The Director General of Nigeria’s National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa CCIE, affirmed the country’s welcoming stance toward investors, citing the nation’s evident shift towards becoming a digitally inclined nation. This declaration followed the acceptance of a collaboration proposal from the Seidor Team, led by the Spanish Ambassador to Nigeria, Juan Seli, during their visit to the Agency’s headquarters.
Dr. Usman Abdullahi Gambo, representing the DG, hailed the visit as significant, emphasizing the extensive collaboration possibilities. This encompassed NITDA’s internal projects and those undertaken on behalf of various government agencies.
In outlining potential areas of collaboration—spanning Talent Management, Innovations, Local Content, Capacity Building, and more—the Director-General highlighted the establishment of the National Centre of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (NCAIR). This initiative underscores the government’s commitment to fostering an environment conducive to discovering and harnessing the inventive ideas of Nigeria’s youth, thereby promoting national growth through innovative technologies.
“With the actualisation of the centre, the youth segment of the population is constantly being challenged to channel their ingenuity towards preparing solutions that seek to address challenges across all sectors of the economy, immediate and future problems that have global impact”
“One of the initiatives of the Honourable Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, is for us to be able to build the capacity of 3 million Nigerians, that’s the 3MTT programme by the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy which is expected to generate a pipeline of technical talent in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s vision of creating 2 million digital jobs by 2025”, Inuwa stated.
The head of NITDA affirmed the Agency’s preparedness to engage in further discussions to advance the collaboration, expressing confidence in the mutual benefits that the partnership could offer to all involved parties.
Prior to this, Juan Sell, the leader of the visiting delegation and the Ambassador of Spain to Nigeria, highlighted that the proposed partnership would strengthen the already established bilateral relations between the two countries while facilitating the ongoing collaborative discussions.
“We are here to facilitate and we will be following up on your proposal to organise further technical meetings or focus and as I said, we are open to any recommendations because we are aware of the central role that you play in the ecosystem”, Sell noted.
“As for other meetings that the team would have outside the agency with other potential partners in the public sector or the private sector, we will be very grateful and look forward to receiving your recommendations and advice on the best approach to hit the ground running”, Sell added.
During the meeting, Jaume Feuntes, a representative from SEIDOR, delivered a slide presentation, detailing the company’s core ethos. SEIDOR, as explained, operates as a technology consulting firm dedicated to enhancing organizational competitiveness and transformation. Their focus revolves around leveraging technological opportunities and business insights while prioritizing the human element. The company is steadfast in its commitment to talent acquisition and fostering social development.
