posted by Mambe Churchill Nanje : 26th September,2009
Its been a while we have not posted any updates about the technology behind naijaborn.com, well I wish to do a fast run on this because I am busy on some real tough algorithms.
We have been developing our internal structures(SOP, project management), by ensuring that as we grow things will not get out of hands.
Collabtive is web-based project management software.
The project was started in November 2007. It is Open Source software and provides an alternative to proprietary tools like Basecamp. Collabtive is written in PHP and JavaScript.
With this tool we are now able to manage our team (which is geographically dispersed) and our projects, milestones, deadlines and tasks allocation effectively. We also post ideas internally for everybody to contribute and brainstorm on, post bugs as they occur and also have a section for feature request as they occur. Its one of the things we have done internally.
We are currently working on our friends finder, contacts importer and friend invitation system, Mukoshy can tell you more about that and we have tested it with a few users then stopped (some of you got invited recently). We are making it more robust then we roll it out to everybody on the platform within the next couple of weeks.
We are also working on our newsletter a.k.a mass mailing system and if you noticed we rolled out our TERMS OF SERVICE found here http://www.naijaborn.com/beta/home/terms
And we advice you all to take some time off and read through because it states some things about your use of naijaborn.com and how the naijaborn of the week and other newsletters will be working. I am currently engineering and developing the newsletter engine and I hope to get it done within the coming weeks.
I hope it tells you about what has been going on within naijaborn.com team and what we are cooking up for you
posted by Francis Omokhape Oghuma : 23rd September,2009
whats your view?
A cursory view of our society today could only depict the extent of the tasks ahead of us as a people that crave a better nation. It also depicts situations ahead of us where lies the tasks of perfecting our polity, in manners that every Nigerian could get inspired and be ready to perspire in the collective resolution of building a new and greater Nigeria.
Irrespective of our perceptions of challenges of nation building, it is undeniable that POVERTY is an integral component of factors that retard our national progress. But I really would not subscribe to poverty as defining our talents, resources, creativity and education than I would subscribe to poverty of enhanced structures and strategies that could pragmatically accentuate our wealth of talents, resources, creativity and education in retarding the entrenchment of underdevelopment in our nation. Structural poverty of our polity has held us hostage to this monster of underdevelopment and it is expedient to challenge and practically subvert this impediment to our national development.
The toughest challenges facing us as a nation in the twenty- first century demand not merely the application of expertise or the use of resources of authority, but rather the orchestration of ongoing changes that disorientate the habits, attitudes and values of Nigerians towards Nigeria. Unfortunately, poverty of our synergy of making changes only breeds poverty of our individual economy which in turn, rains poverty on our collective economy. And as we all know, poverty consumes our capacity of patriotism and passion for the nation.
In my everyday interactions with fellow Nigerians, I am always in the presence of the challenges people go through in making legitimate incomes that could guarantee the next set of meals or the fulfillment of individual dreams and aspirations. As a representative of my people and indeed as your Speaker, I am in the presence of the challenges we face as a nation and the sacrifices that Nigerians make every single day. As much as I try my best in making changes towards alleviating these challenges as my humble contributions and responsibility, I also have my limitations like every Nigerian. Our best efforts could only be channeled towards challenging our individual limitations by our COLLECTIVE resolution in establishing a synergy that could subvert the monsters that retard our development. We may need to differentiate and recognize the limitations of different political office holders to strategize towards making changes in our polity. The responsibilities of state executives differ from local government councilors, and therefore expectations from the political offices should be different. The bleeding of functions of these offices only aggravates an entrenchment of poverty of structures that is capable of limiting our drive of subverting the challenges of poverty. It is my belief that the future we collectively clamor for as a people vicariously intertwined with recognition of our individual responsibility and collective response to our nation building notwithstanding the imperfections of our present status as an economy.
The issue and essence of leadership has never left my mind in the drive of articulating a new chart that could bring about our collective prospect of greatness, but I am also of the view that leadership is a difficult task. Difficult in the sense that it focuses on the most intractable challenges of change, challenges that defy easy solutions for they encompass deep- seated conflicts, strongly held loyalty and value-laden issues. Leadership is also difficult because people resist refashioning their inner most concerns, surfacing conflicts and questioning their long held assumptions. People push back in an effort to re- submerge the issues that the person who leads tries to help address because changes involve people sacrificing ways of life they hold dear: their views of themselves; their ways of working; their understanding of where they fit in the wider scheme of things. Therefore in a sense, leadership is about loss. The irony is that people do not resist changes but they resist loss and there is no change without loss.
