GIRLS WITH ICT SKILLS MORE EMPLOYABLE

By Mateefat Opoola

Girls that acquire Information and Communications Technology (ICT) skills are more employable than their counterparts in other fields of study.

the Director-General of the Nigeria Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Dr. Vincent Olatunji, made this assertion during the 2016 International Girls in ICT Day Celebration, which held at the IBI Training Centre, Wuse 2, Abuja. Over 80 girls from different private and public secondary schools in Abuja attended the event.

The event, which was designed to motivate young girls and expose them to current trends in technology, gave the girls an opportunity to interact with women currently pursuing careers in ICT in the country.

In his keynote address, Dr. Olatunji said, "ICT has huge potentials for job and wealth creation, as well as high increase in quality and standard of living and better service delivery," adding that girls with such skills stand a better chance in the job market.

"Girls with ICT skills will never be out of work. And they will have much more flexibility in their work choice. ICT& skills are highly transferable, which means you will be able to work almost anywhere in the world," Olatunji, who was represented by Mrs. Tarindu Ndoni, an Assistant Chief Scientific Officer of the agency said.

Among the mentors who were on hand to inspire the girls were Alicia Abdulahi, a web/database developer; Stephanie Boms, a system analyst working with the Ministry of Communications; Sally Abdulrahim, a system analyst; and Fatima Adelodun, a network security expert in the Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trader (NBET).

Other presentations included a walk through on 3D printing technology with a live 3D printer by Chikezie Oguamanam of the Enspire Technology Incubator, Abuja and another on video/graphics editing for television by Nneka Ogwu of Senema Productions. The event was conceptualised by Veritrax Solutions Limited, a business software solutions provider in collaboration with the IBI Training Centre, Media Range Limited and Ogwepa Nigeria Limited.

One of the highlights of the day was the presentation of a Quadcoter 2.4Ghz drone to students of the Government Science Secondary School, Karu, by the organisers.