There are several sectors of the Nigerian economy in dire need of local content protection and special privileges, but not many citizens believe the nation has carved a niche for itself in digital technology or information technology.
Consequently, the move by National Association of Computing Students (NACOS) , which plans to promote local content in information technology by showcasing students who bring solutions to the tech ecosystem, has been labeled strange .
The group had disclosed this plan at a media parley on the upcoming yearly innovation and software summit, themed, Technological Renaissance for Innovation and Productivity, (TRIP2021).
National President, NACOS, Olamilekan Abolade, said: “The summit will ensure local content promotion. The National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy 2020-2030, calls for indigenous and local content promotion. We are at a time where we should start patronising our local content solutions and use the opportunity to bring onboard students doing great things in the ecosystem.”
He noted that the conference and exhibition would focus on bringing students from all IT related fields to develop, empower them with global IT knowledge and specific tools for increasing and facilitating skilled capacity to achieve self-reliance.
The hybrid summit would commence today, October 1, with a hackathon competition and hybrid conference from October 12-14, 2021 at Nile University, Abuja.
According to Abolade, one major highlight of the program is the Hackathon Competition, titled ‘FSI/NACOS Innovation challenge’, which aims to bridge the gap between the IT student community and the industry.
On the competition, he said, “This is a life-changing opportunity for every member of NACOS to showcase their talents and innovation and hopefully by the end of the summit, the next Paystack, Flutterwave and Unicorn would be from us. It is also an opportunity for students to create an innovation to solve real-life problems in all sectors of the economy.”
The competition is in partnership with the Financial Services Innovators (FSI). FSI is a platform that encourages financial technology and inclusion, promoted by the founder of flutterwave.
