First, I want to thank all those that have subscribed to my new ebook – Africa’s Sankofa Innovation- which was launched six days ago. We have a community now. THANK YOU ALL.

Today, I have decided to also launch another book – Cybersecurity Africa: Policy, Management and Technology – in this same Tekedia portal, next month. I am an entrepreneur and I am never afraid to try new things. Deciding to publish my own book, by myself, and in my own portal is a testament of my confidence in our Tekedia community. I treasure the moments you spend here. Thanks Sir/Madam. We love you, and please keep coming back.

Cybersecurity Africa will be a living document which can be updated many times in a year to keep it up to date and relevant. It will be the top destination for anything Cybersecurity in Africa. I had planned to publish it through a traditional publisher, but right now, Tekedia will host it. It is a fast sector, and we do not need a version number; the only accepted version should be current. Internet makes that possible.

If you have subscribed to Africa’s Sankofa Innovation, you will access Cybersecurity Africa at no extra cost. The same applies to subsequent works we are working on which will include Opportunity Manuals in specific industries to help people unlock value in Africa. Once you are a Tekedia subscriber (subscribe here), all old and new materials will be available at no extra cost.  

The book is going through technical editing as it has some really technical elements, which I want to be 100% sure we got them right. Also, a professor of Law is checking the policy side, and a friend in a Lagos bank who manages a bank’s cybersecurity business is looking at the management section . They will be ready next month and we will launch here.

I have a deep experience in the cybersecurity area. Having earned seven degrees, I understand many things in this world. I  remain very humble. I am the founder of Milonics Analytics, an IBM Partnerworld on cybersecurity and big data analytics. I am the founder of U.S. based First Atlantic Cybersecurity Institute which Igbinedion University awards its nanodegree. As Global Lead ASIC Engineer with Analog Devices Corp, I worked on the accelerometer used in an iPhone generation and was part of the team to ensure it was hardened from attack. From National Identify Management Commission, Nigeria (they made it public so I can share name) to many government and private institutions, my firm remains a consultant helping on cybersecurity, from policy to management to technology. I will be a trusted guide to you.

Here are some “cover designs” below. One extra cover, my preferred, will be added tomorrow. Can you help us select the best design or suggest an improvement for the book cover?

China is planning to fix a deadline to end the production and sales of fossil-fuel-powered vehicles. That is a big deal because over the last few years, China has been seen as a nexus of heavy global pollution. But now, it is working hard to clean the air and drive a post-petroleum era.

China will set a deadline for automakers to end sales of fossil-fuel-powered vehicles, becoming the biggest market to do so in a move that will accelerate the push into the electric car market led by companies including BYD Co. and BAIC Motor Corp.

Xin Guobin, the vice minister of industry and information technology, said the government is working with other regulators on a timetable to end production and sales. The move will have a profound impact on the environment and growth of China’s auto industry, Xin said at an auto forum in Tianjin on Saturday.

Let us assume that China follows UK and France and puts the deadline in 2040, it means by 2050, more than 50% of global cars could be totally non fossil-fuel powered. (Both UK and France had already set a deadline of 2040 to phase out fossil-fuel-powered cars. I also expect other countries to follow through to make that 50%) Even without America acting, the trajectory is obvious that electric vehicles will be the driving element of automobile making of the future.

Volkswagen AG Chief Executive Officer Matthias Mueller announced sweeping plans to build electric versions of all 300 models in the group’s lineup as the world’s largest automaker accelerates the shift away from combustion engines and tries to draw a line under the emissions-cheating scandal.

The African Development Bank had noted that African agriculture will grow to $1 trillion by 2030. Nigeria will be a big part of that number. The present government is putting emphasis on agriculture and if subsequent ones continue to sustain the plans, we could have a $450 billion business there by 2030. Nigeria and South Africa are the two major agro-producers at the moment in Africa, but Nigeria has more room to grow than South Africa.

Our petroleum sector will still be relevant with the petrochemicals and other allied sectors required, but projects like refinery may see demand shocks. Simply, Nigeria will see massive economic dislocation over time, as oil makes way for agriculture, and the latter becomes the main source of our foreign exchange earnings. I project we can see up to 70% of that by 2050. Even if we still export crude oil, the competition from electric technologies will reduce the price per barrel. So, it will not attract as much value it has historically attracted in the international market.

While the agriculture sector sustains over 80 percent of rural households, the Nigerian economy remains heavily dependent on its oil and gas sector which accounts for 12 percent of GDP but, as noted above, over 90 percent of export earnings and over 70 percent of government revenues

Agriculture will also stabilize our foreign reserves with minimal cyclical boom and bust associated with petroleum. Nigeria has the land and the population. What we need is to modernize the agricultural process so that productivity can improve.

Today, oil dominates our foreign reserves and government plans to get the non-oil sector to be more than 50% by 2020. A key part of that will be agriculture. The roles of oil and agriculture will reverse on their contributions to Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings,  in 30-40 years. Today, crude oil accounts for over 90% of Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings, about 35% of gross domestic products (GDP), and  75% of government revenue. That is not good.

The Federal Government on Tuesday, unveiled plans to derive over 50 per cent of its foreign exchange earnings from agro-industrial exports by 2020. The plans are contained in a draft trade policy which was considered and reviewed during a meeting of the Enlarged National Focal Point (ENPF) on trade matters in Abuja

It will be a huge redesign in the economy as we will see agriculture, move from less than 10% of the foreign exchange earnings to more than 70% within 35 years. I do expect manufacturing, especially lower level manufacturing, to contribute even more than raw-crude export.

Electric vehicles are indeed totally awesome when you note that Tesla can automatically upgrade the batteries of vehicles fleeing the hurricane in Florida. A software update gave Irma refugees a few dozen more miles per charge, according to Quartz. Electric automobile has a great promise, and that will be a challenge to fossil-fuel addicts who believe that the future will not come.