Emir Sanusi urges govt to increase investment in ICT

Former governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Emir of Kano, Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II, has urged Federal Government to inject more funds into Information Communication Technology (ICT) manpower, infrastructural and software development in order to promote greater broadband penetration in the rural communities across the country.

Sanusi emphasised that if government was desirous of diversifying the economy, it should lay emphasis on the ICT sector, since it was positively transforming developed economies and their youths.

“If the present administration is desirous of attaining its change mantra, then there is the need to create the enabling environment for the development and expanding of ICT in Nigeria,” he said.

He disclosed this at the maiden matriculation ceremony for students of the Digital Bridge Institute (DBI) who recently got accreditation to award National Innovation Diploma (NID) in different fields of ICT from National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) and the Federal Ministry of Education.

With the accreditation, Sanusi said DBI blazes a trail in ICT education in the direction of Nigerian youths defeating the scourge of unemployment and concomitant vices by becoming certified ICT professionals poised to extricate the country from economic hardship.

Besides, records have shown that several Nigerian youths have revised their poverty conditions to become employers of labour through the ICT.

Kano State Governor, Umar Ganduje, commended the initiatives of the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) in supporting DBI, the training arm of the NCC, to secure accreditation, clamouring for greater penetration of ICT to the rural areas.

Ganduje stated that with the NBTE accreditation of DBI courses, an academically-propelled financial pivot has opened a vista for Nigerians to square up neck-to-neck with key ICT global players.

He maintained that since it has been proven that there exist depthless opportunities in the ICT sphere, Nigerians would soon produce several ICT-propelled billionaires.

He also said that with the efforts put in place by the institute having one of its campuses in Kano, the country will in no distant future experience unparalleled technological development, with the ancient Kano city becoming a major hub.

The Administrator of DBI, Dr. Ike Adinde, disclosed that as a professional academy member of Microsoft and Cisco, the institute is able to offer certification courses in Microsoft applications and Cisco networking. This he said will enable students pursue relevant professional ICT certifications during or after graduation.

“We have similar arrangements with Huawei Technologies, the Huawei partnership gives us access to the telecom laboratory and workshop during training programmes,” he said.

Adinde opined that there is no doubt that institute would transform Nigeria’s economy for the better and create improved level of employment.