P&G thanks Pampers Premium Care mothers

Procter & Gamble, the makers of Pampers Premium Care- a diaper that offers skin protection for babies, hosted winners of the Pampers Premium Care 5 star memorable moments contest to a one day spa treatment in Lagos.

The event which was held at ‘The Wheat Baker’, Ikoyi, Lagos, began with a spa treatment for the mothers, makeovers by celebrity makeup artist Banke Meshida as well as family photo sessions and dinner in a high brow hotel in Lagos. During dinner, the mothers were presented with photo albums from their previously held family photo shoot sponsored by Pampers.

In his welcome address, Brand Manager, Baby & Oral Care, Procter & Gamble, Mr. Cletus Onyebuaha appreciated the mothers for their unflinching support for the brand, and most especially, for giving the best diaper care to their babies.

He said, “Pampers Premium Care was introduced as a result of fresh insights by dermatologists that babies’ skin requires extra special protection in the diaper area because their skin is subject to very specific demands, compared to the skin of older children or adults.  This is due to exposure from external irritants”. While outlining the features of the diaper, Onyebuaha re-iterated that its five-star features make it a perfect diaper for skin that feels everything so intensely.

Onyebuaha stressed the company’s commitment to assisting mothers’ help their babies have high quality skin protection, adding that, by selecting a good quality diaper that offers high quality skin protection, mothers can nurture a most vital asset essential to babies’ experiences of the world around them and important to their unique and special bond.

Pampers Premium Care was launched into the Nigerian market last year. They are, the Ultra Dry – provides up to 12 hours dryness, even overnight; Ultra Fast – wider absorbency zones wick liquid even faster away from babies than before; provides Ultra Care – lotion with Aloe helps to protect babies skin from irritation; Ultra Fit – stretchy sides for comfortable fit help to protect from leakage and Ultra Soft – soft materials all around for a gentle touch to skin.

Starcomms chairman not detained by EFCC

The management of Starcomms Plc has said the chairman of the company, Chief Maan Lababidi, was not detained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in connection with its on-going investigation into the company’s N64 billion 2008 private placement.

There had been reports on the internet and a certain newspaper claiming that the chairman of the company was detained by the EFCC over the issue.

But Mr. Logan Pather, managing director and chief executive officer of the company explained that the EFCC invited him (the CEO) and Chief Lababidi only came to the EFCC on his volition to join him in providing details which could assist the commission in its on-going investigation.

He said the chairman left the EFCC’s premises in Abuja that same evening and was never detained, neither did he spend the night at the commission’s office in Abuja.  

Symantec Survey Reveals Digital Information Costs Businesses $1.1trillion

Symantec Corp. has announced that information costs businesses worldwide $1.1 trillion annually, according to its first ever State of Information Survey.

From confidential customer information, to intellectual property, to financial transactions, organizations possess massive amounts of information that not only enable them to be competitive and efficient – but also stay in business.

The Group President, Enterprise Products and Services at Symantec, Francis deSouza stated that, digital information makes up 49 percent of an organization’s total value. “The vast amount of information that organizations produce today can help them better serve their customers and increase productivity. However, the same information can also become a major liability if it is not properly protected. Companies that effectively use their information will have a major competitive advantage over those who cannot, and in some cases it can be the difference between success and failure,” he said.

The President further disclosed that, “with its increasing value and rising cost, successful companies will find ways to more effectively protect their information and unleash the productivity it can bring.”

The survey revealed that, businesses of all sizes are dealing with enormous amounts of data. The total size of information stored today by all businesses is 2.2 zettabytes. Small to medium sized businesses (SMBs) on average have 563 terabytes of data, compared with the average enterprise that has 100,000 terabytes. According to the report, information is expected to grow 67 percent over the next year for enterprises and 178 percent for SMBs.

Experts noted that, the consequences of losing business information are disastrous. “We would have to fold our operations for at least a couple of years before we’d come back again,” noted an IT manager at a large engineering firm when asked about the consequences of losing the enterprise’s information.

In the last year, 69 percent of businesses experienced some form of information loss for a variety of reasons, such as human error, hardware failure, security breach, or lost and stolen devices. In addition, 69 percent have had confidential information exposed outside of the company, and 31 percent have experienced compliance failures related to information. Another challenge is the amount of duplicate information businesses are storing – an average of 42 percent of data is duplicated.Be useful. Be unique. Be engaging.

The Latin Grammy's Celebrate Milestone 1 Million Twitter Followers With "One In A Million" Contest

The Latin Recording Academy (www.latingrammy.com) has announced the "One In A Million" celebration contest, which will give one lucky Twitter follower the following prize package: two tickets to the XIII Annual Latin GRAMMY Awards and the official after-party, an opportunity to walk the arrivals area, two Delta round-trip airline tickets, three-night hotel accommodations, a backstage tour at rehearsals, and two tickets to attend The Latin Recording Academy's Person of the Year gala tribute on Wed., Nov. 14. The contest comes after @LatinGRAMMYs — the official Twitter account of The Latin Recording Academy — reached its 1 millionth follower.

This year's XIII Annual Latin GRAMMY Awards will take place live on Thursday, Nov. 15, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas from  8 – 11 p.m. ET/PT (7 p.m. Central). For updates and breaking news, please visit www.latingrammy.com and The Latin Recording Academy's social networks on Twitter and Facebook: www.twitter.com/latingrammys and www.facebook.com/latingrammys.

