From News Editor
A ranking member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Bamisile, has hailed the Ekiti State Governor, Mr Biodun Oyebanji, for prioritizing the development of young people to become active contributors to the progress of the state.
Essentially, Bamisile the Chairman House Committee on Delegated Legislation, said the digital training flagged off a couple of days for 1,000 Ekiti youth to buoy their ICT savviness, will go a long way in enhancing their development in all facets .
Bamisile gave the commendation, in a statement issued in Abuja, on Saturday, through his Media Office, in reaction to the Digital Accelerated Programme (EDAP) midwifed by Governor Oyebanji to train 1000 Ekiti youths in Information and Communication Technology.
Bamisile, who is representing Ekiti South Federal Constituency II, said this programme, designed to train young ones between the ages of 15 to 20 on basic computing skills, will increase computer literacy among young population.
Bamisile added that the skills acquired through the training will ensure seamless adaptation of Ekiti secondary school students to the proposal by the West African Examinations Council(WAEC) to fully begin Computer Based Test(CBT) in 2026.
Besides, the federal parliamentarian stated that exposing young people to exploring opportunities in ICT, will stamp out crime in the society and spiralling unemployment, which will in turn help the society.
He appealed to the beneficiaries to fully tap into the benefits inherent in the programme and ensure that the efforts being intensified by government don’t result to nought.
“This is one programme that really thrilled me. There are enormous benefits in the ICT. Globally, young people are making huge financial explorations in the ICT sector, but lack of exposure has been the bane of Africa in this sector.
“Singapore’s digital economy contributes $113.2b to the GDP in 2024. Singapore’s digital economy has emerged as a key driver of the nation’s economic growth. This is a small country of the world that is making such a huge profit in ICT.
“China makes 12.76tr Yuan as ICT contribution to the GDP in the last fiscal year. Large percentage of their youths are making profitable exploits in this area.
“So, this programme remains one of the best initiative adopted by governor Oyebanji to fight poverty, crime and unemployment among our youths in recent time.
“I salute Governor Oyebanji and the Ministry of Youth Development for this initiative and I believe our youth will make judicious use of this opportunity to develop their skills, education and also make financial gains from it now and in future”.