News

Jos Plateau: Women Group Protests Economic Hardships and Insecurity

Published

2 years ago

February 24, 2024

Preport

Amidst growing economic challenges and security threats plaguing Nigeria, the Plateau State Chapter of the Voice of Women in Nigerian Leadership organized a protest at the Old Airport Junction in Jos on Saturday, February 24th. Led by Mrs. Lois Gotom, the State Coordinator, the women gathered to express their anguish over the dire conditions faced by Nigerians, particularly the impact on women and children as primary caregivers and homemakers.

Addressing the attendees and the media, Mrs. Gotom opened the rally with a statement titled “The Renewed Hope of Mr. President: A Myth or a Reality?” She highlighted the gravity of the situation, emphasizing the widespread hunger and insecurity gripping the nation. Mrs. Gotom decried the government’s failure to control the escalating prices of essential commodities, leading to hunger and starvation among the populace.

“In 2023, 50-60% of our land in Nigeria was left uncultivated due to the fear of attacks by unknown gunmen,” Mrs. Gotom stated. She cited instances where farmers were forced to abandon their fields, particularly in Mangu and Bokkos of Plateau State, known for their agricultural productivity in crops like maize and potatoes. The recent civil unrest in these areas has further exacerbated the situation, leaving farmlands deserted and harvests destroyed.

Mrs. Gotom emphasized the crucial role of security in enabling agricultural activities and ensuring food security. “If Mr. President succeeds in improving security, people can go to their farms without fear,” she asserted. “This will help create availability of farm produce and discourage food hoarding and price manipulation.”

The Voice of Women in Nigerian Leadership initiative, comprising women from various walks of life, aims to amplify the voices of ordinary Nigerians and address systemic power imbalances. “Our peaceful rally is a way for ordinary Nigerians to have their voices heard,” Mrs. Gotom declared. “As women, together we say, ‘Enough is Enough.'”

Martha Miri, the Personal Assistant to the National President, commended the women for their courage in demanding a better future for all Nigerians. “This protest signifies our collective resolve to stand against the sufferings of our people,” she remarked.

In conclusion, Mrs. Gotom called upon President Ahmed Bola Tinubu, elected officials, and appointed leaders to take immediate action to alleviate the hardships faced by Nigerians. “Our women and children are suffering,” she lamented. “It is time for our leaders to act before it’s too late.”

The protest underscored the urgent need for comprehensive solutions to address Nigeria’s socio-economic challenges and ensure the well-being of its citizens, especially the most vulnerable segments of society.

Business

Lasaco Assurance’s ₦18.47bn Rights Issue Closes May 13

Published

56 minutes ago

April 21, 2026

Preport

BY NKECHI NAECHE-ESEZOBOR—Lasaco Assurance Plc has announced that v will officially close on May 13, 2026, marking the end date for eligible shareholders to participate in the capital raising exercise.

The offer is part of the company’s strategy to strengthen its financial base, boost underwriting capacity, and support its expansion plans within Nigeria’s insurance sector.

The offer comprises 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares of 50 kobo each, priced at ₦2.00 per share, on the basis of five (5) new shares for every six (6) existing shares held. The Rights Issue is open to shareholders whose names appeared on the Company’s register as at the close of business on February 20, 2026.

The exercise is expected to raise approximately ₦18.47 billion, which will be strategically deployed to strengthen the Company’s capital base, enhance underwriting capacity, and support the expansion of its market presence within Nigeria’s competitive insurance landscape.

Meristem Capital Limited is acting as Lead Issuing House, while PAC Capital serves as Joint Issuing House on the transaction.

Commenting on the development, the Managing Director of Lasaco Assurance Plc, Ademoye Shobo, reaffirmed the Company’s commitment to maintaining a robust capital position to meet its obligations and deliver sustained value to policyholders and stakeholders.

This initiative aligns with broader efforts across the Nigerian insurance industry to meet evolving regulatory capital requirements, strengthen balance sheets, and position operators to underwrite larger and more complex risks across key sectors of the economy.

The post Lasaco Assurance’s ₦18.47bn Rights Issue Closes May 13 appeared first on Business Today NG.

News

AI research lab NeoCognition lands $40M seed to build agents that learn like humans

Published

2 hours ago

April 21, 2026

Preport

Investors are aggressively courting AI researchers to build startups that can make AI more reliable and efficient.

Yu Su, an Ohio State professor leading an AI agent lab, said he initially resisted the pressure from VCs to commercialize his work. He finally took the leap last year and spun out his work into a startup when he saw that foundational model advances could make agents truly personalized.

NeoCognition, a startup Su describes as a research lab developing self-learning AI agents, has just emerged from stealth with $40 million in seed funding. The round was co-led by Cambium Capital and Walden Catalyst Ventures, with participation from Vista Equity Partners and angels, including Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan and Databricks co-founder Ion Stoica.

“Today’s agents are generalists,” Su (pictured left) told TechCrunch. “Every time you ask them to do a task, you take a leap of faith.”

According to Su, the issue lies in a lack of consistency. Current agents, whether from Claude Code, OpenClaw or Perplexity’s computer tools, successfully complete tasks as intended only about 50% of the time, he said.

Since agents are still so unreliable, they are not ready to be trusted, independent workers, Su told TechCrunch. NeoCognition intends to change that by developing an agent system that can self-learn to become an expert in any domain, similar to how humans learn.

Su argues that while human intelligence is broad, its real power is our ability to specialize. When we enter a new environment or profession, we can rapidly master its unique rules, relationships, and consequences.

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NeoCognition is building agents to mirror this exact approach.

“For humans, our continued learning process is essentially the process of building a world model for any profession, any environment,” Su said. “We believe for agents to become experts, they need to learn autonomously to build a model of any given micro world.”

Su views this capacity for rapid specialization as the critical missing link to getting AI to work reliably on its own.

While it is possible to train agents for autonomous tasks, they must be custom-engineered for a specific vertical. NeoCognition is different because it’s building agents that are generalists capable of self-learning and specializing in any domain.

NeoCognition intends to sell its agent systems primarily to enterprises, including established SaaS companies, which can use them to build agent-workers or to enhance existing product offerings.

Su highlighted that an investment from Vista Equity Partners is especially valuable for this reason. As one of the largest private equity firms in the software space, Vista can provide NeoCognition with direct access to a vast portfolio of companies looking to modernize their products with AI.

NeoCognition currently has about 15 employees, the majority of whom hold PhDs.

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