The challenges of poverty as the representative of our underdevelopment is therefore challenges before you and I in our collective drive of making positive changes in our nation. It is very essential that we establish a synergy: a synergy that could subvert the poverty of our personal responsibility and poverty of our economy: a synergy could enhance education sector: a synergy that could guarantee the citizens gainful employment and security of investments and lives: a synergy that brings back the prospect of our greatness as a greater Nigeria. We could raise a greater nation with our greater positive actions.
Let's do it because we are Nigerians! Let's do it for the future greatness of our race! Let's do it because we are good people! But most of all, let's do it because it is the RIGHT thing to do!
posted by Francis Omokhape Oghuma : 6th September,2009
Good News from Team Naijaborn
Our NB Finest Campaign(Brand Ambassadors) : The aim of the Initiative is to appoint an ambitious individual/set of individuals to work closely with the Project naijaborn by informing friends,family and co-workers about our project across continents.Mr Oyedele joins us to connect Nigerians and friends of Nigerians across New Zealand and south East Asia.we are currently scouting for NB Finest Ambassadors across SA,UK,USA & Nigeria .Interested in joining the campaign send us an email info@naijaborn.com show ya sef !
Read his bio
Oyedele Oludamola, also known around the world as Damy, was born in the heart of Nigeria (Lagos) to a family of 4 siblings, him been the last of them all. He graduated in 2006, haven studied Business Administration with one of Nigeria’s most reputable universities – University of Lagos. He then moved on to take up leadership roles within the world’s largest university based organization called AIESEC.
Damy’s international experience started in 2006 when he was appointed on a one-year contract role as the National Director for External Relations and Projects with AIESEC in Indonesia, a position which introduced him to his first experience working closely and managing an extremely diverse team of 7 people representing 4 different continents.
His role included customer accounts management with clients from some of the big names and corporate entities of Indonesia, including Nestle, Bank Niaga, HP, KPMG, PwC, and NEC among others.
His back ground in marketing and large customer accounts management within AIESEC led him to easily clinch the role of National Director for External Relations of the New Zealand office of AIESEC, a position he occupied for 2 years due to his outstanding performance and results generated during both one-year terms. His main results included re-signing large accounts with Fonterra Co-operative Group as well as initiating new accounts with other notable names including PwC, E&Y, and Audit New Zealand, among others.
Just recently, Damy was newly assigned another role as Promotions Coordinator with World Vision (Christchurch) New Zealand, a subsidiary of World Vision International. Still along the lines of customer accounts management, Damy now works closely with a team of 5, responsible for the promotion of World Vision’s activities and services to the Christchurch community.
Some of his key attributes includes but not limited to Sound analytical thinking, clear communication skills, people and client management, project management, networking, presentation skills, among many others.In the future, Damy would like to own his company, specialized in agricultural produce to help cater for the local needs of Nigerians as well as delivering international demands on some of Nigeria’s top cash crop earners today.
posted by Francis Omokhape Oghuma : 5th September,2009
Hello Naijaborns.
Naijaborn.com is officially 100 days old today, We are grateful to our users,our co-workers and most importantly to the following online publishing houses that gave us the mileage to inform the public about our product and services.
