TechPression

Tag: job creation

  • PIN, Sunshine Cinema partner for digital inclusion, job creation

    PIN, Sunshine Cinema partner for digital inclusion, job creation

    Paradigm Initiative (PIN) and Sunshine Cinema have formed an energising alliance to address the twin problems of youth unemployment and digital exclusion on the African continent.

    In addition to protecting the rights of underprivileged young Africans online, PIN, a prominent non-profit organisation fighting for digital rights and inclusion, seeks to provide these young people with access to digital opportunities.

    The kits have a dual purpose: they convert solar energy into usable power and give young entrepreneurs a voice as media facilitators so they can make money and make a difference in their communities.

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    The impact of Paradigm Initiative and Sunshine Cinema partnership

    The partnership is timely because many African nations are still trying to recover from the effects of the digital divide and meet the pressing demand for young jobs. The two groups have joined forces to close these gaps and set a chain reaction of sound change in motion.

    In a statement regarding the partnership, PIN COO Nnenna Paul-Ugochukwu stated that it is a significant step towards using storytelling to advocate for digital rights and inclusion across the African continent. In this mutually beneficial partnership, both parties go above and beyond the call of duty to educate and empower young people.

    Sunshine Cinema’s executive director, Sydelle Willow Smith, has stated that the organisation’s focus on digital inclusion, youth empowerment, and social transformation will be front and centre as they set out on this adventure. Working together, we can shed light on how to make Africa a better, more welcoming place for all.

    Paradigm Initiative has created three short films in response to the yearly Londa report that examines the situation of digital rights and inclusion in African nations. ‘Undersight’ chronicles the life of Omar, a gifted computer programmer who develops the in-demand, game-changing data collation software.

    The organisation’s short films include Training, Focus, and Finding Diana.  ‘Undersight,’ PIN’s fourth short film, had its trailer unveiled in December 2023.

    The power of digital inclusion

    Hope for job creation and unemployment reduction in Africa’s digital economy exists. But the continent needs to invest in digital and soft skills if it wants to tap into the sector’s full potential. Acquiring digital skills is the way to achieve digital inclusion, especially since many courses offered by African universities are losing their marketability in the job market, and students do not have the skills employers are looking for.

    Infrastructure development, particularly in the realm of information and communication technology (ICT), is a problem in Africa. An increase in youth employment in Africa could be attributed to better understanding of and access to ICT, which could help alleviate the continent’s high youth unemployment rate. 

    A more educated population has a better chance of utilising ICT to lower youth unemployment. Research suggests that a combination of reduced corruption, increased economic growth, and higher levels of physical capital accumulation can help alleviate youth unemployment in Africa. 

    Given the impending economic downturn in numerous African nations, educational curricula must be updated to incorporate training centred around information and communication technologies to mitigate youth unemployment in the not-too-distant future.

  • NEDC to use ICT To build capacity for job creation

    NEDC to use ICT To build capacity for job creation

    The North East Development Commission’s (NEDC) managing director, Muhammad Alkali, has emphasized the commission’s efforts to train teenagers in the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in order to develop capacity and generate digital jobs. 

    Alkali made the announcement at a press conference in Abuja yesterday when he stated that the commission would rehabilitate youngsters and revitalize the economy of the NorthEast area, which was previously devastated by the Boko Haram insurgency. 

    “These days, our kids are interested in ICT. When you visit any of the states, the first thing you see is youth lined up here and there, which might be a ticking time bomb. As a result, we devised a strategy to involve those who were unable to return to school.’’

    ‘‘We looked at some of the young people whose schooling had been disrupted by the loss of so many years and determined that we needed to give them something they could do. “And we thought that as a commission, providing them with vocational training in something they are interested in would be appropriate.” 

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    ‘‘Today, we have 18 ICT training centers in the north east, one in each senate district, and we train 400 individuals on average per year.” Alkali said. He stated that following training, the kids would be handed kits and given the authority to put what they had learnt into practice.’’

    “We took simple models, one of which is for those who can repair handsets, and another is for graphics design, where people can sit down and do invitation cards and other things.” “The models have worked, and today we have many young people who have started their own businesses, training others and creating more jobs.” We also provide training in DSTV installation, metering, and other areas. “This is so that people who are unable to attend formal schools or vocational training centers will have something better to do, reducing the number of jobless youths,” he explained. 

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    NEDC to Strengthen the Region for food production

    The NEDC Boss noted that through a demand-driven policy, the commission also focuses on utilizing the potential of the region for stability and development in agriculture, trade, commerce and industry.

    He praised President Muhammadu Buhari for establishing the commission and stressed that the infrastructure and social intervention programme of the commission is demand-driven and places priority on rebuilding the massive agriculture belt of the region for food security.

    He said further the NEDC Master Plan is comprehensive because its mandate captured other important sectors such as health, Science Technology and innovation, tourism and sports, which will ensure that people are psychologically at peace.

    He added that the commission has come to complement the efforts of the governments of the six states of the region (Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba and Yobe) as well as work with development partners, both local and international to source for external funding for the enormous activities of the commission.