Borno's gas/electric mass transit laudable but is it sustainable? 🚕

TODAY’S MENU

• The commissioning of 107 electric/gas buses, and taxis in Borno State is laudable.....but is this sustainable? 🚕

• Central Bank of Nigeria Suspends Charges on Large Cash Deposits 💰

• Controversy Surrounds Elon Musk’s Grok as Users Uncover Parallels with OpenAI’s ChatGPT 🤖

• BURN Manufacturing receives $10 Million from Africa Go Green Fund to Boost Clean Cookstove Distribution in Mozambique, Nigeria, and DRC 🪵🔥

• Nigeria’s Online Landscape in 2023: Asake Rules Music Searches, Moyo Lawal Grabs Most Searched Person Title 🛜

TRANSPORTATION

The commissioning of 107 electric/gas buses, and taxis in Borno State is laudable.....but is this sustainable? 🚕

On Monday, President Tinubu commissioned 107 electric/gas buses, and taxis in Borno State for a mass transit scheme and it is being lauded as one of Governor Babagana Zulum’s government ways of cushioning the impact of the fuel subsidy removal.

The fleet of vehicles that make up the mass transit scheme include 35 units of 30-seater gas-powered coaster buses, 12 units of 15-seater gas-powered Hummer buses, 10 units of 50-seater gas-powered mass transit buses, and 50 units of 4-seater electric-powered taxi vehicles.

According to the governor, the 107 vehicles were converted to use electricity and gas to help enhance the use of low-cost energy sources and cheap transportation.

How sustainable is this development?

The sustainability of electric and gas-powered vehicles in Borno State, given the current power situation in Nigeria, raises valid considerations. Nigeria has faced challenges in maintaining a consistent and reliable power supply across the country, and this can impact the feasibility of electric vehicles (EVs) in particular. Nigeria has the one of the lowest access to electricity globally, with about 92 million out of the country’s more than 200 million population lacking access to power, according to the Energy Progress Report 2022 released by Tracking SDG 7…....read more

PAYMENTS

Central Bank of Nigeria Suspends Charges on Large Cash Deposits 💰

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has implemented a new directive to halt the processing charges previously applied to substantial cash deposits by banks, financial institutions, and non-bank financial institutions. Effective immediately, the suspension impacts individual account deposits exceeding N500,000 and corporate account deposits surpassing N3,000,000. Previously, these deposits incurred processing fees of 2% and 3%, respectively.

This shift in policy, outlined in the “Guide to Charges by Banks, Other Financial Institutions, and Non-Bank Financial Institutions” dated December 20, 2019, will remain in effect until the end of April 2024. The directive mandates compliance from all CBN-regulated financial institutions, requiring them to refrain from imposing charges on cash deposits meeting or exceeding the specified thresholds......….read more

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Controversy Surrounds Elon Musk’s Grok as Users Uncover Parallels with OpenAI’s ChatGPT 🤖

Grok, Elon Musk’s recently launched chatbot, is facing scrutiny as users have noted similarities between its responses and those generated by OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Observations include instances where Grok explicitly cites OpenAI in its replies. Users, such as Jax Winterbourne and Pezzo, have shared these findings, raising concerns about potential code replication.

Notably available to X Premium Plus subscribers, Grok has drawn attention for what some perceive as content extraction from ChatGPT. Pezzo shared a response from Grok instructing users to report issues to “[email protected],” further fueling suspicions…Ouch 🤯…read more

ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

BURN Manufacturing receives $10 Million from Africa Go Green Fund to Boost Clean Cookstove Distribution in Mozambique, Nigeria, and DRC 🪵🔥

BURN Manufacturing (BURN), a global leader in clean cookstove manufacturing, distribution, and carbon-offset projects has received $10 million from the Africa Go Green Fund (AGG), managed by Cygnum Capital Asset Management.

The funding aims to support BURN’s distribution of clean cookstoves to households in Mozambique, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, with a goal to enhance livelihoods, promote health benefits, and contribute to deforestation reduction.

This initiative is set to distribute improved cooking solutions to 50,000 – 150,000 customers in each of the target countries, targeting a substantial reduction of approximately 6.9 million tons of CO2 emissions over the project’s lifespan.…read more

OTHER STORIES

Nigeria’s Online Landscape in 2023: Asake Rules Music Searches, Moyo Lawal Grabs Most Searched Person Title 🛜

Google has unveiled its ‘2023 Year In Search‘ results, showcasing the most sought-after people, deaths, actors, musicians, lyrics, topics, and questions in Nigeria for the year.

The annual ‘Year in Search’ analysis highlights top trending lists and sheds light on the subjects capturing global interest.

In the Nigerian context, this year’s results indicate a heightened interest in entertainment, with Mohbad and Hilda Baci ranking among the top three most searched Nigerian news..…read more