posted by Francis Omokhape Oghuma : 4th September,2009
With the series shrouded in mystery, speculation has grown as eager fans across the continent try to uncover the identity of the show’s housemates, and find out anything they can about the new season of the super series Big Brother Africa.Now with the series just days away from launch, M-Net has begun to release information on its newest and boldest reality TV innovation yet and the good news is that the Revolution is definitely on.In line with the fresh new take on Big Brother, there’s a new face at the helm of the series. M-Net has now officially confirmed the name of the series host and joining the Big Brother team is talented, well-spoken and charming Nigerian television star IK Osakioduwa who’s already well-known to audiences across the continent.An Economics graduate from the University of Lagos who began his broadcast career as ‘Wild Child’ on Nigerian radio station Rhythm FM 93.7, the dynamic IK soon moved into television. A presenter on M-Net’s flagship Afro-chic lifestyle program Studio 53, he has also helmed two other M-Net productions - the Nigerian game show Temptation Nigeria and the stand-out stand-up series Comedy Club: Live in Lagos.Now he’s taking on his biggest challenge yet and he’s excited about the role, revealing that he’s a huge Big Brother fan.“I'm not sure what it is about the show but it's almost addictive. I hate to confess it but, I remember days when I stayed up watching people in the house sleep.”He goes on to encourage audiences to share his passion for the series saying,“I've been speaking with some people involved with the production and I think it's safe to say that a lot of thought has been put into improving everything that has been done before. We see a reflection of that in the increased prize money. I also think there will probably even be more drama in this edition too because the stakes are higher. Not to mention that there are more countries.” And, given that outside of Big Brother IK will be the housemate’s only link to the outside world, he has this advice for them.“There will be people watching critically from countries all over Africa. I think being fake would work against you. Keep it real and hope for the best. Also as much as we are all watching you, try to have some fun with it!”
Pictures : Copyright reserved of the photographer and mnet company
For more information about the big brother africa project check
posted by Francis Omokhape Oghuma : 1st September,2009
Naijaborn.com so far has gained a lot of exposure in the media and we currently working on different strategies to grow and penetrate the Nigerian audience globally.
We currently celebrating our 1st100 days to the public on Saturday 5th of September and i am hoping our goal would be to tell all our friends about the platform and send us a feedback about our services so far,we still in beta but our growth rate is quite interesting.
I am very proud of my co-founders ( Mambe nanje get well soon) & Adekunle samuel owolabi they have made this first 100 days a success kudos to them !
Since we launched this platform we have showcased several naijaborns globally making Nigeria proud in their chosen careers and we definitely not done yet.
We celebrated the 91st birthday of Madiba (The greatest ambassador and export from Africa) & Mourned with the world and family of micheal jackson ( King of pop).
We also believe in the Light up Nigeria campaign and its the next stage in our CSR activities globally ! NaijaBORN LIGHT UP FOR NAIJA !
Image : By Dayo Okeniyi for light up Nigeria we respect the rights of the owner.
We currently working on several campaigns prior to the official launch of naijaborn.com in December
e.g
1.Naijaborn since 1960 Project 2. Naijaborn finest ambassadors project
We also scouting for interns(students) globally interested in gaining working experience in a naijacentric social community e.g communications students,computer science students and internet addicts that can join our community management initiative
We also scouting for corporate advertisers and sponsors to support the growth of our unique naijacentric community that strives to be the best globally,Interested in supporting and working closely with us send us an email info@naijaborn.com or francis.oghuma@naijaborn.com
we will be releasing an official press statement and product information(package) this weekend.
Remember to show ya sef & spread the joy of naija globally
posted by Mambe Churchill Nanje : 29th August,2009
For the past two weeks, we have been seriously working on some features
that will go a long way to enhance the naijaborn.com experience.
Below are a couple of things we have added or changed:
- Naijaborn microblogging engine or WETTIN DEY? status updates module now supports comments. Unlike facebook and twitter, the comments you post on
a microblog entry or micro post is automatically recorded as a new
micropost with a track back link to the original, so comments get synchronized to one. This way the more a particular microblog entry has
comments the more users of naijaborn get to notice and join the loop.
Everything you do on naijaborn creates a microblog entry. From
registration, to WETTIN DEY?, to adding someone to a network, to
posting a new item, or commenting on an item, etc.
check out the activity updates and comment system and tell us what you think ;)
-
Naijaborn now has a tour a.k.a site tour. You might be asking what is a
tour or a site tour. This is something like a PowerPoint presentation
that has slides that go a long way to explain what naijaborn.com is all
about. So if you have been wondering what naijaborn is all about you
can have a hint by visiting this link http://www.naijaborn.com/beta/home/tour . The tour can also be
accessed from the home page immediately below our welcome text. Its a
small link next to sign up labeled 'tour'. Please check out the tour
and tell us what you think ;)
- Naijaborn now has a new module called NETWORK PEOPLE(FANS and STARS). You may be wondering what is Naijaborn Fans and Stars? You will answer that yourself. If you are part of naijaborn.com, login to
the platform, check out any member's profile.
