-organizations.

The aim of the project is to connect the unconnected areas in Nigeria where conventional market players find it unprofitable to deploy their networks and the purpose of the School of Community Networks is to build capacity of community based organizations called the micro-organization who are working to deploy community networks in their communities to meet local communication need.

The first School, which holds at Stonehegde Hotel, Kaduna began with an opening ceremony where we have number of speakers gave goodwill messages to the participants.

In his opening remarks, the Executive Director of CITAD Malam YZ Yau gave the background of the project as well as a ran down of the activities the organization had been doing over the last two years, culminating with the School.

The Executive Director Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) stated that over the last two years, CITAD had been working tirelessly to catalyze the emergence of community networks in Nigeria, given that there has been no policy to guide the growth and flourishing of the of Community networks, CITAD took step to engage with policy makers and regulators in the sector such as Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the ministry of communications as well as other relevant agencies to ensure that an appropriate policy is developed for Community Networks in the Country.

He also stated that part of the objective of the School is to train champions with technical skills on how they can design, deploy and manage community networks. The school will hold in two phases, the phase one is an intensive physical one-week residential training which starts today, followed by four-month online training which is part of the phase two activities.

While giving reports of the efforts CITAD has made to engage policy makers on the need for community network policy, the Director of CITAD called on both the Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy Prof. Isah Pantami and the Management of NCC to honour their promises they made about setting up the processes to develop a national policy on community networks for the country. He said this urgent because at the moment more than 88 million of Nigerians remain unconnected and excluded from the benefits of digital technology.

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The opening ceremony also received goodwill message from the Executive Director of Fanstuam Foundation Mrs. Comfort Kazanka, Mr. Olusola Taniola, National Coordinator of Alliance for Affordable Internet and Mrs. Edith Udeagu, the immediate past COO of Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NIRA) who expressed their gratitude for being part of the project as well as advising the participants to be good ambassador of their communities by applying the knowledge gain. In her goodwill message, Mrs. Kazanka urged that the School of Community Networks be turned into a either a institute for community networks or a specialized university.

On his part Mr. Olusola Taniola said, his organization was ready to join hands with CITAD to push the advocacy for a national policy on community networks in the country.

Mrs. Edith Udeagu who offered her Goodwill message on her personal capacity noted that “The National School of Community Networks provides this opportunity for all to learn and share knowledge. We thank CITAD, its CEO, Mr. YZ Ya’u and team and its partners for providing this opportunity for all and pray for its success. I say congratulations to CITAD. I congratulate its partners and contributors for their participation. In this country, we need to address the issues of digital divide. People in various communities face various challenges. We need to assist as much as possible to address these issues and give them the opportunities to better their lives”.

The keynote address was given by the Managing Director of Galaxy Backbone, represented by Mr. Abdulmalik Suleman, staff of the company. He stated that one of the objectives of Galaxy Backbone is to help in connecting the underserved communities. He commended CITAD for embarking on this project, noting that it was not an easy thing to do. He disclosed that Galaxy Backbone currently is implementing the second phase of the National Information Communication Infrastructure Backbone (NICTIB) which he said would provide access to backbone across the country. He welcomed communities to take advantage of this in their plans for their community networks.

He also appreciated the effort of CITAD for setting up the School of Community Networks, which according to Galaxy Backbone is another important step will help strengthen the impact of shared internet experience and shared Network in our Nation. The opening session was chaired by Dr. Sana Mauz of the Department of Software Engineering, Bayero University, Kano. Dr. Muaz urged the participants to make the best use of this opportunity which is a crush programme to acquire critical telecommunication knowledge.

Shortly after the opening session the first technical session of the School began with a presentation on Spectrum and how Spectrum is Allocated as well as applying Spectrum by Dr. Abdulkari Yusuf of the NCC. The presentation explained to the participants what Spectrum was all about, how was allocated and how it is deployed and shared. Twenty-one youth leaders from different parts of the country are attending the school, which is proposed to run annually. Most of them were from underserved and unserved communities such as Pasepa, Laileyin Gwari, Tugan Ashere and Dakwa in the Federal Capital Territory of Abuja, rural Kafanchan in Kaduna State and Itas as well as Jamaare in Bauchi.

