Enugu State: Harnessing Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to curb youth unemployment

promoting youth inclusion and digital literacy with the Enugu SME centre

One in every two Nigerians in the country’s labour force is either unemployed or underemployed. This key highlight is drawn from the recent unemployment report published by Nigeria’s Bureau of Statistics, which shows the most recent data as of Q2 2020.

While Nigeria’s unemployment rate has climbed to 27.1% (up from 23.1% in Q3 2018, when the unemployment report was last published), the country’s underemployment rate-which reflects those working less than 40 hours a week, or in jobs that underutilize a person’s skills, time, or education has increased to 28.6%.

With a labour force of 80.2 million, that means about 21.7 million Nigerians are unemployed, a figure that exceeds the population of 35 of Africa’s 54 countries. Among young Nigerians aged between 25 and 34, the largest bloc of the labour force, the unemployment rate currently stands even higher, at 30.7%. According to the same report from the NBS, Enugu State’s unemployment rate is pegged at 18.7 %.

In recent times the widening inequalities of available jobs and obtained skills to match the labour force is on the rise. Given changing labour market demands, it has become imperative for governments in Nigeria to facilitate the alignment of the training of future labour market entrants to the emerging skill requirements of the labour market.

This is especially important given the rise of new technologies and their rapid diffusion in the country as well as the structural transformation of Nigeria’s economy from a predominantly agrarian economy to a service-dominated economy.

Recent evidence from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) employment surveys clearly show that job vacancies are growing more in the knowledge and technology-intensive sectors. As an example, the 2016 Q1 Employment Report revealed that job vacancies were concentrated in three sectors, in the following order: Trade and Services; Consulting; and Information and Communications Technology(ICT)/Telecommunications.

Now with ICT leading the future of work, otherwise known as the 4th industrial revolution (4ir), one cannot help but wonder how prepared the state and youths are. Enugu state is one of the states that is yet to fully embrace ICT as the underlying factor that could turn things around.

Understanding how to promote sustained economic growth, higher levels of productivity using technological innovation consequently, encouraging entrepreneurship and job creation remains the beam. Hence, possessing any ICT skill is one step to eradicating youth unemployment and underemployment, while achieving full and productive employment, and decent work, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for all women and men by 2030.

What has been done so far?

Enugu State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi during his first tenure in 2017 donated 600 computers, tablets and Uninterruptible Power Source (UPS) to the 291 public secondary schools in the state as part of his administration’s strategy in promoting youth digital inclusion and expanding bridge digital divide in the state. However, these schools still lack the required manpower, training and skills to operate the equipment and impact the young ones with the right knowledge.

The “one community, one project” initiative of the Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi administration paid off on Friday in Ibagwa Nike, Enugu East Local Government Area, Enugu State, as the governor inaugurated projects executed by the community with the first tranche of N5million disbursed by the state government to autonomous communities to carry out development projects of their choice.

The N5million, which was presented to the Traditional Rulers and the President Generals of Town Unions in the communities, was utilized by the Ibagwa Nike community to provide an Information Communication Technology (ICT) centre to educate and enhance the skills of the youth in partnership with National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN).

In 2019, there was the computer competition for secondary school students in the state organized by the Post Primary Schools Management Board (PPSMB) an exercise that meant to demonstrate of Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi administration’s firm commitment towards actualizing the use of computers for learning and other social and educational engagements. Since computers currently play a major role in all areas of human endeavour, consequently, students can become experts in their formative years to assist the state and the nation in the area of digitization.

In the present knowledge-based economy, SMEs need to adopt processes that would enable them to provide services that would bring about competitive advantage. ICT is crucial to SMEs as it is a major catalyst and enabler of organizational change.

Modern businesses are not possible without the use of ICT which is having a significant impact on the operations of SMEs and it is claimed to be essential for the survival and growth of economies in general.

Consequently, the Ugwuanyi’s administration has advanced the growth of SMEs through corporate governance for rapid economic development progress in this direction is self-evident in the leapfrogging of the state from its 2014 World Bank Ease of Doing Business ranking as 27th out of 37 states (including FCT Abuja), to an enviable ranking as the 2nd State in Ease of Starting Business and 3rd State in Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria in the 2018 World Bank Ease of Doing Business sub-national ranking.

The Special Adviser to the governor on SME Development/Investment Promotion and Focal Person for Enugu State for Ease of Doing Business, Arinze Chilo-Offiah, explained that tech is vital for SMEs to participate in this economy to compete and thrive in the future. To this end, he rolled out programmes that will enable ICT adoption by SMEs to increase their productivity in the production process; enhance and increase the efficiency of their internal business operations.

The Enugu SME Hackathon focused on addressing the changes to ways of life and business as a result of Covid-19. It is no doubt that the world’s operating system is being rewritten — and preparing businesses in Enugu state for the 4th Industrial Revolution will ensure they become fit for growth amid the challenges and market pressures businesses are facing today.

