The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) said it has partnered strategically with the National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) to train 30 million Nigerians on digital skills.
The Agency announced this on Friday after a meeting between the Director-General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa, and NYSC Director-General, Brig Gen Y.D. Ahmed, in Abuja.
According to the NITDA DG, the partnership aligns with the Agency’s Strategic Roadmap and Action Plan (SRAP 2.0), aimed at fostering digital literacy and cultivating talent, through the Digital Literacy for All (DL4ALL) Initiative.
The Agency added that the partnership was facilitated by the Minister of State for Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, who expressed strong support for the collaboration’s success.
Increasing participation in the digital economy
NITDA in a statement announcing the partnership said the training is geared towards empowering more Nigerians to participate in the digital economy and enhance their employability.
“The partnership aims to train 30 million Nigerians, particularly youth, in digital skills, enabling them to access essential digital services, participate in the digital economy, compete for jobs, and enhance their employability.
“This initiative aligns with President Bila Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which seeks to reform the economy and deliver sustained inclusive growth by leveraging digital literacy and cultivating a pool of tech talent,” NITDA stated.
The date of commencement of the training and mode of participation by Nigerians are not disclosed in the statement.
However, NITDA stated that the NYSC DG pledged to establish a Community Development Service (CDS) to support this initiative.
FG’s digital literacy agenda
The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, recently declared that all training programs of the administration are geared towards ensuring that 90% of Nigerians are digitally literate by 2030.
According to him, part of the initiatives is the ongoing 3 Million Technical Skills (3MTT) through which the government plans to train 3 million Nigerians in digital skills over the next three years.
Tijani clarified that being digitally literate does not mean that 90% of Nigerians will become tech talents but they would be given the foundation to be able to choose to participate in the digital economy.
In that regard, NITDA said its Strategic Roadmap and Action Plan (SRAP 2.0.) also has digital literacy as number one out of the eight pillars.
NITDA DG noted that the target of fostering digital literacy and cultivating talent will be achieved through the implementation of the National Digital Literacy Framework.
