By Olakunle Oke
Nigeria’s tech visionary and Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, has emphasized the transformative power of renewable energy and digital innovation in driving inclusive growth and empowering rural communities across the country.
Speaking in Washington D.C. during the 2025 Annual Meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Inuwa said renewable energy should be viewed not as an end goal, but as a catalyst for real transformation.
“When there is power, connectivity follows, and that connectivity triggers true transformation,” he stated.
Inuwa explained that access to clean energy and digital tools can revolutionize rural livelihoods from AI-powered agriculture that boosts productivity, to online platforms for women entrepreneurs, and remote digital jobs that enable young Nigerians to earn globally while living locally.
Linking his presentation to President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the NITDA boss said Nigeria’s digital economy strategy, under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, rests on five key pillars knowledge, policy, infrastructure, innovation and entrepreneurship, and trade.
He noted that NITDA has expanded this vision through its eight strategic pillars, which are guiding the nation’s digital transformation agenda.
Inuwa also revealed that the agency, in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Education, is integrating digital literacy into Nigeria’s education curriculum from kindergarten to tertiary level.
According to him, the initiative aims to equip the next generation of Nigerians with essential digital skills and achieve 70 percent national digital literacy by 2027.
He reaffirmed that with sustained collaboration between government, the private sector, and global partners, Nigeria can harness the synergy between renewable energy and digital innovation to achieve inclusive development and bridge the digital divide in rural communities.