Over 1 million Nigerian youth are set to benefit from a free introduction to Artificial Intelligence course as they await selection to the ambitious 3 Million Technical Talent Program.
This is according to Nigerian Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, who shared this information on X (Twitter), indicating that all applicants are currently being onboarded onto the platform before the selection of the initial cohort of 30,000 fellows.
All the 1m+ applicants for #3MTT are being onboarded onto the fellow platform and sign posted to an intro to #AI course while they await news on the first cohort. It is reassuring to see many of them complete the course within hours. We are onto something and I am excited…
— Dr. 'Bosun Tijani (@bosuntijani) November 8, 2023
“The 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) program, a critical part of the Renewed Hope agenda, is aimed at building Nigeria’s technical talent backbone to power our digital economy and position Nigeria as a net talent exporter,” the website says.
According to the government, the training will progress in three stages.
- The first phase intends to engage 30,000 participants
- The second stage aims for 300,000, and
- The comprehensive program involving three million individuals is scheduled for the third phase
The initial stage of the program, conducted in partnership with the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), will engage various stakeholders, encompassing fellows, training providers, partners, and placement organizations.
As per the minister, in this initial phase, participants will undergo training in skills that utilize technology to enhance various roles, excluding direct involvement in tech creation. This training focuses on leveraging technology in different capacities beyond core tech development.
The identified skills include:
- Digital marketing
- Project management software
- Cloud platforms navigation
- Data analysis and visualization
- Search engine optimization
- Customer relations management
- Accounting software
- Graphics design, and
- User experience/user interface design
The average length of the courses being offered in this phase will be three (3) months, and will encompass both remote and in-person elements.
In October 2023, the Nigerian government unveiled grants of 5 million naira ($6,444) for 45 AI-focused startups and researchers. This move is part of the newly introduced Nigeria Artificial Intelligence Research Scheme, aiming to promote the extensive use of AI to propel economic progress.
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