Nigeria Pushes New Digital-Economy Focus as NITDA Calls for Skills to Become Jobs, Businesses and Higher Incomes

By Simpson Global Media News Desk

Nigeria is pushing for a shift in how Africa measures the success of digital-skills programmes, with the Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, calling for greater attention to what happens after people complete technology training.

Speaking on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York, Abdullahi said Africa had expanded digital training but had not built equally strong systems for moving trained people into employment, enterprise and higher productivity.

His message was direct: the number of people who receive digital training should not be the only measure of progress.

The more important question, he argued, is whether those skills are subsequently converted into jobs, businesses, income, productivity and practical economic opportunities.

Abdullahi made the argument during a high-level panel titled “Scaling Africa’s Digital Workforce”, organised under the Digital Skills and Talent Session of “Nigeria at Scale: Building Digital Systems for Shared Prosperity.” The session brought together technology and policy figures including Gabon’s Minister of ICT, Mark Doumba, and product leader and investor Oji Udezue, and was moderated by Joannes Paulus Yimbesalu of Nanaade and the Africa Skills Alliance.

The intervention places Nigeria’s digital transformation programme in the middle of a wider African debate over artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure, employment and the future of work.

It also comes as Nigeria continues to expand programmes aimed at developing technology talent while simultaneously investing in connectivity and digital infrastructure.

The government’s challenge is increasingly moving from getting people online and teaching digital skills to creating an environment in which those skills can generate measurable economic activity.

From training numbers to economic outcomes

Abdullahi said Africa had made substantial progress in digital-skills training but had not yet created equally effective systems for helping trained young people make the transition into productive economic activity.

He described the problem in terms of a gap between learning and earning.

“We have industrialised training; we have not yet industrialised the transition,” he said during the UNGA81 discussion.

The statement reflects a broader concern in technology policy.

A person may complete a coding programme, cybersecurity course, data-science programme or artificial-intelligence training without immediately gaining access to a job, a paying client, a business opportunity or the infrastructure needed to apply the newly acquired skills.

Training therefore solves only one part of the problem.

The other parts include proving that the person actually possesses the advertised skills, finding an employer or customer, obtaining the device and connectivity required to work, accessing reliable electricity and navigating a labour market that may not have enough formal positions for all new entrants.

Abdullahi identified three major barriers in this transition.

The first is what he described as the “trust gate.”

The second is the “platform and connectivity gate.”

The third is the “demand gate.”

Together, they describe a problem that goes beyond education.

The trust problem

The first barrier concerns how employers determine whether a person actually has the capabilities claimed on a certificate or résumé.

Technology employers increasingly recruit for practical abilities rather than simply academic qualifications.

A candidate may say that he or she knows software development, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, data analysis or cybersecurity.

The employer, however, still needs a reliable way of determining whether the candidate can perform the required work.

Abdullahi said this verification problem creates what he called the trust gate.

A system of credible credentials and verifiable skills could help reduce that gap.

Nigeria has already begun developing mechanisms intended to connect digital talent with potential employers.

Abdullahi pointed to the Talent Registry as one such mechanism.

The idea is to create a clearer connection between people who possess verified digital capabilities and organisations looking for those capabilities.

That changes the role of digital training.

Instead of ending when a participant receives a certificate, the process can continue into verification, matching and employment.

For employers, the objective is easier identification of qualified candidates.

For workers, the objective is greater visibility in a competitive labour market.

For government, the potential benefit is a better way of measuring whether public investment in skills development is producing employment and economic activity.

Connectivity remains a basic requirement

The second barrier identified by the NITDA director-general is infrastructure.

Digital skills are difficult to convert into economic opportunities if people lack affordable internet access, suitable devices, reliable electricity or access to digital platforms.

This issue becomes particularly significant outside Nigeria’s major urban centres.

A young person living in a smaller city or rural community may complete online training but still face difficulty participating in the digital economy if connectivity is unreliable or expensive.

The same applies to entrepreneurs.

A trader may know how to advertise products through social media, accept electronic payments and communicate with customers online, but the economic benefit is limited if network coverage is poor or the cost of data makes regular use difficult.

NITDA is therefore linking skills development with infrastructure projects as part of the government’s wider digital transformation agenda.

