The Federal Government has launched a nationwide digital and creative skills-to-jobs programme targeting 300,000 Nigerians aged 15 to 35, with at least 240,000 participants expected to secure employment or career opportunities after training.
The Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (iDICE) initiative is being rolled out across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory as part of efforts to equip young Nigerians with skills for the digital and creative economy.
Unlike conventional training programmes focused mainly on certification, the initiative has set a minimum employment linkage target of 80 per cent, meaning at least 240,000 of the 300,000 beneficiaries are expected to be connected to jobs and career opportunities.
The programme is being implemented under the $617.7 million iDICE project, which is co-financed by the African Development Bank, Agence Française de Développement, the Islamic Development Bank and the Bank of Industry (BOI), which serves as the executing agency.
The training combines online and physical learning and is organised into basic, intermediate and advanced tracks, allowing participants with different levels of experience and access to technology to participate.
Six implementing partners have also been selected to coordinate delivery across the country’s six geopolitical zones.
Speaking at the launch, Vice-President Kashim Shettima said the initiative was designed to address the gap between acquiring skills and securing employment.
“Through the iDICE skills-to-jobs initiative, we are not training young Nigerians and leaving them to find their way. We are building the bridge from skills to employment, connecting 300,000 of our brightest young people to digital and creative jobs that the 21st-century global economy demands,” Shettima said.
The programme also includes specific inclusion targets. At least 40 per cent of beneficiaries are expected to be women, while a minimum of five per cent is reserved for persons living with disabilities and young people classified as not in employment, education or training (NEET).
The government said the initiative is intended to position Nigerian talent for opportunities within the domestic digital economy as well as the global outsourcing and creative industries.
BOI Managing Director, Dr Olasupo Olusi, said the skills-to-jobs component would contribute to broader economic transformation by developing a pipeline of digitally skilled and employment-ready young Nigerians.
The programme comes as the Federal Government increasingly places digital skills, creative industries and youth employment within its broader economic development strategy.
The immediate test for the initiative will be whether the promised employment linkages materialise at the scale envisaged, particularly given its target of placing at least 240,000 beneficiaries in jobs and career opportunities.
