Nigeria Launches Digital Literacy Framework To Boost Skills, Technology Export

The Nigerian Government has launched a National Digital Literacy Framework (NDLF) to make Nigeria a leading talent hub and global economy.

The project which is led by the National Information Technology Development Agency, (NITDA) is aimed at setting a digital literacy and skills agenda for Nigeria by providing a clear and consistent definition of digital literacy for the purpose of building curricula, modules and programs.

The Permanent Secretary Federal Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy, Dr Williams Alo stated this during the official launch signing ceremony in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.

Dr Alo said Nigeria is creating digital literates by taking advantage of emerging technologies and becoming a leading global digital economy.

“The advent of technologies and the internet during the era of the third and fourth industrial revolutions has presented a unique opportunity for Africa to be at the forefront of global revolution by leveraging its human resources and innovative use of digital technologies to disrupt traditional industries and address some of the biggest global challenges.

“We can overtake countries like India in the nearest future. Our youthful population is an advantage, especially embracing digitisation, which is the main thing today” he said.

Dr Alo said the government of Nigeria is championing a paradigm shift in the country by leveraging technology and giving preference and priority to proven skills over paper qualifications, particularly digital skills, in line with the digital literacy and skills of the National Digital Economy.

“Nigeria is taking advantage far above many other countries, that if we utilise the abundant human resources of our youths that constitute about 75% of the population of our country, then we have places to go. Nigeria must create digital literates, disrupt traditional industries and become a leading global digital economy “ he said.

He added that “achieving digital transformation will take collective commitment by all stakeholders to massively scale up resources dedicated to building the foundation that will drive the digital economy”.

 

The Director General National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Mr Kashifu Abdullahi on his part said the framework is going to set the stage for Nigeria to become an exporting nation of global Competitive Human capital.

“It would also focus on developing digital literacy and skills that would compete favourably in the global value chain. These talents would also be connected to each other as well as potential employers to create a network for growth and development” he said.

He noted that the Indian population in the US is 1% but the Indian population in the Silicon Valley workforce is 6%

“So, you can see how India achieved this through a digital literacy framework. So this framework isn’t just a document, It is going to be a paradigm shift in everything we do in terms of technology.

“it is going to set the stage for us to review our entire curriculum from the kindergarten to the universities,” he said.

“We have a more competitive advantage over India in terms of our young population, the English-speaking people, our geographic location, and many more” Inuwa said.

With this, the NITDA Boss said Nigeria needs to be strategically repositioned in order to capture, add value and become the global talent factory.

He said one of the objectives of the framework is universal access, skills development and inclusive participation

“That’s why under the objectives, we have universal access which means every Nigerian should have access to digital literacy. And also, it will help us to develop skills to build our digital transformation. That means everybody should be carried along.

“To achieve this we are developing the Digital Gender inclusion as well to ensure that the Nigerian women are not left behind and also we have the workforce readiness” Inuwa added.

The Director General, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Olawale Fasanya, who spoke on the impact of digital literacy on the nation’s economy said,

“The impact is limitless, you know taking advantage of digital literacy will enhance the output of MSME’s. A lot of youth will be able to be in business without necessarily owning an office or a workshop. It means you can run a business from your bedroom. So this is something that in the next one or two years would definitely increase the GDP”

Framing digital policies

Ag. Director, Digital Literacy and Capacity Building, NITDA, Dr Amina Sambo-Magaji while presenting the overview of the framework, said it was developed following the Digcomp of the EU and the UNESCO Digital Literacy Global Framework.

She explained that the Digital Competence Framework, DigCom was an EU-wide framework for framing digital skills policy, developing and measuring digital competence.

Sambo-Magaji mentioned that the National Digital Literacy Framework, NDLF has six competence areas and 23 competencies which included safety online, password protection, among others.

She added that the framework would guide policymakers for the benefit of the citizens.

 

 

 

 

Emmanuel Ukoh