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Guanghua School of Management, Peking University To Translate Our Works Into Chinese

By
Tekedia Editors
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0

 

Editor’s Note: Tekedia Founder has approved for GSM Peking University China to translate his HBR posts into Chinese. They are also evaluating others works in a follow up email. Below is a redacted email from the school rep.

 

Dear Professor Ndubuisi Ekekwe,

 

This is Jie Wang. I am writing as a representative for GSM thinker to
ask for your authorization to translate your blog articles into Chinese for our Website www.gsmthinker.com (under development) I am planning to post your articles in the form of expert column.

 

GSM thinker is set up by Professor Weiying Zhang as the Web 2.0
platform for Guanghua School of Management, Peking University. We are
aiming at building up the No. 1 online Chinese Business Review. We
cover issues from Economy Environment, Public Policy, Leadership,
Strategy, Finance and Business Report. We are responsible for
promoting the knowledge, ideas and wisdom about business to the
public.

 

 

I read your articles via http://hbr.org/, it is attracting and
interesting. I feel that you fully deserve the title of leading expert
in business. I sincerely request your authorization as your articles
are of great signification to the Chinese scholars and entrepreneurs.
I wish to hear from you soon.

 

 

Best regards,
Jie Wang
GSM thinker, Guanghua School of Management, Peking University

Room 418, Guanghua Old Building, Guanghua School of Management, Peking
University, Beijing, 100871

No Engineer In Jonathan’s Ministerial List – Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) Bemoans

By
Tekedia Editors
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0

Press Statement

by

The Nigerian Society of Engineers

 

 

MR PRESIDENT, RECONSIDER MINISTERIAL NOMINEES
TO ACHIEVE REAL PROGRESS AND PROSPERITY FOR NIGERIANS

 

The Nigerian Society of Engineers, the umbrella body for all engineering professionals  in the country is worried over the list of Ministerial nominees  sent to the Senate for confirmation in the ongoing screening exercise  as this does not reflect the spirit of the moment and the desire of the Nigerian people to have astute professionals in key areas of the economy especially Infrastructure.

 

In a country where there are many key Engineering- based  Ministries , the Society is shocked that there is no single engineer in the President’s list. We therefore ask – who is to man these ministries? Over the years, we have advocated that square pegs be put in square holes in Ministries of Power, Works, Water Resources, Communication, Industries, Steel and Petroleum, etc . Many of these ministries have not had an Engineer as a minister since the inception  of the Fourth  Republic in 1999.

 

It is rather curious that despite the Government avowed intention to improve power supply in the country over the years, the Ministry of Power  has not had a Power Engineer to drive the initiative as minister, as a typical example. This is a clear demonstration that the Government has not got its priorities right as the value of  an experienced professional in that position should not  be a matter for debate.

 

The Society is dumbfounded that  none of the nominees in  the list so far, both confirmed and those about to be confirmed, is an Engineer  and wonders which of them would pilot a knowledge- driven policy formulation and implementation  in the engineering based ministries listed earlier.  We believe that we cannot fold our hands and watch the administration drift away from the expectations of  professionals and many Nigerians.

As  earlier stated in our memo titled “The Route to Progress and Prosperity “ to  President  Dr.  Goodluck Jonathan, GCFR,  The Nigerian Society of Engineers  is  of the view that the success of Mr. President in his role as Executive-in-Chief would hinge on his success in attracting and selecting appropriate talents into both political appointments and employment in public service.

 

With the President’s garb of the Executive-in-Chief, it behoves  him to put emphasis on an approach that will produce the best End-Results. This approach is clearly weighted in favour of Technocrats being appointed into the cabinet of Mr. President.

Therefore, in the view of Nigerian Engineers, Mr. President must be willing to seek people who have different and diverse backgrounds with pedigree and  the track records of success in particular sectors.

 

The process of screening so far observed does not indicate the portfolios for which the candidates are being considered. Surely the field of competence of a candidate should be paramount to the expected performance  in the intended office. This is the only fair and transparent way of ensuring that square pegs are put in square holes as mentioned earlier. The outcome of this process if adopted would guarantee that each minister may not require an unnecessarily long term in office to deliver.

