THE much-anticipated programme to train and empower local Nigerian young women on information and communication technology has commenced in Lagos.
The programme, which is a brainchild of the Ministry of Communication Technology, in partnership with Chinese technology firm, Huawei, will culminate in the training of 1 000 girls.
The scheme between the government and public sector is part of effort to empower local women and girls to embrace ICT.
Speaking at the commencement of the training, ICT Minister, Omobola Johnson, urged the girls to make the most of the training to realise their potentials so as to empower themselves and contribute to the economic development of the country.
The minister reiterated that women should not be left behind in the contemporary information revolution so they do not miss out during the industrial revolution.
“This is a sector that is witnessing 20 percent growth. We want women to get the requisite knowledge and today, we are happy that Huawei is part of the story. We really appreciate them for this and for their operations in Nigeria,” she said.
Johnson further encouraged the participants to leverage on the programme to sharpen up on their skills for opportunities in the offing.
Also speaking at the event to mark the beginning of the training, Hover Gao, Vice President, Huawei West Africa, said partnering with the ICT Ministry for the training programme was part of the company’s corporate social responsibility to the Nigerian society.
He expressed solidarity with female students who were willing to explore their careers in ICT industry across the country.
“This programme is part of Huawei’s commitment of localization, technology transfer to Nigeria and employment promotion,” he said.
Hover said that Huawei and the ministry would develop the exercise into a long-term project.
“We will certainly explore opportunities to make this training a long-term project. This is a major project for us because it also enables us to create an ICT talents pool and some of the trainees will become Huawei employees,” he said.
Huawei is the first ICT solutions provider to establish an ICT training centre in Abuja back in 2004. The facility has provided training opportunities to ICT practitioners. – CAJ News
