#azatellng

WhatsApp is set to introduce charges for certain customer-service messages sent by businesses using the }WhatsApp Business Platform from October 1, 2026.

The change could have a major impact on #businesses that depend heavily on WhatsApp for #customer enquiries, orders, bookings, complaints and support, particularly in Nigeria where WhatsApp is one of the most widely used communication platforms.

However, the new charges are not for ordinary WhatsApp users or businesses using only the regular WhatsApp Business app. The change concerns businesses using the WhatsApp Business Platform/API.

#Meta is expected to provide more details, including the applicable rates for different markets.

With many Nigerian businesses relying almost entirely on WhatsApp to communicate with customers, the big question is: Will this make businesses increase their prices, or will they simply absorb the extra cost?

#WhatsApp #Meta #azatellng #Nigeria #Business #Technology

Nigeria’s banking sector has its own "PayPal Mafia." And No, I’m not talking about the Fintech #founders. But I’m talking about a legendary cohort of leaders who passed through Guaranty Trust Bank (#GTBank) under the leadership of Fola Adeola and Tayo Aderinokun, only to go on and dominate the country's broader #financial and corporate #ecosystem.

Look at some of the names:

* Herbert Wigwe & Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede → Left GTBank to acquire and transform Access Bank into one of Africa's largest #banking conglomerates.
* Segun Agbaje → Rose through the ranks → Now Group #CEO, Guaranty Trust Holding Company (#GTCO).
* Kazi Abdul-Muktadir → Spent foundational years at GTBank → Went on to serve as Deputy Governor at the Central Bank of Nigeria (#CBN).
* Bisi Onasanya → Former GTBank executive → Went on to become Group Managing Director/CEO of First #Bank of #Nigeria.
* Mobolaji Lawal → Spent decades at GTBank → Now Managing Director/CEO of Wema Bank.
* Remi Babalola → Former GTBank Senior Vice President → Went on to serve as Nigeria’s Minister of State for Finance and later Chairman of First Bank.

Read that list again 👆. Bank CEOs, Central Bank leadership, Cabinet Ministers, Corporate Titans. All forged in the crucible of one institution’s golden era.
And there’s something else I find fascinating: GTBank wasn’t built by old money; it was pioneered by young, ambitious visionaries who refused to accept the sluggish status quo of legacy #banking in the 90s.
So perhaps the real legacy of GTBank isn't just the iconic orange box or digital banking firsts. It's the standard of excellence it instilled in its people. Much like Barcelona’s La Masia academy molds players who end up dictating tempo for clubs across #Europe, GTBank created a culture where high performance, discipline, and execution were non-negotiable—preparing its alumni to lead wherever they landed.
When one #organization consistently produces leaders who define an entire national economy, that’s not a coincidence. It’s a blueprint.
Invest in culture, empower young talent, and set uncompromising standards. The leaders you raise will shape the future.
#Leadership #CorporateNigeria #TalentPipeline #GTBankMafia #NigerianBanking #Legacy #BusinessStrategy #azatell #azatellng #CorporateCulture

🦎 Meet the olm — the “dragon” of the underground! 🐉

Deep inside the flooded caves of the Dinaric karst, across #Slovenia, #Croatia, #Bosnia and #Herzegovina, and #Italy, one of the strangest creatures on Earth: the olm (Proteus anguinus) lives. 🌑💧

Unlike most #salamanders, the #olm never grows out of its larval form. It keeps its external gills for life and spends its entire existence underwater. 🫧

Its pale pink skin makes sense in the darkness — there’s almost no need for pigment underground. Its eyes are undeveloped and covered by skin, making it effectively blind. Instead, it relies on smell, water movement, and even weak electrical signals to navigate. 👁️❌⚡

After heavy rains, floods sometimes wash olms out of their caves. Local people once believed these mysterious creatures were baby #dragons emerging from the mountains. 🐉⛰️

But perhaps the strangest thing about the olm is how little it needs to survive. 🍽️

With almost no food available in cave waters, it has evolved an incredibly slow metabolism. It can survive years without eating, with laboratory observations reporting survival for up to a decade. 😳

And it takes “slow living” to another level. A long-term study recorded one olm remaining in essentially the same position for 2,569 consecutive days — nearly 7 years! 💤

#Researchers describe its lifestyle as being almost entirely about doing nothing. 😂

Some estimates suggest olms can live for around 100 years, making them remarkably long-lived amphibians. 🕯️

🇸🇮 Slovenia has even featured the olm on a coin. The species is protected, but its underground habitat faces growing threats from groundwater #pollution. 💧⚠️

A blind, ancient, pink “dragon” that can barely move and can survive years without food — nature is unbelievable. #storybee #viralstory #viral #todaystory #azatellng

🇳🇬 NEW: Nigeria launches massive $400M rare earth processing plant.

