We are championing paradigm shift with emphasis on digital skills — Pantami

…Says over 500,000 Nigerians received training on digital skills

Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Pantami on Thursday reiterated federal government’s commitment to support and promote the development of digital skills among its citizens through partnerships and collaborations with relevant global institutions.

He also stated that over 500,000 Nigerians have been training so far on digital skills across the country.

This was contained in a statement signed by the Minister’s Spokesperson, Uwa Suleiman.

Pantami was speaking as the Special Guest of Honour during a virtual workshop organized by the World Bank on Digital Skills Roadmap. The Minister remarked that “we are championing a paradigm shift with emphasis on skills, particularly digital skills over merely having degrees without skills. A Digital Economy cannot be developed in silos and that is why the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy has entered into mutually beneficial partnerships with global technology giants and institutions in order to empower our citizens, with the requisite skills to become employers, rather than employees in the long run.”

He also disclosed that over 500,000 Nigerians have so far benefitted from digital skills empowerment programmes at various levels, initiated and driven by the Ministry and the parastatals under its purview.

The collaboration between the two institutions will provide technical assistance to the Nigerian Government to advance its quest for digital skills as captured in the second pillar of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) document. It will be recalled that the World Bank has been in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, in the development of Nigeria’s digital economy since President Muhammadu Buhari launched the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) document in November of 2019.