The Nigerian School of Community Networks is the first attempt in the country to build local skills and expertise for the organic development of grassroots telecommunitions infrastructure in the country. Community networks is a telecommunications infrastructure deployed and operated by a local group to meet their own communication needs and also a communications infrastructure, designed and erected to be managed for use by local communities. This communication needs can be voice, data, etc. and can be point of convergence for community to come together to address their common community problems.

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Former President Muhammadu Buhari Buried in His Hometown of Daura with Full Military Honours

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By Abbas Yushau Yusuf

Former President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, was laid to rest in his hometown of Daura amidst tears and tributes.

The burial was attended by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima.

He was lowered into his grave at exactly 5:50 p.m.

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The late President Muhammadu Buhari died on July 13 at a London clinic after a brief illness.

The Governor of Katsina State, Dr. Umar Dikko Radda, was visibly emotional, with tears seen flowing down his cheeks.

Former President Buhari was given a state burial by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Before the final interment, gun salutes were fired by members of the Armed Forces to honor their three-time Commander-in-Chief.

Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff and highest-ranking military officer, General Christopher Musa, read the citation of the former president.

The late Buhari served as Nigeria’s Military Head of State from January 1, 1984, to August 26, 1985, before being overthrown in a military palace coup by his then Chief of Army Staff, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida.

Upon the return to democratic rule, he contested for the presidency three times in 2003, 2007, and 2011 before winning on his fourth attempt in 2015. He was re-elected in 2019.

President Muhammadu Buhari handed over power to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on May 29, 2023, after completing two terms in office.

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Dr. Gwaram Distorts Facts, We Sponsored Ourselves — Cry PhD Holders at FCAPT, Kano

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In a dramatic twist to the narrative being peddled by the embattled Provost of the Federal College of Agricultural Produce Technology (FCAPT), Kano, Dr. Muhammad Yusha’u Gwaram, several academic staff have come forward to debunk his recent claims of having increased the number of PhD holders in the institution from 3 to 13 within five years.

The claim, published in several media outlets, has been described by multiple sources within the institution as “a desperate attempt to score cheap popularity” and “a clear distortion of facts aimed at bolstering his failed bid for tenure extension.”

In a series of interviews conducted with several PhD holders at FCAPT, who requested anonymity for fear of retaliation, a clearer picture has emerged. Contrary to Dr. Gwaram’s assertion, the College currently has only nine PhD holders, not thirteen as he claimed. Of these, three, including Dr. Gwaram himself, already held doctoral degrees prior to his assumption of office in 2020.

Of the remaining six, four were already enrolled in PhD programs before he took office, with no institutional support whatsoever from the College. “To be very clear, no single lecturer has received financial support, not even for tuition, from the College under Dr. Gwaram’s leadership,” said one of the sources. There was an active and highly intelligent lecturer who got a PhD admission in India, despite using his meagre salary to finance his travels and other academic costs, this lecturer had to abandon his study due to lack of support from the College. “If Gwaram ever supported only one PhD student, we challenge him to publish the evidence. We are enlightened and educated. Nobody can take us for a ride”, said one of the angry PhD. holders.

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More concerning is the active obstruction Dr. Gwaram has allegedly meted out to staff pursuing postgraduate studies. For example, three of the College’s promising lecturers, all of whom secured competitive, fully funded PhD scholarships abroad, had their study leave applications denied, and their salaries suspended for about three consecutive years. These scholars, now based in the USA, Japan, and Thailand, represent the kind of global exposure and academic excellence any serious institution should be proud of. Yet, in what many described as a retaliatory stance, Dr. Gwaram refused to reinstate their salaries despite a directive from the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN), which unequivocally instructed him to settle the outstanding payments.