 

For the sake of performance, and quality executive service to the citizenry, Nigerian Engineers on behalf of Nigerian professionals again demand that the President constitutes his cabinet with at least 60% Technocrats.

 

In making this demand, Engineers strongly recommend to Mr. President to depoliticize the selection process and demystify the senate screening exercise by attaching portfolios to those nominated for ministerial appointments. This process would have helped the Senators in the screening exercise as they would have focused their attention on the sector so designated. This has not happened.

 

The Nigerian Society of Engineers therefore calls on Mr. President to quickly make amends in  his nominations if the much talked about transformational agenda of his government aimed at swiftly delivering progress and prosperity to Nigerians  is to be realised.

 

Engr. Olumuyiwa Alade Ajibola, FNSE
President, Nigerian Society of Engineers.

 

Editor’s Note: Barth Nnaji is not an engineer as per NSE definition without COREN certification though he was once the best robotics professor in America.

Adoption of This Technology will Make Nigeria Leapfrog South Africa in GDP

By
Tekedia Editors
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5

Outlook on Nigeria:  For Nigeria to realize the Vision 2020 and become the 20th largest economy, it must grow at least 9.5% annually within the next eleven years, 2010 included. It is currently ranked 44th ($174b (nominal), 2009) and chasing Belgium which is 20th ($471b, 2009), according to IMF.  Making that jump will require a compounded interest of 298% by 2020 which will translate to 171% percentage growth in the GDP. This analysis assumes that the GDP of the 20th economy will remain constant in 2020. For a nation that has averaged about 5.5% in growth, in the last seven years, it does mean that it needs a new growth engine.

Yet, while one can dismiss the bold vision of Nigeria’s government, it is important to note that in 1999, the GDP was $34.8b. A combination of policies and massive ICT investment, the nation moved from 105th position in global GDP ranking to 44th today. Though the ICT market is still one of the fastest growing ones in the world, the FDI has slowed down.

 

Now, Nigeria needs another engine to drive growth. Our analysis shows that a 50%* penetration rate of creative semiconductors and microelectronics will produce a compounded interest of 300% in the next ten years and make Vision 2020 a reality. This will create excess of one million direct and indirect jobs. The study shows that microelectronics will accelerate Nigeria’s overall growth since most ICT products will then be made in Nigeria, if MNCs build plants, over mere distribution and sale of their electronics and ICT products. When we benchmarked with Asia, we noticed that Nigeria has advantages in currency, wage, regulations, and other factors for oursourcing. The clustering effect and ability to develop technology districts, anywhere without regards to any raw material but knowledge, show that microelectronics will position Nigeria for greatness.

 

To make this possible, Fasmicro has a clear roadmap to help the Nigerian government (federal, state, or local) develop the industry through targeted policies and stimulations. We are proud of our four years of experience in a United States National Science Foundation committee, which has helped us master the act of crafting and implementing successful roadmaps.

 

*Our diffusion model is not the traditional home penetration model, rather one that focuses on SMEs. If there are hundred technical companies and fifty use microelectronics/semiconductor products creatively, we will assume a 50% penetration rate. If none uses creatively, all does sale and distribution, we assume 0% diffusion. We are looking for value creation either by using already created microelectronics related products or by actually developing new ones. That makes us assign a high value to a (potential) Lagos maker of Video Games and nothing to a firm that distributes video games.

 

We focus on value because a company that takes silica (sand), the starting material of semiconductors, and produces a microchip may be transforming a N100 worth of sand to a value of N100,000 while the one that sells that end product makes only marginal gains (few hundreds of Naira). That high value creation is our focus in this diffusion model and not the use of the products by end consumers. Practically, Zinox Computers (Lagos) gets a high score from us because they create value while most computer distribution firms in Ikeja Computer Village get zero in our model.

