Strategic retooling of the workforce in post Covid-19 is critical in digital transformation and productivity, industry experts have said.
Management professionals in a webinar themed “skilling roundtable Nigeria” organised by Microsoft, agreed that Covid-19 has impacted the jobs of up to 80 million people, adding that as economies slowly start to reopen, jobs that were impacted and lost at the start of the global lockdowns, may now not exist.
The roundtable, one of the first in a series developed to provide a continental answer to youth employment and skill promotion, brought together experts and decision-makers from the private sector, government agencies, and academia.
Akin Banuso, country manager, Microsoft Nigeria observed that Covid-19 has dramatically accelerated the pace of digital transformation and as a result of this, digital skills are required immediately.
Banuso pointed out that a research by Microsoft indicated that by 2025 digital job capacity would mean the creation of 149 million new jobs, adding that 800 million people would be required to learn new skills to fully execute their jobs by 2030.
In his presentation at the event, John Edokpolo, director, corporate, external and legal affairs, MEA emerging markets for Microsoft, noted that one of the key objectives of the webinar was to gain a better understanding of the available models, approaches and best practices in employment as the country edges closer to the recovery phase of this crisis.