The "One In A Million" celebration contest will begin June 25, at 7 a.m. PT, and will end at 10 a.m. PT on June 29. A question will be posted at 10 a.m. on June 29 and the first correct answer meeting all the criteria will be announced as the contest winner via Twitter on July 2 at 10 a.m. PT. The contest is open to all @LatinGRAMMY followers. Participants must be 18 years of age or older at time of entry, with a valid passport and a valid visa to visit the United States. For official contest rules, please visit www.facebook/latingrammys.

The Latin Recording Academy is an international, membership-based organization comprised of Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking recording artists, musicians, songwriters, producers and other creative and technical recording professionals. The organization is dedicated to improving the quality of life and cultural condition for Latin music and its makers.

In addition to producing the Latin GRAMMY Awards to honor excellence in the recorded arts and sciences, The Latin Recording Academy provides educational and outreach programs for the Latin music community. For more information about The Latin Recording Academy, please visit www.latingrammy.com. For breaking news and exclusive content, join the organization's social networks as a Twitter follower at www.twitter.com/latingrammys, and a Facebook fan at www.facebook.com/latingrammys.

Philips demonstrates strong focus on improving maternal and child care in Nigeria

Royal Philips Electronics has emphasized the need of improving maternal and child care in Nigeria during the Lagos stopover of its third consecutive Cairo to Cape Town road show 2012. Addressing stakeholders at a strategic roundtable on Mother and Child care, Philips highlighted its history in Nigeria; and its dedication to improving the value proposition it brings to Mother and Child care in the country through the introduction of relevant solutions, partnerships and clinical training workshops for doctors, clinicians and healthcare workers.

Philips announced that it was appointing a dedicated business development manager to be based in Nigeria to handle, support and drive ongoing collaborations with the local healthcare authorities; this will be in addition to the support of local partner PPC Ltd.

Contributing to speed up Millennium Development Goals pace in Nigeria
Philips remains committed towards the Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5. Currently, the pace towards achieving these goals in Nigeria remains slow; Nigeria is the second largest contributor to the under–five and maternal mortality rate worldwide . As one of the fastest growing markets in the African continent there is a rising demand for better quality healthcare that is advanced yet affordable.

Sustainable solutions needed to decrease maternal mortality ratio
Philips has been dedicated to mother and child care for over 40 years. Sustainable and meaningful solutions are needed to tackle the alarming maternal mortality ratio of 630 per 100,000 live births . Therefore Philips not only provides equipment but also provides training workshops for local care providers to create well-trained and skilled healthcare professionals. Experience shows that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution. Support can only attribute to improvement if it is based on local needs. Through ongoing dialogue with relevant stakeholders, Philips aims to get a better understanding of each country’s unique requirements.

In Lagos, Philips is hosting a tailor-made clinical training workshop on maternal and prenatal care for healthcare professionals, at LUTH (Lagos University Teaching hospital) one of the largest public hospitals in the country. Over two days, Nigerian healthcare workers will be trained on how to accomplish safe childbirths and improve maternal and infant care. The clinical trainings are an essential part of reducing pregnancy-related mortality rates.

Dr Olumuyiwa Ore, Chief Medical Director, Citizens Hospital states “Maternal health has become an important public priority in Nigeria, which makes the training of future healthcare professionals an essential part of reducing pregnancy-related mortality rates. We appreciate the investment in people, technology and resources that Philips is bringing to Nigeria and its healthcare industry. With Philips’ commitment to clinical training they have proven to be a valuable partner. They understand that it is not enough to simply supply and install equipment; we believe that an ongoing collaboration with Philips will enhance opportunities and improve the quality of care we offer”.

VNL set to introduce Nigeria’s first solar Powered Telecommunication Network

VNL, a company under the Shyam Group based in India, is set to introduce Nigeria’s first solar powered network called ‘WorldGSM.

WorldGSM will be the first solar powered broadband network in Nigeria and has been designed to serve rural populations in developing economies. WorldGSM technology intends to help bring the reach of the current mobile infrastructure to billion more people.

The network draws no power from the electricity grid. It has been designed from the ground up — the hardware, software, towers and network architecture — to extend existing GSM networks into areas they could never before serve.

Mr. Rajiv Mehrotra, chairman of Shyam Geoup and a veteran in the telecommunication industry said ‘WorldGSM is a completely solar powered broadband network solution for rural and remote locations.

He said the clear cut agenda is to cater for rural consumers who don’t live in cities and have ARPU of 3 dollars or less and for that a solution was required which does not run on diesel or the network would never be viable or profitable.”

“The general purpose network of GSM is entirely unsuited to the unique challenges of serving rural and remote communities. As operators continue to expand their networks into these areas, these challenges can escalate to a point where any further expansion is no longer viable. As a result, vast portions of the developing world are denied telecommunication access. Power was clearly not an issue when GSM was conceived. A conventional base station site alone requires about 3,000 to 5,000 watts to run — not including any Base Station Controller (BSC) or Mobile Switching Center (MSC),” Mehrotra said.

He observed that in remote areas in Nigeria, there is either no electricity grid or it’s only available for a few hours each day. Diesel generators are used to fill the gap times, resulting in several billion litres of diesel fuel being burned every single year and that diesel prices are just one part of the story.

He added that poor fuel quality, cost and time to transport it to remote locations, storage costs, pilferage and theft make this power source unsustainable for rural GSM deployments. The generators themselves are typically overworked and poorly maintained, resulting in replacement every two or three years — more waste, more greenhouse gas emissions.

Tushar Maheshwari another veteran in the Nigerian telecommunication industry and who also doubles as the Chief Commercial Officer –West Africa and Middle East, Shyam Group, said “ VNL is committed to improving the rural connectivity in Nigeria and will work with all stakeholders to ensure that the rural communications get the desired thrust.”

