Tech giant, Microsoft, has thrown its weight behind Nigeria’s Tech4Dev, a non-profit social enterprise, to employ 100,000 young Africans through Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) over the next seven years.
Speaking at the launch of the initiative in Lagos, the Country Director of Microsoft Nigeria and Ghana, Mrs. Ola Williams, said that millions of people are being trained in Nigeria and other African countries every year, yet there are no jobs for them after the training.
According to her, through Taltrix, a business process outsourcing social enterprise, Tech4Dev is seeking to bridge the gap by creating employment opportunities for the people being trained.
Specifically, Williams said Nigeria with its large population of enterprising youth is in the best position to take advantage of the opportunities offered by BPO.
Potentials in Nigeria
While noting that Nigeria and other African countries must move beyond training to start creating job opportunities for the people being trained, the Microsoft Country Director said:
- “Nigerians are innovative. We are hungry to learn, we are an entrepreneur, we are hard-working, and we want to make a difference. However, is important that opportunities are created to tap into this potential that people have. And for us, our mission is to empower every person and organization on the planet to achieve more. Empowerment is not just about giving them tools that they need to work it’s also about creating opportunities for individuals.
- “It’s also important to know that we have young Nigeria that speak good English. We have talented people, we are also in a good time zone. So, this has a lining for us in the right places only what is left for us to do is to be very deliberate and strategic around how we all tap into this opportunity.”
The Taltrix initiative
Driven by the need to empower graduates of Tech4Dev and various other digital and creative skills training initiatives with decent jobs, Taltrix was birthed to create a lifeline in the face of an impending unemployment hike.
With infrastructure set up across 14 cities in Nigeria with a total capacity to employ 1,000 people, Taltrix aspires to become a pan-African force, aiming for 100 cities across the continent in the coming years.
- “Over the next seven years, we want to directly employ 100,000 people, starting from Nigeria and across Africa. We believe that the outsourcing sector has the probability to grow to become a $200 billion sector on the continent,” said Taltrix CEO Joel Ogunsola.
Joel’s optimism is fuelled by several factors including Nigeria’s young, large, and vibrant population, coupled with its burgeoning technology and creative ecosystem which offers an ideal incubation environment for the BPO industry to thrive.
Additionally, the government’s recent commitment to outsourcing as a means of job creation aligns perfectly with Taltrix’s vision.
- “There are so many variables that combine to favour outsourcing into Africa currently, we have multinational companies with local presence and experience that are looking for cheaper and effective options to deliver on their day-to-day tasks and deliverables. Also, the new administration has made a bold commitment to enable the employment of a million people through outsourcing which keys into our vision at Taltrix,” Ogunshola added.
In the same vein, Oladiwura Oladepo, Executive Director of Tech4Dev, shared that the launch of Taltrix would help drive economic growth on the continent.
- “Taltrix is not just about filing job roles, we are investing in human capital development to reduce unemployment and underemployment, which will, in turn, drive economic growth, and shape a brighter future for Africa. We are also building a bridge to connect underserved unrepresented and underrepresented demographics of young people with globally in-demand opportunities for skilled professionals,” she said.