The new plant will boost rare earth processing capacity to 18,000 tons per year. #nigeria #nigerianews #azatellng

Ethiopia prisoner transfer deal aligns with Renewed Hope agenda.

~ Federal Government says #nigerianews #latestnews #azatellng #newsnigeria

Rufai Oseni asked: On security, our children and teachers are still in captivity, and a retired Major General recently di£d while being held host@ge. What would you do if you were President?

Mr. Peter Obi said:

"If I am President today, it is either the terrørists are in charge of the country or I am in charge—one person must be in charge or we declare w@r on ins£curity.

Go and ask about my record when I was Governor. I confrønted ins£curity head-on. Even notørious kidn@ppers like Evans and many others could not operate in Anambra and were forced to flee. If I am outside the country and there is a cris!s at home, I will return immediately. I am ready to d!e for Nigeria. I lived abroad for years, yet I never considered obtaining a foreign passport. I have only one passport—the Nigerian passport."

– #Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi, has declared that if elected president, he would take decisive action against ins£curity, insisting that the Nigerian state must reclaim full control from criminal groups.#latestnews #nigerianews #politics #azatellng #fypviral

"I reported my boyfriend to #EFCC and I don’t feel gu!lty about it. And if I had the chance, I would do it over and over again.

I’ve been dating this guy for four years. I met him in my first year at the #university. When I met him, he was so broke to the point that sometimes I was the one feeding him.

I come from an average family, and sometimes from the little amount of food or money my parents sent me, I would divide it into two and give some to this guy because I loved him.

There were even days he would come to me telling me there was a particular school project he wanted to do, that he needed to buy handouts. Not that I had much, but because I believed in him. I would take from the little I had and give it to him.

Now, there was a particular period when one of his friends cashed out from Yah&&. After that, I told my boyfriend, “Why don’t you try this thing?” When I first mentioned it, he wasn’t interested, but I kept pushing him.

Then he told me that even if he wanted to, he needed a laptop and didn’t have money for one. Because I still loved him, I gathered the savings I wanted to use for something else, put my feelings aside and took the money to buy him a laptop.

When I gave him the laptop, there was nothing this guy didn’t tell me. He sang praises and showed me off to all his friends as his wife. He said a whole lot of things, that he was never going to leave me, this and that.

Long story short, he went into it, and his first cash-out was $25,000. When he got that money, my boyfriend started changing. The guy I knew became somebody else.

He started cheating. He wasn’t even doing it behind my back. He did it right in my face. He was carrying different women around, and when I complained, he told me I just had to deal with it because that is who he is. I’m like, okay.

When he finished talking, I didn’t shout. I didn’t throw any t@ntrum. I just left. Then I went and reported him to EFCC because how d@re he? When he had nothing I carried him. I even bought the laptop that led to the $25,000 cash-out, and now he thinks he can treat me like I’m nothing?

About two days after I reported him, they busted his place and picked him up. They first seized his car and emptied about 95% of the money in his bank account.

Ever since then, he has gone back to square one. Yes, I did it, and I don’t feel guilty. In his next life, he will learn not to bite the finger that fed him..."

Lady recounts why she reported her ex-boyfriend to EFCC following a $25,000 cash out. #nigerianews #azatellng #viralstory #viral

BREAKING: #Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) begins telecom pricing review after eight years #nigerianews #viralnews #nigeria #azatellng

"My husband brought his childhood friend to stay with us for "just two weeks" while he looks for an apartment.

Day three, I noticed this grown man does not drop his plate in the sink. He expects me to pack it. I ign©red it.

Day five, he casually asked me why I gave him 2 piece meat in the melon soup I served him, saying in his house, men don’t eat "nked swallow." Nked swallow on top two piece of meat, I laughed because it's his aud@city for me.

It was the kind of laugh that makes your ribs tight. I looked at my husband, expecting him to correct his friend. My husband just looked down at his phone and said, "Babe, please just add small brisket for him, you know how boys stay."

Yesterday was the final straw. This friend kn*cked on our bedroom door at 10 PM. He was holding his laundry. He looked at me and said, "Please help me starch the native trousers, the dry cleaner down the street wants to ruin the material."

I didn't shout neither did i change it for him. I calmly took the clothes, walked straight to the kitchen, and dropped them inside the empty rash can.

When my husband asked me why his friend's clothes were sitting inside the rash can, I told him that since he can't correct the r¥bb¿sh his friend is doing, then he should do it himself.

Do I look like a sl@ye to you I turn to his friend, I told him that if he doesn't leave the house in the next few hours, the other side of me is ready to pounce on him.

The silence in the living room felt heavy enough to break concrete... He left the house. And I told my husband "Good riddance to Bad friends". He just went inside the room, and I don't care how he feels."