Spending Holidays in Luxurious Villas

All of us always dream of Dream Destinations for holidays. Everyone loves to have those Grand luxurious hotels which provides with personal spa, big lush pool, cozy rooms and all other luxuries. So on the way, one need to keep active and enjoy the journey by playing different games whether on cell phones or other handheld devices.

One can download online casinos for real moneygames with a simple click and play in your mobile for fun and get best online casino guide.  Whatever type of holiday you choose, whether it's a weekend city break or a two-week family holiday. Although these holiday homes costs you thousands of dollars but you get kingly treatment and obviously you deserve this in your life, all of us want our dreams come true.

We know today's young generation is very passionate about their dreams. They love traveling and living in five star hotels and get private villas. They want everything unique and classy. They just love to have their private home theatres and private bars. They have high goals and expectations from their lives. And they put in their best efforts to achieve such luxurious life. You can find best places for branding name cheap clothing.Villas of the valley offers a maintenance free living experience for people in all stages of their lives.

But irony of this is the global financial crisis which is affecting all over the world. This is leading to tough competition in every sphere of the market. The prices are hiked to meet the needs of these hotels. It puts to the further burden on the youngsters to fulfill their dreams and visiting their dream destinations. To survive in the race of competition the world's most opulent villas provides cool luxuries and privacy to the guests and you can also enjoy playing o games in these luxurious villas.

Right villa is important but other things are also important like right staff, luxury car or helicopter and when you are provided with such luxuries one will definitely enjoy it.

Article by Melanie Rapaport

74 Students participated in Cowbell 2012 NAASMAC Final Exam

Promasidor Nigeria Limited, makers of Cowbell Milk, at the weekend held the second and final stage examination of its Cowbell 2012 National Secondary School Mathematics Competition (NASSMAC) across four zones in the country.

A total of 74 students who scored the highest marks in the senior and junior categories in the first stage examination (state champions) held last March across 200 centers pan-Nigeria (including the Federal Capital territory) participated in the final examination in Lagos, Enugu, Port Harcourt and Abuja zones. 

14 students from across the south west states, with two from each state (1 junior and 1 senior champion)  sat for the competition in the Lagos zone. The states are: Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Ekiti, Kwara, Oyo and Osun.

The students representing the South East states sat for the examination in Enugu, those representing the South South states sat for the examination in Port Harcourt whiile those representing the Northern states sat for the examination in Abuja.

Mr. Kachi Onubogu, Marketing Director of the company, said the best students in each category (junior and senior) from each state and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) participated in the final examination, adding that, a total of 74 students participated across Nigeria.

He also said the final examination will produce the national winner as well as other best 10 students from each category.

Commenting on the zoning of the examination centres, Mr. Orunsolu Ismail, a top official of the State’s Ministry of Education who represented the Honourable Commissioner of Education, said the company has decentralized its examination centres as against the former practice of converging all the 74 students to Lagos.

“The usual practice before was that all the 74 students would converge at Lagos. But now there are about four zones, Lagos, Port Harcourt, Enugu and Abuja”, he said.

The best student in the senior category from Iganmode Grammar School, representing Ogun State, Akinjide Ayokunle, described the final examination as an easy one, stating that, the competition is an eye opener. He also advised government and other companies to emulate Promasidor’s initiative.

Similarly, Mr Anthony Okogi, a Mathematics teacher with Baptist Model High School, Ilorin, who accompanied his student, Akerekan Olayinka, winner of the senior category in the state, said the competition has assisted students and teachers to know their abilities, as it prepares them to compete with other students across the country.

NB Re-packages Goldberg Lager Beer

Nigeria Breweries Plc has relaunched Goldberg Premium Lager beer. The unvieling event which was held recently reinforced the original meaning of the word, ‘Goldberg, which means ‘Gold Mountain.’

In a statement by the company, Goldberg is brewed to golden standard for the quality and refreshing taste that stands out. With the repackaging, the beer now comes with a distinguished attractive Packaging with new crown cork, new bottle, and new labels and improved product quality.

Marketing Director, Nigerian Breweries Plc, Mr. Walter Drenth, said, “Goldberg came from the quest to satisfy all lovers of quality premium lager beer and we will never stop giving our consumers the best product and services with the hope of bringing them satisfaction. And to our distributors and consumers, this re-launch is definitely going to be a new golden business experience”.

“A lot of our consumers who desire high quality premium lager beer but cannot afford the likes of Heineken, Star or Gulder lager beer now have Goldberg, a premium beer with excellence bottle look, stamped with a crest of quality and also brewed under the supervision of Nigerian Breweries Plc”,  he asserted.

Image source: Zimbio.com

Africa's Top Businesses Honoured at Awards Ceremony

Africa's leading business figures assembled this evening for the fifth annual African Business Awards in London.  The popular event for celebrating excellence and achievement in African business took place at the exclusive Grosvenor House with a high level audience of over 350 guests that included African ministers, diplomats, government officials, bankers and businessmen.

It was a SME that stole the show as Innoson, lead by Nigerian entrepreneur Innocent Chukwuma took the most coveted title of African Business of the Year. The new Award for Best Hospitality, Travel, and Tourism in Africa was won by Serena Hotels from Kenya.

Egbert Imomoh, co-founder and Chairman of  Afren, won the Business Leader of the Year Award. He emphasised that “Africa’s time has come to realize its full potential. Some of the most inspiring and transformational changes I see across Africa lie outside our traditional areas of strength and offer perhaps the brightest prospects for the future. Companies are now judged , not by how fast they are growing , as growth is assumed, but by whether they are growing faster than the competition”.

The Nigerian conglomerate Dangote Group, whose recent expansion and production plans are currently being flagged in the news, won the Investor of the Year Award and received the Trophy from  Robert Sichinga, Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry, Zambia.

The prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Manu Chandaria, who has been hailed as "one of Kenya's leading industrialists".  Applauded by a standing ovation from the audience, he was given special credit for having built a world class conglomerate and set a benchmark for his peers and for young entrepreneurs across the African continent to follow.

Omar BenYedder, Publisher of African Business magazine stated “The Awards highlight the modernization of business throughout the continent and set a benchmark in Africa in the way business is being done. We wanted to encourage those who are making a change, recognizing those who in many cases had to overcome much much more than their counterparts elsewhere In the world to succeed and pierce through. Africa has smart, young, ambitious and highly articulate professionals and phenomenally talented entrepreneurs, many at the helm of fast growing and dynamic companies. We are seeing African visionaries and pioneers as well as indigenous companies taking the lead and developing homegrown solutions to our problems”.

Sir Alan Collins, Director General of the Commonwealth Business Council, commented “The Awards have become an important and prestigious occasion to celebrate African excellence and  recognise the achievements of African businesses and governments that have been contributing to sustained economic growth in the continent. By celebrating success, we aim to inspire others. We hope that such inspiration will lead to new business growth and new investment. It is encouraging that there is more and more examples of excellence and business success in Africa, creating more opportunities that are ripe for investment. The success of these Awards relies heavily on the commitment and vision of IC Events to convey a new image of Africa, one that highlights the professionalism, ingenuity and innovation of business in Africa”

The African Business Awards are organised by African Business magazine and Commonwealth Business Council in partnership with BusinessinAfrica Events.  A distinguished panel of judges selected winners in eight categories from a pool of nominees that came from all over the African continent. The winners of the remaining categories were selected by the advisory board comprising of the editorial team of African Business magazine, and experts from the CBC.


Winners
Most Outstanding Woman of the Year
Rachel Zodwa Mabaso, Founder/Managing Director, Mboweni Mineral Resources, South Africa

Award for Innovation
Entrepreneurial Finance Lab, South Africa

Investor of the Year
Dangote, Nigeria

Special Commendation
Olam, Gabon
Award for Environmental Sustainability in Africa
Nedbank Group, South Africa
BTI Millman, Kenya

Best Hospitality, Travel, and Tourism in Africa
Serena Hotels, Kenya

Award for Good Corporate Governance
Diageo Africa

Best Corporate Social Responsibility
BHP Billiton

Business Leader of the Year
Egbert Imomoh, Non-Executive Chairman, Afren

African Business of the Year
Innocent Chukwuma (Innoson)

Award for Best Agricultural Development
OCP, Morocco

Country Achievement for Sustained Improvement in Investment Climate
Rwanda

Creative Industry Award
Duro Olowu

Lifetime Achievement Award
Manu Chandaria, Kenya

South Africa's youth choose BlackBerry as 'Coolest Brand' for second year running

South Africa's youth has once again named BlackBerry as the 'Coolest Brand Overall' in the Sunday Times Generation Next 2012 Brand Survey Awards held recently.

The BlackBerry brand also topped the 'Coolest Cellphone' and 'Coolest High-Tech Gadget' categories for the second year running.

The results of the eighth annual Generation Next Brand Survey Awards were announced at an event at Montecasino, Johannesburg last night. The popularity of the BlackBerry brand in South Africa’s youth market is a reflection of how BlackBerry products and services address the needs of tech-savvy young people who lead increasingly connected lives.

Says Lanie Visser, Marketing Director for South Africa at Research In Motion (RIM), the company behind the BlackBerry solution: "We are delighted that South Africa's youth has chosen BlackBerry as their smartphone of choice and as South Africa's coolest youth brand for the second time. These awards reflect how the BlackBerry smartphone has become an indispensable social tool and lifestyle device for active, connected young South Africans and we would like to thank our young BlackBerry customers for their continued loyalty."

“BlackBerry smartphones are designed to look cool and stylish, yet are packed with excellent features such as social networking and instant messaging”, she adds. “The brand also offers a choice of smartphone models, ranging from full-featured entry level devices right through to premium smartphones, giving users a wide range of choices suitable to their lifestyles and budgets.”

BlackBerry devices have become part of the lives of South African young people, largely because they are available on one of the country's most affordable connectivity packages on the BlackBerry Internet Service. Popular apps such as BBM™ (BlackBerry Messenger), which is included in the BlackBerry Internet Service fee, have also helped to cement BlackBerry's popularity with young people. BBM allows users to easily share updates, images, information and opinions with friends and family in real-time. It's affordable, real-time and fun to use.

Apple Introduces All New MacBook Pro with Retina Display

Apple has unveiled an all new 15-inch MacBook Pro featuring a stunning Retina display, all flash storage and quad-core processors in a radically thin and light design. Measuring a mere 0.71 inches and weighing only 4.46 pounds, the completely redesigned MacBook Pro sets a new standard in performance and portability for pro users.

According to a release on its site: “The MacBook Pro with Retina display pushes the limits of performance and portability like no other notebook,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “With a gorgeous Retina display, all flash architecture and a radically thin and light design, the new MacBook Pro is the most advanced Mac we have ever built.”

The new MacBook Pro Retina display is the world’s highest resolution notebook display with over 5 million pixels, 3 million more than an HD television. At 220 pixels-per-inch, the Retina display’s pixel density is so high the human eye cannot distinguish individual pixels from a normal viewing distance, so text and graphics look incredibly sharp. The Retina display uses IPS technology for a 178-degree wide viewing angle, and has 75 percent less reflection and 29 percent higher contrast than the previous generation.

