The information superhighway and traditional communication: where we stand

Advances in communication technology, bring with them new characteristics which often expand the horizons for information exchange among people. The evolving information superhighway is promising to break the physical barriers to the free flow of information. This has serious implications for developing countries. As many parts of the world adopt the new technologies of the information superhighway African countries should be cautious and not too readily abandon their traditional communication methods, which are not necessarily anti-thetical to the Internet. As exciting as the new technologies are, they do not always portend positive developments

The People's Republic of China and FAPRA: Catalysts for theory building in Africa's public relations

Africa is experiencing an unusually high economic interest from the People's Republic of China, whose government has invested billions of dollars in schools, clinics, roads, railways, factories, and oil wells on the continent; has canceled more than $1.36 billion in debts owed to it by 33 African nations; and has pledged to provide Africa with$5 billion in preferential loans and credits through 2009. Its top party officials traverse the continent, seeking to develop business relationships and to reinforce others. While such efforts help place Africa on the cusp of significant economic growth, they also boost the programs and activities of the Nairobi, Kenya-based Federation of African Public Relations Associations (FAPRA), and an umbrella body of all national public relations associations in Africa and a consultant to African governments and to the African Union. FAPRA has launched a 5-year action plan to improve the stature and social relevance of the public relations practice, largely through enhancing its efforts to professionalize it. Both China and FAPRA are, in essence, collaborating to create environments conducive to enhancing the practice in Africa, and to laying a foundation for an expansive view of public relations research—one that questions grand narratives, defines concepts, challenges orthodoxies, measures variables, and determines program outcomes or effects. And researchers and practitioners work together in creative ways to improve the practice. This article argues that questions and concepts are, in themselves, opportunities for a much-needed theory building in Africa's public relations. It, therefore, outlines 4 propositions as a template for such theory building, based on a 4-concept research agenda: culture, good governance and rule of law, economic freedom, and FAPRA's integrated programs and activities outlined in its 5-year action plan. The return of China … to global economic prominence in the twenty-first century is likely to reshape global politics and society. The overwhelming dominance of the West, which lasted half a millennium, is probably passé. We should view these developments not only with awe, but with anticipation. (Sachs, 2005Sachs, J. D. 2005. The end of poverty: Economic possibilities of our time, New York: Penguin. [Google Scholar], p. 187) We want to work in partnership with the international community, but we believe that it must be a partnership based on mutual respect and mutual accountability. (Former Namibian Prime Minister Geingob, 2006Geingob, H. 2006. “Democracy in Africa”. In Democracy rising: Assessing the global challenges, Edited by: Muñoz, H.55–60. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner. [Google Scholar], p. 56

Information Communication Technology (ICT) and Bank Performance Before and During COVID-19: Empirical Evidence of Nigeria

This study assessed Information Communication Technology (ICT) and bank performance before and during COVID-19: Empirical evidence of Nigeria. The urgent need for ICT in banking subsector was unavoidable in Nigeria to meet daily liquidity needs and ease business transactions.  Panel data comprised pooled Least Square (PLS), Fixed Effects Model (FEM) and Random Effects Model (RAM), which were adopted for a period of ten (10) years (2011 – 2020). The choice of adopting the appropriate model could be traced to Hauman test outcome. The secondary source of data was from financial statements of thirteen (13) purposively sampled banks. Findings showed a mixed marginal influence of ICT on bank performance in Nigeria and were statistically significant. The study concluded that banks’ financial products / services were fully supported and driven more by information communication-technology before and during recent temporary lockdown in Nigeria. The paper recommended that regulators and policymakers should review and implement information-technology vis-à-vis Fin-Tech policies as incomparable mechanism to improve bank performance in case of any uncertainties in the nearest future. Keywords: Information Communication Technology, Bank Performance, COVID-19, Return on assets, Nigeria. JEL Classification: C1, C23, C83, G2, O17 DOI: 10.7176/IKM/11-4-13 Publication date:October 31st 202

‘Communicating development’–a cultural shift: emerging discourses on entrepreneurial development and poverty reduction by Nigeria’s banking and microfinance sectors

This article departs from the dominant orthodoxies in discourses on communication and development by introducing, as a major cultural shift, theoryguided strategic communication themes in two complementary sectors of Nigeria’s financial industry: banking and microfinance. In both sectors, the personal influence model and relationship marketing provide the overarching theoretical framework for investigating the immanence (or lack thereof) of three key variables in the relationships of those sectors with their primary stakeholders, for the primary purpose of entrepreneurial development and poverty reduction. Those variables – trust, commitment and satisfaction – are subsumed under ‘relationship quality’, an embodiment of culture as an integral part of the impact of microfinance on Nigeria’s economy. This article adopts a development strategy that focuses exclusively on relationships established and sustained in exchanges between nonpublic organisations (i.e., the banking and microfinance industries) and key stakeholders for the primary purpose of entrepreneurial development fueled by a cultural economy that ensures the production and wide distribution of finished products, not necessarily commodities. Thematic discourses that use theories to guide institutional policies and actions are proffered in an attempt to create stronger institutional bonds between banking and microfinance institutions and their disparate stakeholders

Managing a crisis of confidence in Nigeria's banking and financial industry

An ongoing crisis of confidence in the banking and financial industry in Nigeria's emerging economy calls for using integrated marketing communications (IMC) in optimizing five potentially normative actions as a beachhead in procuring corporate benefits from three variables that predict significantly customers’ favorable impressions of business: satisfaction, trust, relationship commitment. The actions: (a) personalize the stakeholder experience, (b) integrate ethics into the workplace and into corporate communications, (c) participate in training sessions in applied ethics, (d) use brandstanding expansively and integratively, and (e) conduct rigorous outcomes assessment and disseminate its results promptly to stakeholders