One of the initiatives highlighted by Abdullahi is Project BRIDGE — Building Resilient Digital Infrastructure for Growth.

The project is designed to deploy at least 90,000 kilometres of open-access fibre across Nigeria.

Government descriptions of the programme say it is intended to expand the national fibre backbone, ultimately reaching all 774 local government areas and connecting institutions including schools and healthcare facilities.

The objective is not simply to increase the number of fibre kilometres.

The larger question is what improved connectivity allows people and institutions to do.

For students, it can mean access to online education and digital resources.

For businesses, it can mean access to customers and suppliers beyond their immediate communities.

For technology workers, it can mean the ability to work remotely for Nigerian or international companies.

For public institutions, connectivity can support digital services and data exchange.

For health facilities, it can support digital records, communications and access to remote expertise.

The third barrier: demand

The third challenge is the availability of economic opportunities.

Training more people does not automatically create more jobs.

If the number of trained workers grows faster than the number of available positions, competition for employment can intensify.

Abdullahi described this as the demand gate.

It is particularly important for Africa because the continent has a large and growing young population.

Technology advocates frequently point to that population as an opportunity for digital economic growth.

But the demographic opportunity depends partly on whether young people can connect their education and skills to productive activity.

This is why the NITDA position focuses on the transition from training to economic participation rather than training alone.

A successful digital workforce policy may therefore require several different interventions at the same time.

Those interventions can include skills development, entrepreneurship support, infrastructure investment, access to finance, credible certification, job matching and international market access.

Nigeria’s 3MTT programme

One of the principal programmes Nigeria has used to expand technical talent is the 3 Million Technical Talent, or 3MTT, programme.

Abdullahi said more than 143,000 fellows had been trained across three cohorts.

The programme is designed to build technical capabilities among Nigerians in areas relevant to the digital economy.

Those areas include artificial intelligence and machine learning, data science, software development, cloud computing and cybersecurity.

The scale of training is significant because it demonstrates that the government is attempting to address the supply side of Nigeria’s digital workforce.

But the latest NITDA message shifts attention to what happens after the training.

The next question becomes whether participants can obtain employment, secure freelance work, create companies, develop products or apply their technical knowledge in existing businesses.

That is a more difficult measurement challenge.

Counting trainees is relatively straightforward.

Measuring the number who subsequently earn income from their skills requires tracking people after training and identifying the economic value created.

It also requires distinguishing between temporary participation and sustained economic activity.

Digital inclusion is not only about software engineers

Another important part of Abdullahi’s argument is that Nigeria’s digital workforce should not be defined only by people working in conventional technology companies.

He specifically identified traders, artisans, farmers, mechanics, transport operators, food vendors and other entrepreneurs as groups that can benefit from digital technology.

This expands the definition of digital inclusion.

A trader does not necessarily need to become a software developer.

Instead, technology can help that trader manage stock, communicate with customers, advertise products, receive digital payments, maintain financial records and identify new suppliers.

A farmer may use digital tools to obtain information, reach buyers, monitor production or access financial services.

A mechanic can use online platforms to communicate with customers, order parts or promote services.

A food vendor can use social media and digital payment systems to attract customers and maintain records.

In each case, the economic objective is different from securing a technology-sector job.

The technology is a tool for increasing productivity or reducing costs.

Abdullahi expressed this distinction by asking whether technology can help people earn more, reduce costs, reach more customers and operate better businesses.

That approach places digital transformation within the wider economy rather than treating the technology industry as an isolated sector.

Smartphones as economic tools

Nigeria’s widespread use of mobile phones provides an existing platform for this type of digital inclusion.

For many small businesses, the smartphone is already the principal computing device.

It can function as a communications system, marketing channel, payment interface, camera, accounting tool and access point to online services.

The challenge is ensuring that users have the knowledge to use those functions productively and safely.

Basic digital literacy can therefore have economic consequences even when the user never writes a line of code.

NITDA’s Strategic Roadmap and Action Plan, known as SRAP 2.0, includes digital literacy among its strategic priorities.

NITDA says its broader mandate includes fostering digital literacy and talent, strengthening the policy and legal framework, promoting inclusive access to digital infrastructure and services, enhancing cybersecurity and digital trust, and supporting innovation and entrepreneurship.

The distinction between basic literacy and advanced technical skills is important.