Featuring a precision engineered aluminum unibody design and an all flash storage architecture, the all new MacBook Pro is the lightest MacBook Pro ever and nearly as thin as a MacBook Air®. Flash storage that is up to four times faster than traditional notebook hard drives enables the all new MacBook Pro to play four simultaneous streams of uncompressed 1080p HD video from internal storage.* The flash storage architecture also delivers improved reliability, instant-on responsiveness and 30 days of standby time.

The MacBook Pro with Retina display features the latest Intel Core i7 quad-core processors up to 2.7 GHz with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.7 GHz, NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M discrete graphics, up to 16GB of faster 1600 MHz RAM and flash storage up to 768GB. Two Thunderbolt and two USB 3.0 ports allow pro users to connect to multiple displays and high performance devices, and a new HDMI port offers quick connectivity to HDTVs.

The new iOS 6 introduces more than 200 new features. It includes upgraded Maps app, new Siri features, Shared Photo Streams, the completely new Passbook app, and Guided Access feature for educational purposes. And now Facebook is integrated into many of iOS 6′s apps, including Notification center, Siri, Photos, Safari, and Maps. And similar to Mountain Lion, your Facebook friends’ information will appear in the Contacts app. One of several new apps include Passbook, an app that collects all of your passes in one place.

“iOS 6 continues the rapid pace of innovation that is helping Apple reinvent the phone and create the iPad category, delivering the best mobile experience available on any device,” said Scott Forstall, Apple’s senior vice president of iOS Software.

iOS 6 would be available for iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 and the iPhone 4S, the iPad 2 and the new iPad and the 4th gen iPod touch. It will be released later this fall. We expect it to be release couple of days before the next generation iPhone is released.

What do you think of the new features? Are you happy with the new features and improvements? Sound off in the comments.

Philips Drives Growth in Africa through Healthcare Innovative

Electronics company, Philips is currently undertaking its third pan-African Cairo to Cape Town road show (from 14th May to 16th August, 2012) to raise awareness on how healthcare and lighting solutions can enhance life in Africa.

The road show is visiting Nigeria for the second time and will make a stop in Lagos from 15th - 20th June 2012. Last year the road show had halted in Abuja.

Philips has been active in Africa for over a century, and has committed to an aggressive multiyear investment plan to significantly increase its business footprint in the coming years based upon locally relevant products and innovations that address the needs of the growing African population.

“We are committed to building a long-term sustainable business footprint in Africa”, states Ronald de Jong, Executive Vice President and Chief Market Leader at Philips. “Growth in sub-Saharan Africa is projected to be around 6% in 2012  and our ambition is to gain a strong presence in this continent by building on local talent and organizations, setting up distribution and route to market and above all, by developing solutions and innovations which are relevant for the local needs.”

In 2010 Philips organized the first Cairo to Cape Town road show. The 2012 version covers 12,000 kilometers across eleven countries and seventeen cities across the continent. During the road show the Philips team will showcase its new innovations and continue to engage with customers, governments, NGOs and media on topics relating to key challenges facing Africa today: Mother and Child Care, Women’s Healthcare, energy efficient LED and solar lighting solutions and clinical education and training.

Woman and Child Care focus supporting Millennium Development Goals
The road show continues to build on Mother and Child Care and Women’s Healthcare, supporting the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Goals 4 and 5 aimed at reducing child mortality rates and improving maternal health. Philips provides a broad range of ultrasound, monitoring, clinical informatics and patient care solutions needed to care for mothers and children: from pregnancy, labor and delivery, to postnatal, neonatal and pediatric care, and the transition to home.

Clinical education strengthens success of the road show
Philips is delivering customized training modules around Mother and Child Care in all markets during the road show. “Education is really key, and that’s why we have a strong emphasis on clinical training throughout this road show”, says JJ van Dongen, Vice President and CEO Philips Africa. “It’s one thing having the equipment, but we are also committed to enabling clinicians to use it, through dedicated clinical education. While we work to develop the most intuitive systems possible, clinicians may still require tools that will help them better interpret fetal heart traces for example.”

Philips LED lighting offering key benefits to Africa
During the road show Philips also highlights the benefits of LED lighting, which offers solutions to some of the key issues and opportunities Africa faces today: energy efficiency, climate change, resource scarcity, safety in cities, productivity in offices, and an enhanced sense of health and well-being. New LED technology, when combined with the latest solar and battery developments, can also provide good quality practical light for rural areas where more than 500 million Africans currently live without electricity. Philips will be promoting its new solar powered LED Street and Area lighting solutions which offer cost effective and reliable illumination. A Pan-African soccer tour under solar-powered LED floodlights is also planned to highlight these developments. 

BATNF, Solar Jooce Provide Solar Training for Rural Women

BATN Foundation, an independent charitable organisation, and Solar Jooce, a social enterprise recently signed a collaboration agreement to train rural women in Oyo State in the assembly and repair of basic solar powered lighting and phone charging appliances. The signing ceremony was presided over by Mr. Gbenga Ibikunle (Executive Director, BATN Foundation) and Mr. Dave Agbakoba (CEO, Solar Jooce). 

The objective of the pilot is to train an initial 20 rural ladies in a trade which they can turn into micro businesses, as well as provide their communities with an alternative to dangerous and expensive fossil fuelled lighting such as kerosene lanterns.

According to Mr. Agbakoba: “Of the world's 1.6 billion people living without electricity, 80% live in Sub-Saharan Africa. The Solar Jooce women’s empowerment initiative is therefore a small step in the daunting task of providing a clean, alternative source of electricity, alleviating poverty, and providing opportunities for rural families in Nigeria”. 