On he profile page, you will notice a network panel, it has a
tab for activity updates, member fans and member stars. What is this
member fans and stars: The Fans, are the people that have subscribed to
a member's activity on naijaborn similar to followers on twitter and
the Stars are those the member has subscribed to their activity,
similar to following on twitter. These information will help you
determine if you should make this person your Star or not. what do you
think about this ???
You can also view your fans and your own stars by visiting YOUR
NETWORK, in the user navigation found on the right hand side of
naijaborn.com .
As usual we will continue to listen to the users and ensure that we provide them with the best of our team.
PS: coming up next is our invitation module and our E-Zine NAIJABORN OF
THE WEEK. Sponsors and interested candidates contact us
info@naijaborn.com
posted by Francis Omokhape Oghuma : 27th August,2009
orode jade uduaghana naijaborn social entrepreneur the founder of pink pearl foundation is our naijaborn for the week
About Pink Pearl Foundation
Mission
The pink pearl foundation is dedicated to improving access to
high quality breast and cervical cancer screening and diagnostic
services for women who are undeserved, and to increasing public
awareness through education about prevention, disease processes and the
importance of regular exams for early detection.
Vision to
reduce the spread of breast cancer and cervical cancer in Nigeria by
creating awareness for it in educative and entertaining ways.
Focus We are
more interested in less privileged women in the society who do not earn
enough to care for their medical bills. We are also interested in
uneducated women who know little to nothing about breast cancer.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed among women. Cervical
cancer ranks seventh of the leading cancers diagnosed among women.
Surviving breast and cervical cancer depends on how early the cancer is
detected. The best method to detect breast or cervical cancer in its
early stage is through regular screening.
On behalf of team Naijaborn and the E-zine network we wish orode & the pink pearl foundation team the best in their fight against breast cancer in Nigeria & Always show ya sef creatively !
posted by Francis Omokhape Oghuma : 26th August,2009
Nairobi, 25 August 2009: MTV and Zain have disclosed the contenders for
the 2009 MTV Africa Music Awards with Zain, the global celebration of
African contemporary music talent and youth culture. The nominees, from
across the Continent’s contemporary music spectrum, were revealed by
Alex Okosi, Senior Vice President & Managing Director, MTV Networks
Africa and Mwambu Wanendeya, Zain Group Communications Director –
Africa, at a star-studded bash at The Loft in Nairobi, Kenya.
Best Male 2 Face (Nigeria) HHP (South Africa) D’Banj (Nigeria) Nameless (Kenya) Da L.E.S. (South Africa)
Best New Act M.I. (Nigeria) Shaa (Tanzania) STL (Kenya) Bigiano (Nigeria) Rhythmic Elements (South Africa)
Best Hip Hop M.I. (Nigeria) A.Y. (Tanzania) Zulu Boy (South Africa) Jay-Z (USA) Kanye West (USA)
Best Female Kel (Nigeria) Amani (Kenya) Lira (South Africa) Zamajobe (South Africa) Lizha James (Mozambique)
Best R&B 2 Face (Nigeria) Darey Art Alade (Nigeria) Loyiso (South Africa) Beyoncé (USA) Akon (USA)
Best Group P-Square (Nigeria) Blu*3 (Uganda) Gang of Instrumentals (South Africa) Mo Hits Allstars (Nigeria) Gal Level (Namibia)
Artist of The Year 2 Face (Nigeria) D’banj (Nigeria) Lira (South Africa) HHP (South Africa) Nameless (Kenya)
Best Alternative Green Day (USA) Coldplay (UK) Cassette (South Africa) Zebra & Giraffe (South Africa) Aking (South Africa)
Best Video 2Face – Enter The Place (Nigeria) XOD – I Want You Back (Uganda) HHP – Mpitse (South Africa) Da L.E.S. – We on Fire (South Africa) Wahu ft Bobi Wine – Little Things You Do (Kenya).
posted by Francis Omokhape Oghuma : 24th August,2009
We have decided to feature this post on our official blog to get reactions from our friends and users globally, a post composed by mr reginald bassey a naijaborn located in new york.