As for the so-called Research and Development (R&D) support, the truth is equally disappointing. The College, under Dr. Gwaram, provides a measly ₦150,000 (approx. $100) per staff member and only to a small circle of favorites, once annually. These monies come from the budgets of the Federal Government not the internally generated revenue as he falsely claimed. No PhD candidate has ever received this ₦150,000 naira support more than once. “How can ₦150,000 cover tuition, research logistics, transportation, and publication costs in today’s economy, let alone abroad?” one of the lecturers queried. “The claim that this is a meaningful support is not only misleading but also insulting to the intelligence of Nigerians.”

Insiders suggest that Dr. Gwaram’s recent media campaign is part of a calculated strategy to position himself for an illegal extension of his tenure, which is due to end on August 20, 2025. “If Dr. Gwaram truly believes in the capacity of the PhD holders he is celebrating in the press, why not step aside and support one of them to succeed him as Provost? That would be a genuine legacy,” another source pointed out.

Instead, the atmosphere at FCAPT has become one of distrust, intimidation, and political maneuvering, with staff demoralized and students left as collateral damage in the Provost’s quest for personal aggrandizement.

We therefore call on well-meaning Nigerians, particularly stakeholders in the agricultural education and research sector, to disregard the embellished narratives being circulated by Dr. Gwaram. FCAPT is in dire need of visionary, fair-minded, and transparent leadership, not one rooted in propaganda and the suppression of merit. Prayed one of the academic staff union leaders.

He added, “the true heroes of the College’s academic advancement are the resilient lecturers who struggled and triumphed against all odds on their own dime and determination.

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From 3 to 13 PhDs: Kano Agricultural College Soars Under Gwaram’s Leadership

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The Provost of the Federal College of Agricultural Produce Technology (FCAPT), Kano, Dr. Muhammad Yushau Gwaram, has disclosed that the institution now has 13 PhD holders among its academic staff a significant leap from when he assumed leadership of the college.

Dr. Gwaram made the revelation during a press briefing held at the college premises in Kano, where he addressed journalists on the milestones achieved by the college under his leadership.

According to the provost, the number of doctorate holders has increased from just three to thirteen through deliberate staff development efforts. “Some of our PhD holders had migrated to Ilorin and other places, but we’ve been able to retain a substantial number. In addition, we now have over 30 lecturers with Master’s degrees, and very soon, more than 20 of them will become PhD holders,” Dr. Gwaram stated.

He further explained that despite not being beneficiaries of TETFund grants, the college has continued to sponsor the academic development of its staff using internally generated resources. “We are using our little funds to train our staff up to PhD level,” he emphasized.

Dr. Gwaram also highlighted academic advancement within the college, noting that during his tenure, the institution had organized two national conferences where scholarly papers were presented. “For over five years, we have consistently reviewed our curriculum to align with modern agricultural practices,” he said.

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The provost revealed that the college now offers seven new courses, all fully approved by the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), unlike in the past when some courses lacked accreditation. “All the courses we offer now are NBTE-approved. When our students graduate, they do so with not just certificates but practical skills that make them self-employed,” he noted.

He also highlighted the college’s engagement with local communities, especially rural women and students, through food processing projects. “We’re currently processing ‘garin kunu’ and other delicacies. We collaborate with both community members and students to drive agro-based entrepreneurship,” he explained.

In terms of infrastructure, Dr. Gwaram announced that the college has installed a functioning water system, hospital facilities with beds for medical attention, and a tomato processing engine capable of handling up to 1,000 kilograms at once.

“Our tomato packaging and processing technology has reached across Nigeria. We trained 300 people in the South-South, 150 in the South-East, and many more in the South-West on tomato processing,” he added.

The provost also lauded the cordial relationship the college enjoys with the Kano State Government, stating that it has consistently sponsored many students for training at the institution.

Furthermore, Dr. Gwaram emphasized the college’s hands on approach to learning. “We have greenhouses where students are trained practically. The goal is to ensure that our graduates are equipped with employable and entrepreneurial skills,” he concluded.

The Federal College of Agricultural Produce Technology, located in Kano, continues to position itself as a hub for agricultural innovation and skill-based education across Nigeria.

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