The recently looted Nigeria Digital Innovation Park in Kano should have begun operations in January 2023.
In November 2022, Umar Danbatta, the former Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), disclosed this. The ICT park is one of six the NCC announced in 2020. At the time, Danbatta stated that the commission was starting with four ICT parks in Abeokuta for the South-West, Enugu for the South-East, Maiduguri for the North-East and Kano for the North-West.
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The ones for the North-Central and South-South were not announced. “The whole idea of putting these two things (i.e. skill acquisition and innovation) at the forefront of this very important initiative is to produce youths that can be self-reliant, generate employment for themselves and for other Nigerians,” Danbatta said of the centers.
However, the ICT park in Kano was looted months before its alleged commission in 2024. According to the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, budget 2023, N500 million (tagged ongoing) was allocated to establish ICT parks. A breakdown of the cost of each park was not given.
Unfortunately, it was looted during Thursday’s protests. “Sad to learn that our Digital Innovation Park in Kano slated for launch next week to support our technical talent accelerator (3MTT) has been set ablaze and looted by protesters,” Bosun Tijani, the minister of communications tweeted on Thursday.
The Kano ICT Park was designed to include laboratories for ICT innovations and commercial hubs to build capacity for ICT startups and enhance entrepreneurial activities. It was expected to support the growth of technology talent and create job opportunities in the region.
However, Nigerians believe prioritising a digital park amid economic hardship is misplaced. Nigerians are currently protesting against an economic hardship that has led to record inflation, 34.19 percent in June, and a weak naira.
Temi Karey tweeted, “3MTT in Kano where most people can’t have 3 square meals? You can’t innovate where there is poverty, for crying out loud.”
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Adekunle Olopade tweeted, “Dear Dr Bosun, take a look at the people who are protesting. Do they look like people who will benefit from the technical talent accelerator (3MTT)? If the immediate answer that comes to you is no, then that means your administration has spent time and effort in the wrong direction. Look inward and address the immediate concerns of the people you’re actually governing. Rather than a herculean task that makes good for CV. focus and set your priorities right and let history be just to you.”
Nigerians blame the looting on the lack of essentials. Ayo-Bankole Akintujoye tweeted, “That’s literally what happens anywhere in the world where the government abandons the fundamental needs of food, education, healthcare, and security…”
Under one of the tweets highlighting these concerns, the minister replied, “That will never be enough. You must not only feed people but teach them how to fish. For every tech job you create, there’s evidence of 3 – 5 support staff being added to the economy. As palliatives are being released, we must build up our young people to fill the global shortage in technology workforce.”
The ICT parks being built across the country’s six geo-political zones by the NCC are expected to provide Innovation Labs and Digital Fabrication Laboratories (Fablabs) for use by digital innovators and entrepreneurs to turn their ideas into products and prototypes. The parks are also designed to provide broadband services and access to constant power supply.