UpSkill Her was another programme that was implemented by the SME Center. This 6-weeks programme was solely targeted at women and girls to equip them with free digital skills. It was proposed that at the end, the girls and women will deploy Digital Marketing, Website Development and Graphic Design skills not just into their business but export these skills, as well.

Also in 2020, the Ugwuanyi administration through the SME Center launched the Enugu WIFI project. The project is a Municipal Wireless Network offered by independent data resellers to deploy to all parts of the state. This low-cost paid secure Wi-Fi connection has the potential of being the biggest technological achievement.

What has not worked well?

The donation of the computers by the Government would have yielded positive result if the administration had in the process of that donation sent the teachers for a retraining programme. It has been proven that one cannot give what one does not have.

It is evident that educating girls create healthier, wealthier, and more stable communities but Up Skill Her was a one-off thing that has not shown that it can disrupt the unemployment cycle.

During Sullivan Chime’s administration, a similar Wi-Fi project was initiated. The program was not properly maintained for some of the attributes that crashed the previous project remains: this project is supposed to provide jobs for over 1000 youths and a steady income of 100,000 monthly but it lacks feasibility and measurable targets, the marketing capacity is nonexistent and there is the problem of scaling and sustainability.

Recently, Enugu residents took to the social media platform, Twitter to protest the implementation of the project, asking the government to implement the reduction of The Right of Way (RoW) instead. The idea is that the reduction will lessen the cost of internet data, drive the tech community, attract more business investors, escalate the inflow of multinationals and spearhead Public-Private Partnership which will, in turn, will provide jobs for the youths. The reduction in the right of way will change the ecosystem of Enugu.

But Ugo Aronu, founder of e-commerce platform based out of Enugu — Ogwugo, thinks differently. According to him, “The Right of Way (RoW) is not a major problem. Simply because there are companies that have already invested in the business and they will need to recoup their investment. For the RoW to take effect there will be a need to set up some other infrastructures, especially power and roads. Even if ROW comes into effect right now Ogwugo as a business would not benefit immediately. The gains will start coming in 3 to 5 years and more so because it does not change much,” he concluded.

What could be done differently?

The government can think more at increasing computer literacy and helping to create digitally empowered individuals to foster economic development.

Oppong Tony Boateng a procurement expert recommends incentivizing the youths while effectively rolling out new infrastructure and services by the stakeholders: by this, the government and private sector can come together to form an alliance that will equip the youths with the requisite skills for the jobs of the future.

This alliance between the government and private sector will ensure the provision of universal access to broadband services to the same extent as basic telephony services. Remember that the availability of broadband access will create opportunities for multinationals to set up their base. Anything that can speed up the rate at which communication takes place improves radically the output from any business endeavour and enhances the efficiency with which business processes are carried out. This is the whole new vista of opportunity that broadband technology offers us.

Access to fast and affordable broadband internet facility will enable the youths with the right opportunities and skills and unlock these jobs that were not in existence 10 years ago: Digital Marketing Specialist, Social Media Manager, Chief Listening Officer, Blogger, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Specialist, App Designer, App Developer, Cloud Services Specialist, Big Data Analyst and Market Research Data Miner. If 45% of the unemployed youths have these skills and the right internet access, the unemployment cycle can easily be broken and a new cycle of empowerment would commence.

Enugu is already active within the tech ecosystem in the South East. This relationship with the tech hubs will be utilized to affect start-ups and furnish them with resources. Enugu state government can partner 4 major start-up hubs Roar Hub UNN, Startup South of Havilah and Hills Innovation Systems, Digital Dreams Hub and iNSPARK Enterprise Enugu.

These are not just hubs as they also incubate business. It is no secret that small and medium enterprises are the front drivers of any state and nation’s economy, but when these innovators are not provided with the right platform, they seek their nests somewhere else. Lagos State did not become the Next Silicon Valley and a bubble in the tech sector overnight; first, there was connectivity, then hubs and now networks.

The State Government should invest in a national backbone infrastructure that will carry and distribute data capacity from the cities to the rural communities: This infrastructure would boost capacity distribution of broadband and deepen internet penetration.

In the Implementation plan, Ugwuanyi led administration should collaborate with these firms to train the youths on Social Media Management, Content Marketing, and Graphics Designing, as well as hold ICT seminars in urban and rural secondary schools within the state.

And in six months partner ICT firms like Microsoft Nigeria, Andela, UNESCO, HP and Google to train and maximize the skills imparted the period through an internship.

Knowledge is such a great awakening. Once the youths in the hinterlands realize that there is more they can do, there is a 50% chance that they will go for it and when broadband is readily available, behaviour patterns will change because the youths will rely on such to obtain services and get tasks required in their daily existence as students, workers and/or business people.

Written by Ekene Odigwe

Edited by Ese Okereka

Originally published at http://discoverenugu042.wordpress.com on September 21, 2020.