The former can help people participate safely in the digital economy.

The latter can prepare people for specialised roles.

Both are needed if digital transformation is to reach beyond a relatively small technology workforce.

Artificial intelligence changes the skills conversation

Artificial intelligence adds another layer to the debate.

AI tools can increasingly assist with writing, programming, translation, design, data analysis, research, customer service and business administration.

That means digital competence is becoming relevant to occupations that were not traditionally classified as technology jobs.

For Nigeria, the potential implication is that AI could become a productivity tool across sectors rather than simply a specialised technology.

A small business owner might use an AI assistant to draft marketing materials.

A student might use an AI system for research support.

A farmer could potentially use digital tools to analyse information.

A professional may use AI to automate repetitive tasks.

But the use of AI also creates requirements for digital literacy, data protection, cybersecurity and human oversight.

People need to understand the limitations of AI-generated information and the risks associated with exposing confidential data to digital systems.

NITDA has increasingly linked AI development with broader questions of governance, trust and inclusion.

In another UNGA81 engagement earlier this week, Abdullahi called for an inclusive approach to artificial intelligence that gives people the ability to understand, shape and benefit from the technology.

That message complements his latest argument on digital skills.

The objective is not simply to make more people familiar with AI.

It is to enable people and businesses to use technology productively while developing the safeguards necessary to manage its risks.

Nigeria’s infrastructure ambition

The skills discussion cannot be separated from Nigeria’s infrastructure plans.

Project BRIDGE is intended to expand the country’s fibre infrastructure significantly.

According to the figures presented by NITDA, the project is designed to deploy at least 90,000 kilometres of open-access fibre and help extend the national backbone to approximately 125,000 kilometres.

The stated objective is nationwide reach, including all 774 local government areas.

The geographic dimension matters because digital economic opportunities are often concentrated in major cities.

Lagos, Abuja and other major urban centres have larger concentrations of technology companies, investors, technology communities and high-speed connectivity.

If infrastructure expansion reaches smaller cities and rural areas, companies and workers outside those major centres could potentially participate more directly in the digital economy.

But fibre deployment alone does not guarantee adoption.

People also need affordable devices, electricity, digital skills and services that provide a reason to use the connection.

That is why the NITDA framework treats infrastructure and human capacity as connected parts of digital transformation.

The economics of the “learning-to-earning” gap

The transition from learning to earning is also a question of investment.

Training programmes require funding, but so do job-placement systems, certification platforms, innovation hubs, connectivity and entrepreneurship programmes.

Abdullahi therefore urged policymakers and development partners to invest in what he described as the corridor between learning and earning.

“Fund the corridor, not another classroom,” he said, arguing for investment in verifiable credentials and first-paid-work placement.

The argument does not mean training is unnecessary.

Rather, it suggests that training is only one component of a larger system.

A graduate who cannot demonstrate competence to an employer remains disconnected from the labour market.

A skilled freelancer without reliable internet remains constrained.

A technically capable entrepreneur without customers or financing may struggle to turn a product into a viable business.

A company unable to find suitable technical workers may still experience a skills shortage even when many people have completed training programmes.

The “corridor” therefore represents the infrastructure and institutions that connect these different points.

The Talent Registry and employer connections

The Talent Registry is intended to address part of the employer-worker connection.

The underlying problem is familiar across labour markets.

Employers need information about the skills available to them.

Workers need information about opportunities.

When those two groups cannot find each other efficiently, skills can remain underutilised.

A verified talent registry could reduce some of the information gap by providing employers with a structured way of identifying candidates.

For Nigeria, the potential value extends beyond individual recruitment.

A functioning registry could help policymakers understand which technical skills are available in different parts of the country and where shortages exist.

That information could influence future training programmes.

If employers repeatedly demand a particular skill that training providers are not producing, policymakers could adjust curricula.

If certain skills are oversupplied, resources could potentially be redirected.

The success of such a system, however, depends on participation, accurate information, employer usage and regular updating of records.

The international dimension

Abdullahi’s comments came at the United Nations General Assembly, where Nigeria has been using the week to discuss its digital transformation agenda with international partners.

NITDA has also been seeking international cooperation around digital infrastructure, artificial intelligence, technology investment and skills.

