The Federal Government has said it is making arrangements to establish a National Centre for Artificial Intelligence (AI).
It assured all stakeholders of the safety of the nation’s cyberspace.
Communications and Digital Economy Minister, Dr. Isa Ibrahim Pantami, stated this at the weekend.
The minister said the AI Centre would put Nigerian youths some steps ahead in the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector, stressing that their carriers in the sector would be the better for it.
Pantami also touched on the safety of the Nigerian cyberspace against the rumoured hacks into the websites of some institutions during the #EndSARS protests.
The minister said the Federal Government was ahead of the activities of hackers and was in control of the situation.
Pantami spoke at an event to mark the maiden Digital Nigeria Day at the Digital Economic Complex, Mbora, Abuja.
The minister said he had briefed President Muhammadu Buhari on the establishment of the AI Centre.
The event, which was attended by the CEOs of various agencies under the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, had the theme: Digital Economy: A New Frontier for Economic Prosperity.
Pantami hailed President Buhari for laying solid foundation for a digital Nigeria with the launch of the Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (2020-2030) document.
He said the National Policy on Digital Innovation would also come on stream in December.
According to him, the policy will aid industrialisation and entrepreneurship in the country.
Pantami, who presented a catalogue of achievements of his ministry in the past one year – ranging from reduction in the Right of Way (RoW) charges, increase in the contributions of the ICT/telecom sector to Gross Domestic Products (GDP) of the country – noted that broadband penetration level had risen to 44 per cent from 30 per cent within a year.
“All things being equal, if we keep the pace we are going with, we shall reach 90 per cent in the next five years,” he said.
The minister said the Digital Nigeria Virtual Academy, established during COVID-19 lockdown, had trained 66,000 Nigerians youths, adding that patronage of local ICT products had risen to 500 per cent within a year.
Pantami said concerned agencies, in collaboration with the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and the ministry, were fortifying the nation’s cyberspace.
He stressed that “the details of what are being done cannot be made public”.
Pantami said: “We recently provided online learning platforms to enable Nigerians receive training in diverse digital skills. Such platforms include the DigitalNigeria.gov.ng and NITDA Academy for Research and Training.
“Over 114,000 Nigerians have enrolled on these platforms, including about 67,000 enrolees since we officially launched the Digital Nigeria portal on September 28, 2020.
“We have also developed an IT clearance portal to support inoperability, eliminate duplication and ensure value for money in the implementation of ICT projects in the country. The IT Projects Clearance programme has saved over N5 billion for the Federal Government.”
