Chairman Zinox Group and Africa’s most progressive digital entrepreneur, Leo Stan Ekeh, told a select audience of ICT-preneurs recently why he cannot stop being a major player in the ICT sector: “It’s one sector that guarantees you sustainable wealth, keeps you innovating and makes your thought-process dynamic”, he said.

According to him, it is one sector that can most assuredly get the nation out of its present economic quagmire by helping to create jobs, wealth and add real value to human development index. According to him, it is the best guarantee the poor has to launch to real wealth and given the type of creative spirit we have in the country especially among the youth, it is our surest bet to create the next set of billionaires in a growing global knowledge economy.

Ekeh who made a special appearance at the launch of the new Huawei GR5 Mini Smartphone in Lagos told the audience made up of re-sellers, techies, media and allied entrepreneurs said he likes associating with successful brands in the global ICT matrix and will not cease to advocate for digital solution to emerging and present socio-economic challenges in the country and around the world.

He gave strong admonition to techies and techno-preneurs: “I believe that money talks while wealth whispers. That’s why those in the oil sector are passing through hard times; they have had the money, but we live in a 21^st century when innovators dictate the tune of events.

“You (ICT Stakeholders) need not to panic, rather utilise the moment by innovating; be creative; I have been in this kind of situation on two different occasions, but I remained steadfast, knowing that technology is the way to go,” he told the audience.

He said that Technology Distribution (TD) Limited, an arm of Zinox Group and Nigeria’s distributor for Huawei smartphones, has always identified with globally-recognised brands such as Microsoft, Apple, HP, Lenovo, InnJoo, among others and will replicate the feat with Huawei, a company he said is in the business for the long haul and not the hop-in-and-hop-out syndrome associated with some brands.

“This is the second time I will be present during a phone launch. And the reasons for my presence are obvious: TD has always identified with global number one brands. HP, Microsoft, Lenovo, Apple, and many other brands that identified with us, first, in Nigeria, have gone ahead to become global brands and I foresee Huawei achieving that feat. Any brand that is number one in China where research is high-intense has already become a global brand to reckon with.

“Secondly, Huawei is creating jobs in this economy and adding value to the system. That is one of the things that attracted me to them. I have done business in several parts of the world, but none of those areas is like Nigeria,” he said.

He said Huawei heavy investment in research and development over the years is an assurance that they are serious with innovation and much more that they in business for now and the future.

Mr Leo Jiang, the Managing Director, Devices, for Huawei Nigeria, said the new Huawei GR5 Mini Smartphone has been designed with long-lasting battery, up to 32 hours for hard users, to eliminate use of power bank and take care of out-of-home or office anxieties.

Speaking at the launch of the phone Jiang said that the phone had been equipped with a 3000mAh (milliamp hour – a unit that measures (electric) power over time) battery life, owing to the electricity situation in Nigeria. It is commonly used to measure the energy capacity of a battery; generally, the more mAh, the longer the battery capacity.

”The phone’s 3000mAh battery with intelligent power saving technology allows the battery last for as long as two days without charging for light users, and 32 hours for hard users,” he said, stressing that the Smartphone, which features new generation fingerprint technology, has been ‎improved 100 per cent over the first generation.

He said that GR5 Mini had a sensor that performed in 0.5 seconds and had 360 degree readability, builds on Huawei’s success in delivering powerful high end Smartphone with a high level quality.

”Bound to be a delight for photo and self-lovers, the Huawei GR5 Mini has an 8MP front camera, with high chromatic resolution, 4P lens array and a 77 degree wide angle visual range.

“It takes sharp looking self and also allows self-lovers to capture more people in the shot. ”The rear-facing 13MP camera features a f/2.0 aperture, 78 degree wide angle visual range, 5P Aspheric lens array with a blue glass filter to improve photo quality.

”It also has professional mode for taking photos with parameters comparable to that of a Single-Lens Reflex (SLR‎) camera,” Jiang said.

Huawei announced its partnership with Nigerian designer, Adebayo Oke-Lawal of Orange couture to give customers, who purchase GR5 Mini a designer phone case for free.

”We value our customers’ need for mobile technology, which suites their lifestyle and meets their needs, and now we are aligning with customers’ strongest passions, one which we have discovered to be fashion,” Jiang said.