At a separate UNGA81 engagement convened by the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue, Abdullahi joined government officials, diplomats, technology executives, investors and digital-policy experts to discuss trusted technology, connectivity, AI, digital skills and strategic partnerships.

The discussions demonstrate that Nigeria’s technology agenda is increasingly being presented as an international economic issue.

Digital infrastructure requires large amounts of capital.

Cloud computing requires data-centre capacity.

AI development requires computing resources and specialised talent.

Startups seeking international customers need access to global markets.

Technology companies require regulatory clarity.

International partnerships can therefore influence how quickly domestic capabilities develop.

At the same time, Nigeria faces the question of how much of the value created by digital transformation can be retained within the country.

Building local capability

NITDA has described local infrastructure, skills and innovation as central to Nigeria’s digital ambitions.

Its current strategic priorities include technology research, digital infrastructure, cybersecurity, digital trust, entrepreneurship and partnerships.

The agency has also been promoting innovation programmes.

Its current Innovation Challenge includes a development phase running through September, followed by testing and review and a final evaluation period leading to an innovation fair scheduled for October 5, 2026.

The programme is designed to encourage solutions to challenges identified within the agency and provide development, mentoring and implementation support.

Such programmes form another part of the “learning-to-earning” chain.

A technical skill can be applied to a real problem.

A prototype can become a product.

A product can become a company.

A company can create employment.

The process is not automatic, but it illustrates why technology policy increasingly combines training with innovation and entrepreneurship.

Digital skills and small businesses

The emphasis on small businesses is especially relevant to Nigeria because a large share of economic activity takes place outside large corporations.

Technology adoption among small firms can affect productivity even when those firms never employ a dedicated technology specialist.

Digital payment systems can reduce reliance on cash.

Online marketing can expand customer reach.

Cloud-based software can reduce the need for expensive physical infrastructure.

Digital bookkeeping can improve financial records.

Online marketplaces can connect producers and buyers.

AI tools can automate some routine tasks.

But adoption also carries costs.

Businesses must pay for devices, connectivity, software and, in some cases, professional support.

They also face cybersecurity threats.

A small business that moves its operations online can become a target for fraud, account takeover or data theft.

Digital transformation therefore requires digital security alongside digital skills.

Cybersecurity becomes more important

As Nigeria expands digital participation, the potential impact of cybercrime also increases.

NITDA lists cybersecurity and digital trust among its strategic priorities.

The issue extends from government institutions to banks, fintech companies, startups, schools and individual users.

A digital workforce programme that produces technically skilled people without teaching cybersecurity practices could create additional vulnerabilities.

Workers need to understand password security, phishing, data protection and safe use of digital systems.

Businesses need stronger controls for customer information and financial transactions.

Government institutions need to protect public databases and digital services.

AI introduces additional security considerations because automated systems can process large volumes of sensitive information.

This means that digital literacy cannot be treated as a one-time educational activity.

As technology changes, users need continuing education.

The importance of reliable power

Connectivity is also linked to electricity.

A fibre connection can provide high-speed internet, but businesses still need power to operate routers, computers, phones, servers and other equipment.

Reliable electricity therefore remains part of the broader technology ecosystem.

The same issue applies to technology training.

A student may be able to access online courses but struggle to participate consistently if electricity interruptions prevent regular use of a laptop or smartphone.

Technology infrastructure should therefore be viewed as a system rather than a single product.

Fibre, mobile networks, devices, electricity, data centres, cloud services and digital platforms all interact.

Weakness in one component can reduce the benefit of investment in another.

What success could look like

NITDA’s latest position effectively proposes a different set of questions for evaluating digital programmes.

Instead of asking only how many people were trained, policymakers could ask:

How many obtained employment?

How many launched businesses?

How many increased their incomes?

How many secured international clients?

How many businesses reduced operating costs through technology?

How many entrepreneurs gained new customers?

How many people outside major cities obtained meaningful access to digital economic opportunities?

How many employers were able to recruit verified technical talent?

Those questions are more complicated to answer than training totals.

They require data collected over time.

But they can also provide a clearer picture of whether digital investment is producing economic outcomes.

The challenge of measuring jobs

There is an important distinction between participation in a training programme and sustained employment.

A person may complete a course and receive a certificate without finding work.

Another person may secure temporary freelance work but not establish a stable income.

