News
Over Four Million Available for Nigerians with Special Tech Skills, Says Experts
Over Four Million Available for Nigerians with Special Tech Skills, Says Experts
By: Michael Mike
There is urgent need to improve digital skills across the country in order to build the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), experts in technology have advised.
The experts said by leveraging digital connectivity, providing high-quality tech education, and fostering a supportive community, this new initiative will undoubtedly open up job market opportunities not only for the local population but also on a global scale.
Speaking at the inauguration of a tech incubation hub in the nation’s capital Abuja, experts said over four million jobs remain available for citizens with special tech skills.
The Country Director of GoMyCode, Babatunde Olaifa, said: “We are thrilled with the Nigerian Government’s visionary mission to address youth unemployment through skills development. At GoMyCode, we firmly believe that by investing in tech education, this plays a critical role in shaping the future workforce.”
Olaifa added that: “We are inaugurating our space in Abuja. It is about how to create jobs and values that would contribute to GDP growth, not just in Nigeria but across Africa continent.”
He said: “We have network of schools, four in Lagos, one in Abuja. We train people in digital skills, people that want to transit into the tech space, our mission as a company is to accelerate Africa transition to digital economy.”
He disclosed that GoMyCode has an impressive track record of empowering 20,000 students across various disciplines, equipping them with the necessary skills to excel in the digital landscape in nine countries namely; Tunisia, Nigeria, Morocco, Senegal, Algeria, Kenya, Jordan, Côte d’Ivoire and Egypt, noting that the company is on a revolutionary mission to democratise education by empowering individuals with the skills needed to thrive in the current digital age, insisting that with a formidable extensive network of hackerspaces; GoMyCode currently has five physical spaces in Nigeria; Yaba, Ikeja, Festac, Lekki; in Lagos with Abuja being the latest of its accomplishments.
He said the move into Abuja aims to further address the pressing issue of unemployment, both locally and globally, by leveraging digital connectivity and empowering individuals, particularly women and children, stating that with its innovative approach, GoMyCode’s initiative holds great promise in transforming the job market and enhancing economic development in Nigeria.
He said this is coming at the best of tomes when Nigerian Government is embarking on a visionary plan to provide ample employment opportunities for over one million Nigerian youth, disclosing that GoMyCode seeks to play a significant role by training young individuals to become skilled professionals and invaluable assets to society through digital connectivity.
The keynote speaker at the inauguration, Mr. Inyene Ibanga, the Lead, Corporate and Communications officer of the Office for National Digital Innovation (ONDI) who represented the Director General of National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) Mr. Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, said: “By training and empowering the Nigerian youth, we will be enabling them to turn their potential into reality, while further bolstering economic growth, and fostering a culture of innovation.”
While emphasising the importance of Hackerspaces to improve the economy of Nigeria, he lauded the team’s approach for opening physical spaces where individuals from diverse backgrounds can have access to information and facilitators, he said: “This brings to the mind several crucial factors as to why the Abuja launch was important.
He noted that: “Firstly, technology over the years has become an integral part of every industry on and offline, and those equipped with digital skills are more likely to find employment opportunities than those without. By offering a dedicated space for learning and upskilling, GoMyCode will be bridging the existing skill gap by providing individuals with the expertise needed to thrive in the digital era. Secondly, the hackerspace serves as a community for aspiring tech professionals, entrepreneurs, and freelancers, offering them an environment conducive to collaboration, innovation, and networking. This sense of community propels knowledge sharing, industry partnerships, and the creation of new job opportunities.”
GoMyCode, is a renowned technology education platform, founded in the Netherlands by Yahya Bouhlel a Tunisian citizen and his brother Amine Bouhlel, GoMyCode strives to enhance not just the digital skills of an adult but encourage and groom the innate knowledge of children who are technically motivated to create and grow as valuable members of society.
Over Four Million Available for Nigerians with Special Tech Skills, Says Experts
NDLEA intercepts cocaine in Saudi-bound religious books
By: Michael Mike
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted a shipment of cocaine concealed in 20 sets of religious books going to Saudi Arabia.
The spokesman of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi in a statement on Sunday said the cocaine consignment consisting of 20 parcels with a total weight of 500 grammes and buried in the pages of the religious books was uncovered at a courier company in Lagos last Tuesday when NDLEA officers of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) were searching through export cargos going to Saudi Arabia at the logistics firm.
Babafemi said at another courier company same day, NDLEA officers intercepted five parcels of Loud, a strong strain of cannabis weighing 2.8 kilogrammes hidden in a carton coming from the United States of America.
In Kano, a 22-year-old alleged supplier of illicit substances to bandits, Muhammad Mohammed, has been arrested by NDLEA operatives on patrol along Bichi – Kano road while heading to Katsina with 277 ampoules of pentazocine injection tied to his thigh and private part with Sellotape.
He was intercepted on Sunday 13th April, while another suspect, Mohammed Abdulrahman Abdulaziz, 43, was nabbed same day at Research Rimin Kebe area of Nasarawa, Kano with 68 blocks of skunk, a strain of cannabis, weighing 30 kilogrammes.
