NITDA, Refugees Commission to train 10,000 Migrants, IDPs

Nigeria’s National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCRMIDP) are to train 10,000 refugees, migrants and IDPs on digital skills.

The Director-General NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa disclosed this during the official flag-off of the one-week training of 200 vulnerable persons in Abuja organised by the NCFRMI in collaboration with NITDA.

“The training is starting today in the Federal Capital Territory Abuja with 200 beneficiaries and will continue next week in three other states of the federation (Nasarawa, Cross River, and Sokoto States) with 100 beneficiaries each. However, the initiative is designed to train refugees, migrants and IDP’s from across all the 36 states of the Federation including the FCT with a target of a total of 10,000 trainees by the end.”

According to Inuwa, they need proper digital skills to enable them to take advantage of the technological space.

“Empirical evidence suggests that citizens require proper and adequate digital skills to take advantage of technological advances. Information Technology is widely regarded as a key enabler of development, and digital skills is a catalyst for stimulating such development in all sectors of the economy.

“All Nigerian citizens, irrespective of status, must be digitally literate so that they can use digital devices and the Internet for their day-to-day activities. The Refugees, Migrants and IDPs, being among the less privileged members of the society, can benefit from this training for future integration back into the larger society, while ensuring that the large skills gap between Nigerian citizens is reduced

“NITDA is poised to actualize its mandate through strategic and inclusive stakeholder management, strong local and international partnerships, and efficient utilisation of resources (most especially human resources) in the interest of Nigeria.”

According to him, the partnership is vital because it enables the Agency to reach the vulnerable persons in the country.

“This partnership with the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants, and IDPs is important for us as it gives us access to a large group of underserved Nigerians who need empowerment with digital skills as well as tools. We hope that we will continue to work together to empower Nigerians for a very long time.”

Inuwa further explained that the programme seeks among other things to; “Empower the participants with requisite knowledge and skills needed to drive the digital economy transformation in Nigeria; assist the participants with better career prospects and personal development,
provide participants with the necessary IT tools that will help them practice their skills and create startup businesses; and
to create a sense of belonging for participants in the digital economy.“

The Federal Commissioner Migrants and internally displaced persons, Mrs Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, disclosed that beneficiaries would be given starter packs at the end of the training and review the programme with the hope of covering more people.

“We have agreed to train 10,000 beneficiaries in batch one and today’s class will 200 beneficiaries. And by the end of the week, we should be able to trigger 1000 beneficiaries. And after the 10,000 we will see how it goes. And will see how to amplify it to cover more people and more beneficiaries.“

Sulaiman-Ibrahim explained that; “The starter pack is an ICT device that they will use to practice what they have learnt and begin to earn. It could be an iPad, Notebook or computer depending on what they have learnt.”

The one-week training will cover three areas: Computer Appreciation; Digital Marketing; and Graphic Design. (VON)