A third may use the skill within an existing business without formally becoming part of the technology labour market.

A fourth may create a startup that initially employs only its founder.

These different outcomes need different measurements.

That is why the NITDA argument for broader indicators is significant.

A digital economy cannot be understood solely through the number of certificates issued.

It requires information about actual economic activity.

Nigeria’s digital transformation agenda

NITDA says its Digital Economy Development Department is responsible for facilitating Nigeria’s transition toward a mature and competitive digital economy.

Its stated functions include supporting digital business models and markets, enabling digital services and goods, developing guidelines and frameworks, promoting digital literacy, maintaining a national digital skills register and creating opportunities for emerging technologies to enter mainstream economic activity.

That mandate is consistent with the message delivered at UNGA81.

Digital transformation is increasingly being presented as an economy-wide process.

The technology sector remains important, but the objective is to apply technology across agriculture, finance, education, healthcare, commerce, transportation, manufacturing and public administration.

The economic effect could therefore extend well beyond companies that identify themselves as technology firms.

What happens next

For Nigeria, the next stage will involve translating the policy discussion into measurable programmes.

The government will need to continue expanding digital infrastructure while improving the ability of people to use that infrastructure productively.

The 3MTT programme will need pathways connecting trained participants to employment and enterprise.

The Talent Registry will need employers and skilled workers to use it effectively.

Project BRIDGE will need to translate planned fibre expansion into actual connectivity.

Digital-literacy programmes will need to reach people outside major technology centres.

AI initiatives will need to address both opportunity and responsible use.

And technology partnerships will need to produce practical economic benefits rather than remaining limited to conferences and declarations.

These are long-term tasks.

They cannot be completed simply by announcing additional training cohorts.

The wider African question

Although Abdullahi was speaking from a Nigerian perspective, the problem he described extends across Africa.

Many countries are investing in digital skills because technology is increasingly central to the global economy.

At the same time, young people entering labour markets need opportunities to use those skills.

The challenge is particularly complex because the continent's economies differ substantially in infrastructure, education, connectivity and industrial structure.

There is no single model that can be applied everywhere.

But the underlying issue is common: skills create greater economic value when people have a realistic pathway to apply them.

Nigeria’s large population and technology ecosystem make its experience particularly relevant to the wider continental conversation.

From certificates to capability

The central idea emerging from the UNGA81 technology discussions is therefore not that training has become irrelevant.

It is that training should be connected to the next stage.

A certificate can demonstrate participation.

A verified skill can demonstrate capability.

An employment placement can demonstrate labour-market access.

A functioning business can demonstrate enterprise.

Higher productivity can demonstrate economic value.

The transition between those stages is where much of the policy challenge now lies.

Nigeria has already built programmes around training, infrastructure and digital transformation.

The latest NITDA intervention calls for these components to be connected more deliberately.

A changing definition of digital success

Nigeria’s technology agenda is entering a period in which the definition of success is becoming broader.

The country has moved from asking how many people have access to digital services to asking what those people can accomplish with that access.

It is moving from counting training participants toward considering employment and productivity.

It is expanding the discussion from software developers to traders, farmers, artisans and other entrepreneurs.

It is also linking AI to questions of inclusion, infrastructure, skills and trust.

The result is a technology agenda that increasingly overlaps with economic policy.

The coming years will show how effectively these programmes translate into measurable changes for workers and businesses.

For now, the NITDA message from New York is clear: digital transformation cannot end when training ends.

The infrastructure must be available.

The skills must be credible.

The opportunities must be accessible.

The technology must be usable and secure.

And the people who acquire digital capabilities must have a practical route to apply them.

For Nigeria, that means the next phase of its digital-economy strategy is not simply about producing more trained people.

It is about connecting those people to the wider economy.

The government’s existing programmes — including 3MTT, the Talent Registry, digital-literacy initiatives and Project BRIDGE — provide different pieces of that system.

Their long-term impact will depend on how effectively those pieces work together.

As artificial intelligence, cloud computing, digital payments and online commerce continue to change the economy, the value of Nigeria’s digital workforce will increasingly be measured not only by what people have learned, but by what they are able to build, produce, sell, improve and earn.

That is the transition Nigeria is now being asked to accelerate — from digital training to economic opportunity, and from learning to earning.