He said not less than 557.2 kilogrammes of skunk, 5.6 kilogrammes of methamphetamine and 29.8 grammes of heroin were recovered from a house along Major General Isaiah Alllison Street, Opolo, Yenagoa, Bayelsa state where four suspects were arrested when NDLEA operatives raided the premises last Wednesday
Babafemi said the four suspects arrested during the raid include: Sarimiye Suwa, 46; Roland Prosper, 34; Sarimiye Tare, 45; and Fidelis Ugbesla, 46, while a total of 1,100 kilogrammes of skunk were recovered from a delivery van with the driver, Ismail Abdullahi arrested in Surulere area of Lagos last Thursday.
In Kaduna, NDLEA operatives last Friday raided the hideout of a suspect, Ike Ani, 30, in Zaria, where no fewer than 31,950 pills of tramadol 225mg and diazepam were recovered, and in Kebbi, along Bagudo road on the same day a vehicle loaded with bags of charcoal coming from Malabil, Benin Republic was intercepted, when the vehicle was search, 97 kilogrammes of skunk concealed in the sacks of charcoal was recovered.
. Three suspects: Abubakar Ibrahim, 50; Mustapha Aliyu, 32; and Bashar Lawali, 28, were arrested in connection with the seizure.
A 48-year-old Okafor Marcel was nabbed with 11.5 kilogrammes skunk at Abatete, Anambra state while NDLEA operatives in Osogbo, Osun state last Tuesday arrested Ajala Mercy, 27, with 43 litres of skushi, a mixture of black currant, cannabis and opioids recovered from her room at Dada estate, Halleluyah area of the state capital.
Babafemi said two cannabis farms in Egbeta forest, Ovia North East LGA, Edo state were raided by NDLEA operatives who destroyed 3,717.8625 kilogrammes of the psychoactive plant on 1.487145 hectares and recovered 136.5 kilogrammes of processed cannabis.
At the Tincan seaport in Lagos, a suspect Basorun Kayode, 40, who has been at large for two years was arrested by NDLEA officers in connection with the seizure of 107 kilogrammes Loud imported from Canada in 2023, while another suspect, Dauda Yakubu who distributes illicit drugs within the seaport community was arrested by a team of operatives last Monday.
The spokesman said the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) social advocacy activities by NDLEA commands equally continued across the country in the past week.
Meanwhile, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd) while commending the officers and men of DOGI, Kano, Lagos, Kaduna, Kebbi, Osun, Zone 13, Edo and Tin-can commands of the agency for the arrests and seizures of the past week, equally praised their counterparts in all the commands across the country for ensuring a fair balance between their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts.
NDLEA intercepts cocaine in Saudi-bound religious books
Fire Guts Water Board IDP Camp in Monguno, Borno
By: Zagazola Makama
A devastating fire broke out at the Water Board IDP Camp in Monguno Local Government Area (LGA) on April 19, 2025, destroying approximately one hundred thatch and makeshift houses.
Eye witnesses said that the fire started at around 1040hrs and rapidly spread across the settlement, burning household items, foodstuffs, and other valuable properties to ashes.
The cause of the fire is yet to be determined, and the value of the property destroyed is still being assessed.
Humanitarian officials were immediately deployed to the scene to maintain crowd control and prevent looting, while firefighters, alongside camp residents, worked tirelessly to extinguish the flames.
Fortunately, no casualties or loss of life were reported.
Fire Guts Water Board IDP Camp in Monguno, Borno
Terrorists Snatch Vehicle in Monguno, Borno
By: Zagazola Makama
Armed assailants suspected to be members of ISWAP/Boko Haram attacked and snatched a vehicle in Monguno Local Government Area (LGA) on April 18, 2025, at about 1400hrs.
Saleh Haun, a resident of the Water Board IDP Camp in Monguno, reported that while he was at the Gumnari Bush Area in Monguno, four armed gunmen, riding on two motorcycles, accosted him.
The assailants, at gunpoint, seized his white Toyota Land Cruiser, before fleeing with the vehicle to an unknown location.
A Military Forward Operating Base (FOB) has been alerted, and efforts are underway to to track the assailant and recover the stolen vehicle.
Terrorists Snatch Vehicle in Monguno, Borno
Troops Foil Fresh Violence as Armed Youths Attack Fulani Settlement in Plateau
Senator Donates Relief Materials to Communal Clash Deceases Families in Jigawa
NDLEA intercepts cocaine in Saudi-bound religious books
Roger Federer’s Shock as DNA Results Reveal Myla and Charlene Are Not His Biological Children
THE PLIGHT OF FARIDA
POLICE CHARGE ROOMS, A MINTING PRESS
-
News1 year agoRoger Federer’s Shock as DNA Results Reveal Myla and Charlene Are Not His Biological Children
-
Opinions3 years ago
THE PLIGHT OF FARIDA
-
Opinions3 years ago
POLICE CHARGE ROOMS, A MINTING PRESS
-
News1 year agoEYN: Rev. Billi, Distortion of History, and The Living Tamarind Tree
-
Columns1 year agoArmy University Biu: There is certain interest, but certainly not from Borno.
-
ACADEMICS1 year agoA History of Biu” (2015) and The Lingering Bura-Pabir Question (1)
-
Opinions1 year agoTinubu,Shettima: The epidemic of economic, insecurity in Nigeria
-
Politics8 months agoKashim Shettima: Of Sentiments, Their Opinions, and the 21 billion Naira VP’s Official Resident
