March 28, 20250
The Federal Government has announced plans to train over 1 million Enugu State residents on digital skills before 2027.
Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijan, disclosed this on Thursday in Enugu when he led officials of the ministry on courtesy visit to the state governor, Peter Mbah.
He said the training would be done through the National Information Technology Development Agency’s (NITDA) Digital Literacy for All (DL4ALL) Initiative.
Tijani, said the training was part of Federal Government’s efforts to drive digital literacy and ensure that citizens are comfortable using digital tools.
“We are committed to train 1,155,000 residents of Enugu State before 2027 in essential digital skills. Our focus will be on artisans, market women; civil servants; students, and other underserved groups.”
While extolling Mbah’s investment on digital economy, Tijani said that Enugu State was fast becoming a benchmark for how state government could take bold steps to build inclusive and tech-driven societies.
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“Mbah’s broader achievements in infrastructure, education, and economic reform are commendable.
“These initiatives clearly demonstrate the governor’s commitment to equipping young people with the tools and spaces they need to thrive in the digital economy.
“They are reflection of his bold vision to transform Enugu State into a $30 billion economy in eight years.
“This work among many others, align closely with Renewed Hope Agenda of our President, His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, as well as the Strategic Blueprint of our ministry,” he said.
The minister stated that the Federal Government was investing heavily in digital infrastructure, because without it the promise of digital economy would not be fully realised.
“So we are also building frameworks to harness emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), to drive productivity, innovation and inclusive growth.
“We are up-scaling digital skills and literacy, so more Nigerians, especially our youth, can compete and thrive in the global digital workforce,” he said.
Tijani said that the ministry had so far received no fewer than 14,000 applications from Enugu State residents from the ministry’s 3MTT Programme and it had already trained 1,762 persons and planned enter the scaled-up phase, by training of over 150,000 others in Enugu State alone.
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The minister also announced collaboration with Enugu State Government through the 774 Connectivity Project to provide internet connectivity to all 17 Local Government secretariats in Enugu Stat through Galaxy Backbone and NIGCOMSAT.
“Galaxy Backbone will partner with the state to establish a Digital Innovation Complex in Enugu.
“There will also be laying of a further 15km of fibre optic cable to selected institutions to provide a Computer Laboratory in one Secondary School and one Tertiary Institution in the state,” he said.
Tijani reiterated the ministry’s commitment to establishing AI Regional Centre for the South-East at the African Regional Centre, University of Nigeria, Nsukka.
“Considering the importance of cyber-security to our digital economy, we will train 100 people in Enugu State with the in-demand skills for cyber-security and infrastructure defence, as part of NITDA’s Cyber-security Training Programme.
“We will be establishing a joint committee, comprising representatives from the ministry and the Enugu State Government, to drive the implementation of these projects,” he said.
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In his remarks, governor Mbah emphasized his administration’s commitment to harnessing the full potential of the digital economy towards diversifying revenue streams and growing Enugu State into a $30 billion economy.
He said the government’s embrace of innovation was evident in its Command and Control Centre, where it had deployed technology to secure streets and neighbourhoods through a round-the-clock surveillance system.
“We are in the process of integrating the Command and Control Centre with the National Communications Commission’s Emergency Communication Centre (ECC) to operationalise the Rapid Response Squad (RRS).
“This allows real-time emergency coordination via the national 112 emergency number, strengthening public safety and inter-agency communication,” the governor said.
He noted that the state was in the final stages of signing a 25-year facility lease with NCC for the Digital Bridge Institute and the Digital Industrial Park.