~ Woman shares how her husband’s friend overstepped boundaries and almost turned her into a sl@ve. #storynews #viralstory #fyp #fypviral #azatellng

Expanding an international e-commerce or sourcing business requires a solid grasp of cross-border logistics. When importing electronics, fashion, or hardware components from China to African tech and commercial hubs like Nigeria, Kenya, or Ghana, shipping costs can quickly drain your profit margins if you use the wrong channels.

To maintain a competitive edge, you need a lean logistics strategy. Here is a practical blueprint on how to ship goods from China to West and East Africa efficiently, minimizing costs while avoiding customs headaches.

The Ultimate Cost-Saving Secret: DDP Shipping (Groupage)
If you are a small-to-medium enterprise (SME) or an independent developer sourcing components, you should avoid shipping via standard international couriers (like DHL or FedEx) for bulk orders. You should also steer clear of handling your own port clearing.
Instead, leverage DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) via Groupage / LCL (Less than Container Load) through specialized Africa-focused freight forwarders based in hubs like Guangzhou or Yiwu.
Why DDP Groupage is a Game Changer:

Cost Consolidation: Your goods are combined into a single container with shipments from other buyers. You only pay for the exact volume (measured in Cubic Meters, or CBM) or weight (per KG) that your goods occupy.
All-Inclusive Pricing: DDP means the price you are quoted covers warehousing in China, freight, port handling, and—most importantly—customs clearance and duties at the destination port.

Zero Bureaucracy: By utilizing DDP, you bypass the complex and costly documentation usually required by local customs authorities, such as the Form M and SONCAP in Nigeria, or the Import Declaration Form (IDF) in Ghana.

Choosing the Right Shipping Mode for Your Budget

Sea Freight LCL (Best for Bulk & Heavy Cargo)

When time is not a critical factor, sea freight is exponentially cheaper than air travel.

How it works: Your supplier ships your cargo to your freight forwarder’s warehouse in Guangzhou. The forwarder packs it into a container destined for major ports like Apapa/Tin Can (Nigeria), Mombasa (Kenya), or Tema (Ghana).

Cost Benchmark: Rates generally range from $35 to $350+ per CBM depending on the specific country, destination port, and whether it's a specialized or standard item.

Transit Time: 30 to 60 days.
Best For: Large quantities of consumer electronics, cases, accessories, heavy machinery, or bulk inventory.

Specialized Air Freight Consolidation (Best for High-Value, Time-Sensitive Tech)

If you are shipping high-value electronics like smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, or microchips, letting them sit on the ocean for two months introduces unnecessary risk.

How it works: Specialized forwarders pool air cargo together to secure discounted airline rates.

Cost Benchmark: Air freight cargo rates fluctuate based on capacity, but generally average $5.00 to $8.00 per KG for major African destinations.

Transit Time: 5 to 10 business days.

Best For: Lightweight items, premium gadgets, custom PCBs, and high-margin electronic components.
Regional Breakdown: Top Practical Logistics Options
When setting up your supply chain, look for specialized logistics lines that have native clearing footprints in your specific country:

🇳🇬 Shipping to Nigeria
Top Hubs: Guangzhou and Yiwu are the primary consolidation points in China, with goods arriving at Lagos ports or NAHCO/SAHCO air cargo terminals.

Popular Specialized Lines: Companies like Efanda Logistics, Sky Cargo, Chrisvicmall, and Shoptomydoor specialize in seamless door-to-door or warehouse-to-pickup office deliveries in Lagos, Abuja, and other major states.

🇰🇪 Shipping to Kenya
Top Hubs: Cargo transits primarily via the Port of Mombasa before heading inland via the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) to Nairobi.
Popular Specialized Lines: Companies like Aquantuo, Hart Worldwide, and Rolling Cargo offer tailored air and sea freight options with integrated clearing systems specifically for the Kenyan market.

🇬🇭 Shipping to Ghana
Top Hubs: Shipments arrive via Kotoka International Airport or the Port of Tema in Accra.
Popular Specialized Lines: Logistics networks such as CFC (Cargo From China), McDan Shipping, and local DDP agents run highly consistent weekly schedules from China straight to Accra.

3 Golden Rules to Keep Sourcing Costs Low
Optimize the Packaging: Air freight charges you based on whichever is higher: actual weight or volumetric weight (Length \times Width \times Height / 6000). Instruct your Chinese supplier to strip away unnecessary outer retail boxes or use compressed packaging to avoid paying for empty air.

Consolidate Multiple Suppliers: If you are buying screens from Supplier A and batteries from Supplier B on #1688, have both ship to your forwarder's warehouse first. Bundling them into one shipment prevents paying multiple minimum-weight handling fees.
#logistics #shipping #supplychain #crossbordertrade #importation #chinaafricatrade #azatellng