Research Policies That Can Destroy South Africa

By
Tekedia Editors
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0
South African flag

When we blogged on the greatest legislation, we shared some insights on the impacts of Bayh-Dole:

“In 1980, a United States legislation dealing with intellectual property emanating from federal government-funded research was implemented. The legislature called Bayh-Dole Act (after two Senators Birch Bayh of Indiana and Bob Dole of Kansas that sponsored it) or University and Small Business Patent Procedures Act gave US universities, small businesses and non-profits intellectual property rights and control of their inventions, even though they were funded by government.

Through this Act, universities, small businesses or non-profit organizations could pursue ownership of inventions in preference to the government.”

In South Africa, they are planning the opposite, in a typical African way. They hoped by making ideas funded by government to remain in shelves instead of moving to market, they will force private companies to put resources in research. It is sheer ignorance to think that companies that license patents and commercialize them from projects funded by governments are not helping the economy. If South Africa follows this path, it could be a turning point in their technology roadmaps.

Meanwhile, according to a UNCTAD report, the increasing role of large developing countries in global trade, finance, investment and governance, coupled with their rapid economic growth, has stimulated debate on the implications for Africa’s development. The report examines recent trends in the economic relationships of Africa with other developing countries and the new forms of partnership that are animating those relationships.

Samsung Becomes Microsoft’s Latest Android IP Infringement Target

By
Ejiofor Agada
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0

Over the last few weeks, Microsoft had gunned down a number of Android smartphone and tablet manufacturers and reached a licensing agreement with those companies as Microsoft claims that by making and selling products utilizing the Android operating system, these companies are misappropriating patent technologies that Microsoft owns.

 

Microsoft has gone as far as going after some of its long-time and key partners in the mobile space, and it is believed that Windows Phone and Windows Mobile manufacturer HTC had agreed to a $5 per handset licensing fee per Android smartphone that it sells. Now, Microsoft may be going after Samsung, which makes Windows Phone, Android, and Bada OS devices, with a licensing fee as high as $15. The licensing fee that is speculated to be requested by Microsoft from Samsung is on the high side, and at $15 per Android phone, that fee would be the equivalent of a license of Windows Phone.

 

Neither Samsung nor Microsoft are commenting on the issue, though it is believed that Samsung may ask that the licensing fee be dropped down to around $10. Other companies being targeted by Microsoft in the past include Winstron, Velocity Micro, and Itronix, for example.

 

While it is interesting that Microsoft’s patent licensing business could rival and top its Windows Phone licensing as Android’s popularity continues to grow, it does present new market opportunities for Microsoft as well. In the future, rather than ask for royalty payments, Microsoft could work out agreements with manufacturers where it could undercut Google in key areas where the search giant is utilizing Android to monetize its core business. Rather than asking for money from Android licensees who infringe on Microsoft’s mobile patents, Microsoft could ask manufacturers, for example, to make Bing search and Bing Maps the default search and mapping tools on Android smartphones.

 

This would be a clever strategy as it would help Microsoft grow its mobile search shares and build out its Bing franchise without having to rely on Windows Phone. Android smartphone makers have been also targeted by Apple as well, with Apple having filed lawsuits against Motorola and HTC in the past.

 

Although the Android operating system is given free to manufacturer to use from Google, Microsoft’s latest claims and Apple’s claims in the past shows that Android is in fact not free to use in the marketplace. With manufacturers having to pay Google’s rivals in the mobile space for technologies that are present in Android that the OS infringes upon, the cost of these royalty payments are either absorbed by manufacturers like HTC or are passed down to consumers through higher phone prices.

 

Microsoft’s move comes as Samsung is dedicating more of its resources to Android. The Korean phone-maker has gained the position of the leading Android smartphone maker and is expected to de-thrown Nokia for the position of top smartphone maker.

 

Recently Microsoft publicly asserted for the first time that Google’s Android operating system infringes on its intellectual property.  Microsoft has taken the position, according to those close to the company, that Android infringes on the company’s patented technology and that the infringement applies broadly in areas ranging from the user interface to the underlying operating system.

 

In a statement, Microsoft deputy general counsel Horacio Gutierrez said that, although Microsoft prefers to resolve intellectual property licensing issues without resorting to lawsuits, it has a responsibility to make sure that “competitors do not free ride on our innovations.”

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