The training workshop will span five weeks (June 11 - July 17,  2012), and will cover four Local Government Areas in Oyo state - Itesiwaju, Kajola, Oyo West, and Iseyin – before moving on to other states in Nigeria.

The Bishop of Ajayi Crowther Diocese, Bishop O. O. Oduntan is the co-ordinator of the Oyo state pilot, identifying areas that have little or no electricity and helping in the selection of trainee rural women solar technicians.

Bacardi Launches Two New Flavored Rums

BACARDI, the world's favorite and most awarded rum, announces its two latest advancements in the flavor revolution, BACARDI WOLF BERRY and BACARDI BLACK RAZZ.

The two new rums represent groundbreaking developments in ingredients never before infused with rum – BACARDI WOLF BERRY with blueberry and wolfberry, and BACARDI BLACK RAZZ with raspberry and black sapote.

"BACARDI is committed to providing consumers with new and exciting flavor combinations that consist of unique ingredients with dynamic tastes," said Toby Whitmoyer, vice president and brand managing director, rum category, at Bacardi U.S.A., Inc.  "As the world's most popular rum, BACARDI holds a leadership position when it comes to creating new innovative flavor combinations that blend the very popular, well known flavors with more exotic ones that are gaining momentum like wolfberry and black sapote, diversifying and adding color to the palettes of our consumers."

These flavors can be chilled and served as shot drinks or mixed with lemon lime soda. In addition to the introduction of these ground-breaking flavors, BACARDI will debut new packaging with an unexpected twist –  breakthrough temperature and light activated bottles. When chilled, Wolf Berry reveals a red claw mark across the label and Black Razz unveils an enlarged brilliant red berry logo.

The new product launch is supported with a multi-million dollar campaign that focuses on-premise sampling and advertising in key metro areas.

Twitter Rebrands Logo to Become a Flying Network

Twitter yesterday rolled out its rebranded bird, a recognizable symbol of the second most popular social platform in the world. The new bird looks more simplified and sleek and Twitter said that from now on it will be the only one symbol for its network—no text, no ‘T’ and no bubbled typefaces will be utilized to present Twitter in the future.

According to Doug Bowman, Twitter Creative Director, "the new bird grows out of love for ornithology, design within creative constraints, and simple geometry. This bird is crafted purely from three sets of overlapping circles — similar to how your networks, interests and ideas connect and intersect with peers and friends".

"Whether soaring high above the earth to take in a broad view, or flocking with other birds to achieve a common purpose, a bird in flight is the ultimate representation of freedom, hope and limitless possibility" he stated on its blog.

Over the past six years, the world has become familiar with a little blue bird. The bird is everywhere, constantly associated with Twitter the service, and Twitter the company.

SeyiLaw Entertains Consumers at Legend Real Deal Nite

Popular Nigerian comedian, Seyi Law thrilled guests to his hilarious jokes at the May edition of the highly entertaining Legend Real Deal Nite which held at Niteshift Coliseum, Lagos.

The ambience at the Real Deal Nite was fun and very entertaining as comedy maestro, Seyi Law in company of MC Shakara and Elenu thrilled the audience to a wonderful time. Also on ground to add flavor to the event, was the in-house live band that ensured the audience was on their feet dancing.

The event which holds every last Friday of the month, provides a platform for brand loyalists to win fantastic prizes in a raffle draw promo while they have fun and feel the spirit and uniqueness of the Legend brand. The event saw some lucky winners emerge from the raffle draw promo where wonderful gift items ranging from generating sets, DVD players, refrigerators, standing fans and lots more were carted home by revelers.

For Shina, a sound engineer, who emerged winner of a brand new generating set, it was indeed a memorable day for him as he was also celebrating his birthday that same day. “I never thought I was going to win. I feel so lucky. I am really happy because today is my birthday and it’s really a wonderful thing winning this here tonight. I feel so great tonight. My birthday couldn’t have been better. I appreciate Legend for making it quite a memorable experience for me”

He disclosed that the generating set would prove very useful to him considering the epileptic power supply currently witnessed in the country. “I have never won something of this magnitude before. It’s a great thing legend is doing by putting up this kind of event. I want to say a big thank you to Legend. Prior to now, I did not drink legend but with all that has happened today, I’m left with no choice but to pledge my allegiance to the Legend extra stout.

Another winner, Mr. Paul Ukpabio, a journalist with Vintage Press, became the proud owner of a refrigerating set. Ukpabio, a native of Akwa-Ibom, said he has been attending the ‘Real Deal Nite’ for the past three months but has never won anything. “I have not won anything since I have been coming for the event. I feel tonight is just my lucky night. I believe this is the work of God. I am going to put this refrigerator in my house to serve as a reminder that I won this courtesy of Legend extra stout”.

Olu Akanmu Appointed as New Airtel Chief Marketing Officer

One of the leading telecommunications services provider in Nigeria, Airtel has announced the appointment of Olu Akanmu as Chief Marketing Officer.

Akanmu, an accomplished marketing professional, motivational speaker and seasoned manager will lead Airtel’s quest to reclaim market leadership and assist the company realize its primary ambition of being the most loved brand in the daily lives of Nigerians by 2015. The appointment is to take effect from the 1st of June, 2012.

Speaking on the appointment, the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Airtel Nigeria, Rajan Swaroop said Airtel is extremely committed to empowering more Nigerian professionals to take top leadership positions in the company, saying the company is proud that more talented Nigerian professionals are targeting it as an employer of first choice. “Airtel is proud to be an employer of choice for talented Nigerian professionals and we will continue to invest in our people just as we will remain committed in our quest to building a brand that will be the most loved in the daily lives of Nigerians,” Swaroop said.

