By Sarauniya G Usman, Abuja
In felicitation of the National Productivity Order of Merit Award conferred by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria General Muhammadu Buhari GCFR on the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) has congratulated the Agency for its outstanding performance so far and deliberated on key areas of collaboration.
The Director General of NITDA Kashifu Inuwa, while receiving delegates from the society led by its National President, Professor Adesina Sodiya at the Agency’s Headquarters in Abuja said that the Agency is willing to collaborate more with the society.
Asserting the unwavering commitment of NITDA to collaborate in the implementation of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) through the Agency’s Strategic Roadmap and Action Plan (SRAP 2021-2024), the DG said “we have an ambitious target of making Nigeria a start-up nation and to train 1 million programmers between this year and next year and to achieve 95 percent digital literacy in Nigeria by the year 2030.
Inuwa said, “we believe we cannot succeed in isolation that is why we collaborate with organizations like yours”.
The DG informed that he had earlier received delegates from the FCT chapter of the society who are ready to collaborate with NITDA in the areas of participating in NITDA Policy Framework Development, providing inputs in the NITDA Legal framework, and participating in other areas that may be required from time to time.
He applauded the initiatives brought to the fore by the Society and encouraged them to key into the activities of the Agency that are similar to its initiatives, while assuring them of the Agency’s willingness to collaborate and render support where necessary.
These initiatives are Techies Hangout Initiative (THI), an event (online, physical, TV, Radio) series where Information Technology (IT) experts discuss trending and prospective IT business and youth developments for the national economy, bringing to the table, research and actionable efforts being put together in resolving the issues.
It will also feature startup mentoring and collaborative development through sponsorship sourcing; the Computer-4-Schools Initiative (C4SI), an initiative aimed at sourcing and distributing computers and other IT tools to public secondary schools in the FCT and its environs to build their skills in technology in the early stages; Directors and Head ICT (D/HICT) Conference, a two-day conference to engage Head of MDAs, Directors of ICT Departments/Units and private sector to discuss related issues around ICT development in public and private spheres.
Inuwa stated that the rulemaking process regulation of NITDA allows organisations to participate in the development and also come up with regulations, standards, guidelines, and frameworks for consideration by the Agency.
The NCS President appreciated the Agency for its support for the society and presented a “Proud Ambassador” Award to the DG for his outstanding leadership.
“We are here as a society to continue to support what you are is doing in order to promote and develop IT in Nigeria. To congratulate the DG on the National Productivity Award bestowed on the Agency. To invite the DG to the NCS building and to inspect what NITDA has been supporting. To invite DG to their conference.””We will improve on our synergy with you so that we can do more together,” he said.