The Network of Advocates for Digital Reporting (NADIR) has commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the nomination of renowned tech expert Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo as minister.
The lawmaker, who represents the Akoko North East/Akoko North-West Federal Constituency of Ondo State, is among the first batch of 28 ministerial nominees whose names were read out by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
A statement by NADIR Executive Director Dahiru Lawal said President Tinubu’s choice of Tunji-Ojo shows his desire to put round pegs in round holes as part of measures to advance the country’s digital economy.
“Born in 1982, Tunji-Ojo studied Electronics and Communication Engineering at the University of North London (now London Metropolitan University) and graduated in 2005. He obtained a master’s degree in Digital Communication and Networking from the same institution in 2006,” it reads.
“He holds certifications in eighteen professional qualifications in ICT including the prestigious title of being one of the first set of certified ethical hackers from Royal Britannia IT Training Academy in the United Kingdom before he turned 24 years.
“NADIR is therefore not only proud of Tunji-Ojo’s achievements in the global digital space, we are also grateful to Mr President for finding one of Nigeria’s best youngsters worthy of appointment into his cabinet.”
The organisation further denounced the call by the Computer Guild of Nigeria (CGN) that the next Minister of Communication and Digital Economy must be a Christian, saying religion should never be a criterion for appointing individuals into offices.
“Even more ridiculous is the claim by the CGN that Christians have a huge number of competent hands that can take the Communications Ministry to greater heights. Who told them that Muslims, traditional worshippers, freethinkers and atheists do not also have some of the best brains?
“We are surprised that groups of political hustlers who campaigned vigorously against the election of President Tinubu are now seeking to blackmail the President to do their bidding,” the statement added.
NADIR, however, condemned the call for the removal of the Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa, despite his strides in promoting technological innovation and digitalisation.
“In 2021, NITDA unveiled the Strategic Roadmap and Action Plan (SRAP 2021-2024) anchored on seven pillars to support the achievement of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) objectives. The 64 strategic initiatives of SRAP have significantly contributed to ICT’s impact on the economy,” it said.
The statement noted that the engagement of stakeholders and the implementation of the SRAP initiatives have made Nigeria the leading destination for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to startups in Africa, attracting about $3.8billion which constitutes about 35% of such FDI since 2019.
“Many jobs have been created through NITDA’s interventions. The Tech4COVID Committee led to the retention of over 100,000 ICT jobs and created an additional 30,000 in the post-COVID-19 era. Similarly, the NDPR compliance drive created 7,680 jobs and a market valued at ₦1.2 billion.
“The agency’s National Adopted Village for Smart Agriculture (NAVSA) has engaged 900 farmers and created over 5,000 direct and indirect jobs. The initiative targets the engagement of 10 million farmers across the agricultural value chain by 2030.
“NITDA developed the National Outsourcing Strategy to deliver 1 million jobs by 2025, contributing to the employment of 16,540 Nigerians. The Business Process Outsourcing market is estimated at $286.8 million, as reported by Africa Global Business Services (GBS).
“The agency, under Inuwa, established the National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (NCAIR) which has trained 1,250 youths on cutting-edge technologies. The Office for Nigerian Digital Innovation (ONDI) was created as a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to incubate ideas and develop an enabling environment for startups.
“Through the ONDI, NITDA supported 143 startups via facilitation of ₦50 million grant each to 6, and $15,000 each to 3; seed funding support to 12, sponsorship of 40 to local events, 51 to GITEX global event, LEAP Tech Conference and Intra-African Trade Fair, and training of 300 secondary school students on digital innovation and entrepreneurship.
“Acceleration of 30 startups through the Bridge to MassChallenge (B2MC), and 3 others through the NINJA Programme in partnership with JICA; Inclusion of 16 in the iHatch Incubation programme, and 20 in the North-East Start-up Training (NEST); training of 74 innovators through the Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship Support (TIES) Scheme.
Acknowledging Inuwa’s efforts to position Nigeria as a global IT Talent Factory, NADIR commended NITDA’s “1 million software developer initiative”, in line with the FG’s social investment. Over 215,500 Nigerians have completed or are undergoing capacity-building programmes, while 823,814 have been so far trained on digital literacy.
