MUMBAI: Continuing to build the Indian sports landscape, LALIGA, the world’s largest football ecosystem, successfully concluded its first-ever ‘EXTRA TIME’ webinar series in India. Seeking to engage in conversations related to sports technology and culture, the first of the dual-part webinar series, explored the evolving landscape of sports technology, and its impact in transforming fan engagement in India. Directing the conversation, leaders with experience leading properties such as LALIGA, National Basketball Association (NBA), Major League Baseball (MLB), Dream Sports, and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) graced the occasion as panel members.

Delving into topics on innovation, audiovisual content, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and gamification amongst others, the panelists spoke about how tech can help build individual sports awareness and amplify preexisting audience potentials through personalization of content.

Speaking at a LALIGA Extra Time Webinar, Roger Brosel, Head of Content & Programming, LALIGA said, “At LALIGA, we have always looked at technology as a means to an end. Our final objective is to have a product with which fans can engage. Technology by itself cannot be the future, it must add something to the story we are already telling at LALIGA. We look at technology to build engagement and immersive experiences alongside the match day experience for fans who do not have the opportunity to travel. Through creativity & tech innovation we are allowing the viewer at home to get closer to the action.”

Vikrant Mudaliar, Chief Marketing Officer, of Dream Sports, added “Gen-AI is an interesting avenue at the moment. From a Dream11 point of view, we are looking to innovate to seamlessly and frictionlessly provide fantasy sports fans content through reduced touchpoints. This added amount of convenience to stream, chat, gamify, and be provided with tips based on your interest is what we are aiming to explore.”

Rajah Chaudhry, Country Head, NBA India, added, “For the NBA, we look at the technology space under two pillars; personalization and awareness building. We use tech, and in particular AI to build experiences for our fans. Through tech, we can personalize content, allowing fans to engage with the game based on their preferences, while providing access to the NBA like never before through immersive technology – which also allows us to build our existing fanbase in the country.”

Ryo Takahashi, Senior Manager India, MLB, added “MLB utilizes tech to understand our audience at multiple levels. Through building fan profiles, we are better able to understand our end consumer in terms of platform usage, the behavior of the consumer, and the changing mindset of the fans. By adapting our offerings to gain an advantage in fan experience, tech allows us to build and scale our offering to new audiences and markets.”

Aneesh Surender Madani, Former – Head of Global Digital Partnerships and Innovation, at IOC & Former Twitter Head of Sports Partnerships, at Asia Pacific, added “There’s a window beyond ‘LIVE’ content which is an area of growth for sports organizations. Fans are keen to learn more about the human stories in addition to the game. This demand is where tech can have a significant role to play. The big opportunity is in enabling athletes to share compelling content across multiple platforms.”

Exploring the theme of building a sporting culture in India, the second part of the LALIGA Extra Time Webinar series will take place in mid-May alongside leaders from the sports industry in India and Spain.

The post LALIGA Holds ‘EXTRA TIME’ Webinar Series In India To Discuss The Future Of Sports appeared first on NRI News.

UNITED STATES: Pakistan’s upcoming elections marks a pivotal juncture for the country and broader South Asia. Against the backdrop of enduring political challenges and a relentless economic crisis, the discourse on governance, policies, and the imperative for reforms spark several pressing questions: Will these elections reshape the delicate balance between civilian governance and military influence? Can new political leadership navigate Pakistan towards stability and progress amid the tumultuous currents of contemporary geopolitics? Which familiar political dynamics will persist?

Join the Asia Society Policy Institute on February 12 as we explore the aftermath of Pakistan’s elections, seeking answers to these questions. The panelists will analyze crucial election results, considering their potential impact on domestic and foreign policies. We’ll assess how these outcomes could reshape international relations, influence regional stability, and redefine Pakistan’s global role.

The virtual discussion, moderated by Farwa Aamer, Director of South Asia Initiatives, Asia Society Policy Institute, will feature: Arifa Noor, Journalist and Host of NewsWise show on the Dawn News television channel, and Zahid Hussain, Award-Winning Journalist, Author of Frontline Pakistan: The Struggle with Militant Islam, and former correspondent for The Times of London and The Wall Street Journal.

