State governments in Nigeria have been urged
to increase the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to
fast-track their socio-economic development agenda.
The call was made in a statement issued by the
Nigeria Information Technology Reporters' Association (NITRA) in Lagos this
week.
The press statement, signed by NITRA
President, Emma Okonji, and made available to ITRealms, said deliberate use of ICT
tools to automate processes in government and support every aspect of the
states' economy has become imperative if the country's Vision to be one of the
20 most industrialised economies in 2020 is to be attained.
"Today, Nigeria is the largest economy in
Africa, and we have the auspicious Vision 20:2020, which aims at making Nigeria
one of the leading economies in the next six years. To achieve this, it's our
believe that both the federal and state governments will have to infuse ICT
into their processes as well as using ICT to automate every sector of the
states' economy," the statement said.
NITRA, however, commended state governments,
especially Osun State, for deliberate deployment of ICT to support e-learning
and automate government processes, resulting in growth in the state's revenue
generation.
According to him, "Osun State is one of
the state governments in Nigeria that has taken deliberate decision to deploy
ICT to drive economic growth and deepen e-learning in the state. It is
noteworthy that the strategic use of ICT tools and services by current
administration of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola in Osun State to advance the course of
development in the state, using ICT has become a sterling example of how other
states should leverage ICT to pursue their development agenda."
NITRA noted that the innovative use of ICT to
boost e-learning with the provision of Opon Imo (Tablet of Knowledge) pro bono
to students in the state to make learning much easier and more fun has
galvanised increased interest in education among students.
The government of the State of Osun, last
year, launched the free computer initiative, where it is providing 150,000
e-learning tablets for Senior Secondary Schools.
"This initiative, recognised as the first
of its kind anywhere in the world, covers
17 Core Subjects with over five Extra Curricula Subjects for Senior
Secondary 1, 2 & 3 levels."
The Tablet contains over 56 textbooks, 900
minutes of virtual classoom lessons and 1000 Practice Questions for WAEC and
JAMB. In addition to aiding preparation for School Leaving Examinations, the
introduction of the tool is today aiding adoption of ICT skills among students in the state.
"We hope that in years to come, the state
government will begin to reap the harvest of this laudable ICT initiative,
where digital education is being advanced in the state," NITRA said.
NITRA similarly noted that Osun State has
leveraged ICT for capacity building among youths in the state, promoted ICT
investment in the state with the siting of RLG Communication, a phone
manufacturing firm in the state, as well as deploying ICT to enhance delivery
of government services to the the
citizens of the state in a way that is transparent and process-driven.
+Remmy Nweke +Emma Okonji +Nitra +osunstate osun
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