FG, global partners to boost Nigeria’s education with $500m

Former British Prime Minister, Mr. Gordon Brown
| credits: invisiblecollege.weblog.leidenuniv.nl

Former British Prime Minister, Mr. Gordon Brown, said on Monday in Abuja that Nigeria would benefit from a pool of $500m fund targeted at boosting educational development in the country.

The fund, he added, would also serve as additional resources to support the development of the Universal Basic Education in Nigeria.

Brown stated this at the meeting of the Coalition Interventions to support access and quality of education in Nigeria hosted by President Goodluck Jonathan at the State House in Abuja.

He said, “The Federal Government of Nigeria has made available $250m for investment in education. What we have managed to do by talking to the individual agencies over the last few days is to match that $250m by the additional $250m thus making possible new investment of $500m in education in Nigeria.”

A breakdown of the fund as stated by Brown indicated that Global Partnership for Education and the United States Agency for International Development, had agreed to contribute $100m every year, for the development of universal education.

Brown said the Federal Government in collaboration with state governments, had already provided $250m for the development of education in the country.

He added that the additional cash transfers would be for training, and the introduction of new technologies that would match the initiatives that had been attracted by Alhaji Aliko Dangote, from the business community.

He added that “Nigeria stands to benefit from a seven-year term European Union grant that will be devoted to the development of education.

“I have talked to the head of the development commission for the European Union  and he said he would tell the government of Nigeria to submit an application from time to time for the next seven years, the term that will be devoted to education development in Nigeria.”

Brown added that he also sought further assistance on behalf of Nigeria from the head of Department for International Development, who according to him, said that he would be happy to entertain new application for private support of additional cash transfers from the individual states.

He also promised that he would visit Nigeria in January and would want to meet states that were interested in moving the new innovation forward.

Speaking on behalf of Jonathan on the occasion, Vice President Namadi Sambo, said that the Federal Government had identified access and quality “as the two strategic goals for the four-year Strategic Plan for the Education Sector 2011-2015.”

first appeared on punchng.com

Apple: What Happens When Everyone Knows About a Product Release?

During the Steve Jobs era, outsiders speculated about each new release of a major product, trying to read the founder’s public comments. But he was notoriously stingy with the press. Analysts had to spy on suppliers and the carriers that eventually would market the devices. Now the world has changed. Everyone knows what Apple Inc.’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) new iPhones will look like and do. Nearly everyone knows what their eventual markets will be. Among the things that have made Apple ordinary, one of the most significant is its product releases.

 

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One of Apple’s problems has been widely identified. Other companies can release exciting products, too. The most commented up new consumer electronics gadget that will reach the market soon is Google Inc.’s (NASDAQ: GOOG) Glass. The search company recently bragged about demand at the Glass website:

Thank you so much to everyone who applied to be a Glass Explorer.

We have been overwhelmed, entertained and inspired by your responses. #ifihadglass is now closed and we will be notifying successful applicants soon. If you don’t hear from us, don’t despair! There will be more chances to get Glass at a later date.

If you would like to stay informed about Glass, you can sign up here.

Put another way, “please send us your name and address, and we may get back to you when we can.”

Add to the peak in interest about Glass all the excitement about Samsung’s Galaxy, and Apple’s announcements are barely ordinary.

One of Apple’s problems may be that its development time for products could be longer than in the past. Many people have pointed out that the extension is because Apple’s products are no longer revolutionary. It has to squeeze each tiny piece of innovation out of smartphones, which in tech years are already aged. Breakthrough features are in short supply, if they are in any supply at all.

Apple will release two products. The world can count on that. The press already has released the size and dimensions of the iPhone. The more expensive version of the iPhone 5 will get a new processor and better camera. It has become like the latest versions of PCs, which get a somewhat better Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) chip and sometimes an upgraded version of Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) Windows. Maybe one reason PC sales have tapered off is that each new version is so extraordinarily ordinary.

The more anticipated iPhone is called the 5C. The C stands for cheap. The smartphone is priced for the emerging market, led by China. Almost everyone knows that its largest marketer will be China’s gigantic China Mobile Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHL), the biggest carrier in the world.

Apple might as well skip its new iPhone launch event and just ship the products. Consumers already know what they have the opportunity to buy, even if they live in the People’s Republic.

first appeared on http://247wallst.com