At the sixth edition of Social Media Week Lagos, taking place in Lagos, Nigeria from 26 February to 2 March 2018, the Lagos State Government revealed that it plans to have trained one million residents in coding by 2030. This will essentially allow them to compete favourable for employment on a global level, according to a report by Nigerian Communications Week.
Mr Obafela Bank-Olemoh, Special Adviser to the governor on Education, gave the assurance during his presentation at the conference under the theme: ‘Closer’. He spoke on the topic “Teaching One Million Lagosians to Code”.
Bank-Olemoh said that global competitiveness required critical thinking and problem-solving skills which could be acquired through coding. Bank-Olemoh added that skills to be acquired during the training would also make beneficiaries to be entrepreneurs.
“The Lagos population is 65 percent young; so, you have to give them skills that will make them successful. How do we ensure that the workforce in Lagos succeeds? Technology has to play a role. We want Lagos to continue to prosper and the average workforce able to deliver, ” he said.
Bank-Olemoh revealed that the government wants to make sure that Nigerians can compete on an international scale and that the skills acquired through coding stay with one for the rest of his life and allow them to do this. This will benefit both government and the individual according to the special adviser.
He, however, pointed out that a public/private partnership will be needed to make this successful. This was echoed by the four partners who will aid the government in the project.
Mr Pedro Omontuemehn, Country Partner, PWC, said that the organisation would support the government on projects that would educate the populace. According to Omontuemehn, PWC sees code Lagos not just as teaching people, but also as empowering and making them critical thinkers to be employable anywhere in the world.
Edited by Dean Workman
Follow Dean Workman on Twitter
Follow ITNewsAfrica.com on Twitter