Akanmu has over 23 years of experience spanning marketing, banking, telecommunications, consulting, manufacturing, advertising, pharmaceutical and health care sectors. Prior to his appointment, he was the Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Retail and Consumer Banking in Bank PHB, where he was responsible for the delivery of the retail business annual profit across 97 dedicated retail branches and additional 90 business co-location branches nationwide. He has once worked at MTN Nigeria, where he spent half a decade as General Manager, Consumer Marketing in charge of consumer business strategy.

Akanmu, a 1985 Pharmacy graduate of University of Ife, Nigeria, has attended several management and leadership programmes in reputable institutions such as INSEAD, London Business School and Lagos Business School. In 1998, he scored a distinction to emerge the overall best student among 87 managers in the management advancement programme 37 of the Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.

PRCAN Set To Hold Mastering Public Relations Series 4

The Public Relations Consultants Association of Nigeria, PRCAN is set to hold the fourth in the series of its capacity building programme for practitioners known as the Mastering Public Relations workshop.

The workshop have is theme ‘PLANNING AND MANAGING STRATEGIC PR CAMPAIGNS’, teaching the fundamentals of PR and equip participants with best practice paradigms in PR Campaign Planning and Management

The one day workshop which is billed to hold on Friday 8 June, 2012 at the Conference Room of Adna Hotel, in GRA Ikeja area of Lagos will cover the key areas of practice including: Overview of PR Campaign, Strategic PR Campaign Process, Fundamentals of PR Campaign Management, Managing Expectations, etc.

The PRCAN Mastering Public Relations Series has seen three succesful and highly acclaimed workshops covering Effective Account Management, Effective Writing in PR and Managing Online PR and Social Media.

Nike and Microsoft to Unveil ‘Nike+ Kinect Training’ Program

Nike and Microsoft unveiled the result of their partnership, ‘Nike+ Kinect Training’ for Kinect for Xbox 360. The training program that was presented at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). It features some of the world famous athletes such as Rafael Nadal working out with Nike trainers.

The ‘Nike+ Kinect Training’ program will be available for purchase exclusively on Kinect for Xbox 360 during the holiday 2012 season.   ‘Nike+ Kinect Training’ is specifically designed to help athletes get inspired by the elite athletes performance and train better at homes.

The Kinect technology allows users to interact with virtual personal trainers who can control their body movements and assess their performance on different levels, as well as develop a customized workout plan for them. The program is integrated with Nike’s smartphone app and the Nike FuelBand.

“Nike+ Kinect Training’ gives everyone access to the same training we give professional athletes. It combines our unique understanding of the greatest athletes in the world with the amazing sensor technology of Kinect for Xbox 360,” said Stefan Olander, Nike vice president of Digital Sport.

Olusegun Agbaje Named African Banker of the Year

In the 6th edition of the African Banker Awards, under the patronage of the African Development Bank (AfDB) held recently at  Arusha, Tanzania,Olusegun Agbaje, managing director of Guaranty Trust Bank, Nigeria clinched the prize for African Banker of the Year.

The award was present to him by Tim Turner, director of the Private Sector Operations of the African Development Bank at Frangipani Gardens in Arusha, where the awards ceremony took place.

Ecobank beat tough competition posed by six other contestants in its category to come out on top as African Bank of the Year. The Best Regional Bank category named a winner from each of the five regions of Africa: Attijariwafa Bank, Morocco for North Africa; BGFI, Gabon for Central Africa; Bank of Kigali, Rwanda for East Africa; Access Bank, Nigeria for West Africa; and BCI, Mozambique for Southern Africa - highlighting Africa's diversity but strength as one continent.

Arnold Ekpe, a well recognised face in the African banking community, was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Dr. Eleni Gabre-Mahdin, founder and managing director of the Ethiopia Commodities Exchange follows in the footsteps of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Adebayo Ogunlesi to win the African Banker Icon Award.

Panasonic Launch Flag Tags App to Celebrate London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games

Ahead of the London Olympic Games 2012, Panasonic is launching an extremely useful app for real sport fans. The new application dubbed Flag Tags will allow users to connect with each other and celebrate the spirit of the global sporting event, paying tribute to fan traditions. Using the Flag Tag app, members of the online community and owners of mobile devices will be able to paint their faces with national flags in the digital space.

To see how you or your friend will look with a national flag on the face, users will just have make two simple steps: upload a picture and choose the country. Using the application, which has been developed by Panasonic’s creative agency Brave both for Facebook and mobile, people will be able to share the updated photos with their friends on social media platforms. These photos can be used as profile pictures as well, so users will be able to support their national team during the Games with their social profiles.

In a press released by the company, Louise Hazel, Panasonic’s Olympic Ambassador enthuses: “Flag Tags is a unique and fun way for people to show their support for their national team during London 2012. As an athlete preparing for the home Olympic Games, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I’m thrilled to share this journey with the nation and look forward to seeing all the wonderful painted faces via Flag Tags!”

John Dixon, Brand Communications Director at Panasonic UK comments: “As Official Worldwide Olympic Partner in the Audio Video Equipment Category, we are delighted to announce the launch of Flag Tags which will allow people around the world to show support for their country in the London 2012 Games with this exciting App. The Games unites people all around the world in a way no other sporting event on Earth can, and Panasonic is looking forward to bringing the world together and capturing the Olympic spirit through Flag Tags.”

Image: panasonic.com

Promasidor launches Cowbell Chocolate Naija Quest Promo 2

Promasidor Nigeria, a Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) company, has embarked on a nationwide consumer promo for its Cowbell Chocolate brand. It is tagged “Cowbell Chocolate Naija Quest Promo.”The promo is primarily for the 20 gramms Cowbell choco and strawberry sachets.