Great post & enjoy it. papa qube
I am a diehard fan of Peter Jackson, especially after watching the Lord
of the Ring series rack up the Oscars with excellent display of modern
film artistry. I went as far as purchasing the Editors Cut of the movie
containing twelve DVDs with extended edition. Watching his remake of
King Kong was also breathtaking, especially how he succeeded in
recreating the lost island in order to give more life to the reality of
finding prehistoric creatures there. Jackson is a master at imaginative
delivery of stories, and he has succeeded in doing all this outside
Hollywood. Lord of the Rings was entirely done outside of the Hollywood
apparatus, proving that creativity knows no bound and the much money
spent in paying so called stars only goes to increasing the cost of
movie making. His new movie, ‘District 9’ was also produced without any
big stars and shot entirely in South Africa. It is a recreation of a
short movie by Neill Blomkamp called ‘Alive in Joburg’ Kudos to him!
I stepped into the Cinema over the weekend, hand on my imaginary hat,
getting ready to tip it for another amazing production, but walked out
of that cinema with mixed feelings. As usual, the movie was brilliantly
executed, the story was a departure from the normal alien attacks, and
the effects were superb. However something in the movie sparked up a
negative emotion within me as others chose to laugh off as truth what
was a negative characterization of the Nigerian people as a whole. You
see in the movie, the aliens were confined to a place called District 9
where they lived continuously for about twenty years and expanded the
area in to a huge slum with normal social interactions, including
buying and selling. But, as crazily plotted by the writers, a Nigerian
gang also situated themselves within District 9, and became a dangerous
armed group doing scams, especially with cat food, which was an alien
delicacy. Get it right, the Nigerians being referred to here were not
aliens, but real humans. I then wondered what the sense was in creating
such a plot, where humans choose to go live with very ugly and
disgusting crustacean-like creatures, and mainly Nigerians for that
matter.
I really wondered what the intent of such a questionably loaded plot
was. Couldn’t it have been sufficient to create imaginary races and
support the plot with such? It may surprise you to know that the area
called District 9 is in close analogy to a real District 6, a mini city
populated by mostly blacks and non-whites, and which the South African
government had cleared of over 50, 000 people and bulldozed down.
Interestingly in this movie, there was also a government order to clear
District 9 of all aliens and relocate them to a concentration camp-like
area, while the slum was to be bulldozed down. This is an interesting
pointer to the infamous Apartheid era, and the treatment of black South
Africans. This is however fair, as we can excuse the plot as simply
drawing analogies for the purpose of that. But the inclusion of
Nigerians in this plot and their evil characterization is what troubles
me.
You might wonder what my trouble is about. Let me tell you why. First
the Nigerians were not just thugs and mercenaries, as well as
alien-servicing prostitutes, but also witchcraft practicing cannibals.
They believed, by the spin of the witch doctor, that eating the alien
body parts will give them greater power. Mind you they ate it raw
rather than cooked. Yak!!! Can you imagine this? Even the main
character in the movie, whose name is Wikus, after being infected by an
alien liquid and began to slowly metamorphose became desired food for
the Nigerian ‘cannibals’. Even worse is that the Nigerian gang leader
was called ‘Obasanjo’, a name for the past Nigerian President. What on
earth does Neill Blomkamp (the director) and Peter Jackson (producer)
hope to achieve by such an ill representation of Nigerians in the
movie? They seem to have forgotten that films are a very powerful
device in information, especially to the uninformed world on a
particular culture of people. As far as I know, cannibalism is not an
issue in Nigeria, neither is alien prostitution ever heard of
(bestiality is the closest to such wicked practice, but I haven’t heard
of that either in Nigeria). While it may be acceptable to characterize
them as mercenaries and thugs trying to survive in a hard way, to push
that into the realms of devilish human practice is not in any way
acceptable.
Such dangerous narratives within a movie deserve to be put in its right
light: RACIST!!! As a Nigerian, born and bred, as well as cultured, I
am highly offended by the implications of such a plot. It not only
gives a false sense of identity to a people, but creates a false and
uninformed imaginary escutcheon on the cultural vehicle of Nigerian,
and indeed black people. Many movies have also made a mess while trying
to capture the Nigerian element; movies such as Sahara (directed by
Breck Eisner) and the recent Wolverine (directed by Gavin Hood). But in
no way do they complicate matters as this movie. I watched this movie
in a mixed neighbourhood consisting of mostly Caucasians and Asians,
and for everyone that sat at the movie with me; I can only wonder what
conclusions they made about Nigeria. I hope I am not being paranoid as
some of my friends may claim. I am simply just wondering when Nigeria
became part of the slum called District 9 in Johannesburg.
