Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, has unveiled an ambitious initiative aimed at transforming the state into a hub for digital innovation through strategic partnerships with major tech organizations such as Data Science Nigeria and google.org.
At a stakeholders’ engagement on the draft National Digital Economy and e-Governance Bill held in Kaduna on Thursday, Sani, represented by Mrs. Patience Fakai, the Commissioner for Business, Innovation, and Technology, announced the launch of the “Arewa Ladies4Tech” program. This initiative will provide ICT training to over 5,000 women across the state’s 23 local government areas.
“Our administration has partnered with Data Science Nigeria and google.org under the Arewa Ladies4Tech programme to equip over 5,000 women with essential ICT skills,” Governor Sani said. “This initiative has already shown significant success, with many participants securing jobs both locally and internationally, including remote work opportunities.”
In addition to the Arewa Ladies4Tech program, the governor introduced another groundbreaking project: the AI4All initiative. Designed to make Artificial Intelligence more accessible, AI4All offers short lessons in Hausa, aimed at empowering Hausa speakers throughout Nigeria and beyond.
“AI4All provides easily accessible lessons on AI in Hausa, downloadable from the NITDA website and shareable via mobile phones. This is the first program of its kind in Africa,” Sani noted.
Kaduna State has also teamed up with Greysoft Technologies to launch the AgricTech Hackathon, a competition designed to encourage young innovators to create tech solutions specifically for the agricultural sector. This initiative further strengthens the state’s commitment to fostering technological advancement across various industries.