Mrs. Nseabasi Umoren, Manager, Project Management Office, Mr. Olusegun Koleoso, Business Development Manager and Mr. Kachi Onubogu, Marketing Director; all of Promasidor Nigeria Limited at the launch of Cowbell Naija Quest promo in Lagos

Cowbell Chocolate, which was launched in 2008, is one of the leading brands from the stable of Promasidor, a marketing led and consumer driven company noted for high quality and innovative product offerings that excite and exceed consumers’ expectations.

To participate in the promo, consumers should buy a 20gram sachet of either Cowbell choco or strawberry, collect a blue, green, orange, pink and brown sticker along with one of the prize stickers and take them to any nearest Promasidor depot to claim their prize. Some of the prizes available include Sony Playstation 3, Electronic Pads, Bicycles, School kits and so many others.

Speaking at the launch of the promo in Lagos over the weekend, Mr. Kachi Onubogu, Marketing Director of the company said the objective of the Naija Quest promo is to educate Nigerian kids about the country, adding that it is going to be the biggest thing that has happened from a promotional standpoint. He also said it is very educational and goes to the heart of what the brand stands for – physical development, in terms of the product which is good for strong bones and healthy teeth; intellectual development in terms of having knowledge of who we are, who our nation is and, bringing that together will be fun and interesting.

Also commenting on objectives of the promo, Dr. Obinna Anyalebechi, Manager Dairy Category, said it is to reward excellence in schools at the elementary stage, stressing that, the chocolate brand which has 28 vitamins and minerals, was the first to launch a 3 in 1 formulation - cocoa, sugar and milk - in the beverage market of the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) sector.

The representative of the Director General, Consumer Protection Council (CPC), Mrs Ngozi Obidike who is also the head of the Lagos council, affirmed that the promo has been validated by the council, stressing that, Promasidor has the culture of doing transparent promotions. She also said the council has the responsibility to validate the conduct, design and legality of the promo, adding that, it has inspected the company’s warehouse and all the promotional items have been confirmed.

Besides Cowbell Chocolate, Promasidor is also the maker of Cowbell Milk, Loya Milk, Miksi, Onga and Amila brands. It is a leading player in the food and beverage industry in Nigeria. Since 1993, the company has been enriching, caring and adding value to the lives of millions of Nigerians by innovatively providing them the opportunity to purchase which hitherto were out reach.

Starcomms Launches Phone Rental Service at International Airport

In a bid to ease communication challenges of international travelers into the country, Starcomms Plc, Nigeria’s leading Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) operator in the telecommunication industry, has launched a phone rental service at the international airport in Lagos

The service which covers both voice and data comes with customer-pocket friendly tariff. To benefit from this service, customer will have to pay a sum of N500 for a phone for voice only and N1, 000 for both voice and data. It is service on-the-go and the registration process is simple and it takes only few minutes to complete.

Mr. Logan Pather, the Chief Executive Officer of the company disclosed this in Lagos, saying this is another service innovation to make travelers stay in touch with friends, family and their business partners around the world as seamlessly as possible.

He said, “This service is also available for high end phones like the Motor Q’s with capacity to handle both voice and data services. However, for customer to enjoy voice or data service on any of these phones, customer will buy a minimum of N1000 airtime for voice and 1G of internet data service at the ongoing rate.’’

On arrival, new subscribers who want to lease a phone, rather than buy, for the duration of their stay in the country can get it from the Starcomms kiosk available at the arrival hall of the international airport in Lagos. All that the customer needs to do is to complete a registration form with their personal details such as names, address, duration of stay, purpose of visit and other relevant information that may be required.

However, on departure, customer will be required to signs a return form and turn in the phone at the same point.

Pather pointed out that Starcomms as a listening network will also provide customer care services to proffer solutions on number to call and other information challenges that may arise at the point of service. This service will not be limited to customers in Lagos alone as Starcomms has plans in place to replicate it in other international airports across the nation. He further re-iterated that Starcomms would continue to come up with top rated innovations that offer value for money in order to bring an equal satisfaction to all categories of customers on its network.

Dutch Celebrities Invite People across the Globe to Be Guests on KLM Flights

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is promoting its services on the international market with a recently launched initiative under a friendly ‘Be My Guest’ tagline. The new campaign, developed by Tribal DDB and DDB Amsterdam, uses an undying trend, which has been used in recent marketing efforts by Burger King and adidas to name but a few—it features famous people from various industries.

In this campaign, which is rolling out in Brazil, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, the UK, the USA and Russia, the visitors to the www.bemyguest.klm.com website are invited to choose the celebrity (one if the six above-mentioned people) they would like to sit next to during their flight, and have a short conversation with him or her online—about fashion, music, design, football, cinema or space journey, depending on who are they ‘talking’ to.

Since KLM is a Dutch company, the new promotional activity features six celebrities originating from the Netherlands—DJ Armin van Buuren, fashion supermodel Yfke Sturm, football legend Ruud Gullit, Hollywood actor Jeroen Krabbé, astronaut Wubbo Ockels, and designer Hella Jongerius, who can ‘be reached’ by the airline guests in the virtual chat.

As part of the ‘Be My Guest’ initiative, users are also given a chance to win a trip to an gorgeous inspirational destination (London, Venice, New York and more) together with the celebrity (the submission is running from May 23 to July 3) as their travel companion. Each trip’s theme will be related to the celebrity—for instance, Jeroen’s winner will fly with him from Amsterdam to Venice to the La Biennale Film Festival, and Hella’s companion will join on her flight from Amsterdam to Berlin to visit the Oranjebaum Exhibition and see the newest pieces created in Dutch design.