The National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru (NIPSS), has sought National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA)’s intervention in developing and transforming NIPSS into a digital Institute.
Speaking during a courtesy visit to NITDA’s Corporate Headquarters, Abuja on Thursday, the Director General of NIPSS, Professor Habu S. Galadima, said they are at the Agency to congratulate the Director General/CEO, Mr Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi CCIE on his appointment, and also to seek partnership with the Agency in capacity building and training of staff in leadership skills.
The DG said NIPSS was established in 1979 to serve as a high level centre for reflection, research and dialogue in academic of excellence, seasoned policy initiators and executors and other citizens of mature experience and wisdom, drawn from all walks of life. According to him, NIPSS assembles academics of excellence, democrats, technocrats and other high level personalities for training, as well as private sectors.
Professor Galadima noted that NIPSS has been training Permanent Secretaries and Directors at Federal and State levels, therefore it needs strong collaboration and support from NITDA in various aspects.
“NIPSS may not have the manpower in technological trend, but we do have the mandate to organise training and conduct research in almost every area; security, policy-making, management and technology. We also serve as consultants for policy implementation to government agencies.” He added.
He also said that, “despite being Nigeria’s foremost think-tanks in policy and implementation, the Institute’s Library has not been digitalised. Therefore it affects teaching and learning in the Institution. That is why we approached NITDA for possible collaboration to provide such support”.
Earlier in his remark, the Director General of NITDA, Mr. Kashifu Abdullahi Inuwa, CCIE, said the Agency was created to regulate and develop information technology in Nigeria, and also make an enabling environment for IT business to thrive, therefore, there is need for this collaboration.
Read Also:
He said, “In 2016 when my predecessor was heading the Agency, we come up with strategic roadmap to transform the ICT sector in Nigeria. We have seven key pillars that are in line with Economic Growth and Recovery Plan (EGRP) with three objectives: to restore economic growth; to build global competitiveness; and accelerate inclusive growth by investing in our own people.”
The DG further stated that, “Government realised that the greatest resource we have is not what lies underneath us, but what lies in us, that is why the government is focusing more on capacity building and skills.”
“NITDA’s strategic pillars are IT regulation and creating opportunities for jobs. We provide enabling environment for the businesses to thrive. We always look at the guidelines or policies to put in place for the business people to create the job.”
Mr Inuwa noted that the Nigerian Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) has already started yielding positive results, as it creates jobs for Nigerians through license of over 26 Agencies to carry out the Compliance Policy for all organisations in Nigeria. We have about 1.2 million organisations in the country which need to comply with that regulation, in order to digitise our record and government data services.
He averred that based on NIPSS’s mandate, there is need to partner with the Institute in leadership and capacity building.
“National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies focus more on leadership training and building people’s capacity, while part of our mandate is to diversify the economy from natural resource based to knowledge based, so there is need to partner with you; if you have the technical skills, you also need to have the leadership skills,” the DG noted.
He also assured that NITDA will explore the partnership with the NIPSS in data processing through conducting research, giving scope to NIPSS to collect data and information across the country especially in the area of IT education.
“We are looking for a way to ease using technology in Nigeria and this can only be achieved through producing competent graduates. Because as it is now, most of our university graduates do not plug-in to the industry, they have to go for extra trainings to understand the system. We need to come up with a policy to address this.
“Our target is to create an ecosystem between all the stakeholders in IT industry. Inject what type of skills we need from our youths and how to make the use of those skills; and to give Ventures and Risk capitals a space to look at the system for them to invest in the industry,” he concluded.