SPEAKERS

Zahid Hussain is an award-winning journalist and author. He is a former correspondent for The Times of London and The Wall Street Journal. He also has covered Pakistan and Afghanistan for several other international publications, including Newsweek, Associated Press, and The Economist. He is a regular columnist for Dawn. Hussain was a Pakistani scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars. Washington. D.C (2011-2012). He has also been a visiting fellow at Wolfson College, University of Cambridge (1999), and at the Stimson Center. Washington. D.C (1994). Hussain is the author of Frontline Pakistan: The Struggle with militant Islam (declared book of the year in 2007 by the Wall Street Journal) and The Scorpion’s Tail: The Relentless Rise of Islamic militants in Pakistan. His latest book is titled No Win The Paradox of US-Pakistan Relations in Afghanistan’s Shadow.

Arifa Noor is a leading opinion writer and broadcaster with Pakistan’s Dawn Media Group. Based in Islamabad, she hosts NewsWise on the Dawn News television channel. An hour-long program that runs from Monday to Thursday, News Wise covers politics, human rights, and security issues. She also writes a weekly opinion column for Dawn newspaper. She has over 25 years of experience in print and television. She is the only woman to have headed a bureau of Dawn Newspaper and serve as resident editor. Earlier she also served as editor of the Herald for which she won several awards including the CNN Journalist of the Year and Kurt Schork awards. In 2004, she was the youngest recipient of the Eisenhower Fellowship. She is a graduate of the London School of Economics and holds a Master’s Degree from King’s College London.

Farwa Aamer (moderator) is the Director of South Asia Initiatives at the Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI) in New York where she oversees the institute’s policy work and projects in South Asia. Before ASPI, Farwa worked at the Stimson Center where she led research on the security, political, and socio-economic dimensions of transboundary river governance in the Himalayan region. Through her work, Farwa has organized and convened high-level Track II dialogues and discussions designed to facilitate greater and intra-regional cooperation on issues and opportunities concerning water, energy, climate change, and sustainable development in South Asia, MENA, and Central Asia. Farwa also worked on highlighting the disproportionate impacts of climate change and water insecurity on women. From 2017 to 2021, Farwa was with the EastWest Institute (EWI) and served as the Director of the South Asia program. At EWI, Farwa worked on promoting non-traditional channels of diplomacy and establishing multi-stakeholder platforms for shared economic, financial, and geopolitical interests by bringing together policy shapers, media influencers, thought leaders, and business experts from within South Asia and across the globe.

The post Asia Society Policy Institute Webinar: Deciphering Pakistan’s Future: A Post-Election Analysis appeared first on NRI News.

During the launch of the campaign, Jeremy Awori, Chief Executive Officer of Ecobank Group, emphasized the importance of digital education for Africa’s development. He stated that digital education is critical for Africa to leapfrog and accelerate its development. Ecobank has embarked on a journey of digitalization, consistent with its deep belief in the transformative power of digital technology for a more inclusive future in Africa.

Jeremy Awori, Chief Executive Officer of Ecobank Group, said: “Ecobank Day reflects the giving spirit of all 14,000 Ecobankers across the Group. For 10 years, it has allowed us to manifest our commitment to positively impacting the communities we serve. This year, we focus on digital education, which is critical for Africa to leapfrog and accelerate its development. For several years, Ecobank has embarked on a journey of digitalization – consistent with our deep belief in the transformative power of digital technology for a more inclusive future in Africa. It is only natural that on this Ecobank Day, we have supported the launch of a series of training programs and provided the necessary infrastructure to offer basic digital education to youth across Africa.”

To kick off the campaign, Ecobank partnered with the Global Partnership for Education and UN Women to organize a webinar entitled “Igniting Africa’s Digital Future through the Power of Coding.” The webinar featured experts and youth discussing the importance of ensuring that all African children and youth have access to digital skills, mostly coding and programming, that are essential for jobs of the future and a fulfilled life. You can watch the webinar here (https://apo-opa.info/3Q1PjMs).

Ecobank’s affiliates across 33 sub-Saharan African countries will hold various activities to raise awareness and knowledge of the importance of digital skills for Africa’s children and youth. These activities include creating or equipping IT Labs, refurbishing schools, providing youth digital skills training workshops, partnering with schools to improve digital facilities, mentoring initiatives, and more.

Ecobank Day has supported a wide range of causes over the years, including education for young people in Africa, malaria prevention and control, every African child deserves a better future, ICT education in schools and improving maternal health, safe water management, orphanages, cancer, diabetes, mental health, and financial literacy and financial inclusion.

For more information about Ecobank Day and the “Transforming Africa Through Education” campaign, please visit https://apo-opa.info/497yZT1.

The post Ecobank Launches Three-Year Campaign to Transform Africa Through Digital Education appeared first on NRI News.