November 02, (THEWILL) – Akwa Ibom Innovation Network, organisers of the Akwa Ibom Tech Week 2023, has said its target is to groom 10,000 young people who will earn a minimum of N500,000 monthly using technological innovations between now and the next four years.
Also, it would ensure that thousands of jobs are made available for young people with needed skills in different fields of tech, adding that all that is needed is capacity building, quality talents and being able to deploy such talents for needed services.
Mr. Hanson Johnson, President, Ibom Technology Network, disclosed this during an interactive session with select Journalists at the ongoing Akwa Ibom Tech Week 2023 on Wednesday, at Four Points by Sheraton Hotel, Ikot Ekpene.
The event brings together tech enthusiasts, industry leaders, and innovators from around the globe to effectively explore the opportunities in emerging technological advancements and foster collaboration for a brighter future.
Akwa Ibom Tech Week 2023 is the gathering of men and women in tech, content creators, ICT influencers etc. on a mission to foster innovation while driving the technology ecosystem in Akwa Ibom State to create employment for skilled youths as well as offer opportunities for skill training and empowerment.
According to Johnson, opportunities are there but those available are not employable because of lack of skills. He reasons that to achieve the aim of the Tech Week, partnership with the government, private sector, universities as well as international bodies would be of essence.
“Opportunities are there in Tech, anyone who becomes employable would have a ready job. To achieve this, partnership with the Government, academic world, and private sector is necessary.
“We are in partnership with the International Center for Environmental Sustainability and Energy Research at the University of Uyo and Tetfund Center for Computational Intelligence to make sure that the innovations are backed with research and data to give investors confidence.
“We are trying to get 10,000 people to work from here. Not all of them should work for companies outside, there should be companies here too. When we create these innovations, we should be able to also help indigenous people to work from here.
“Out of this event, we have established partnerships. We have people who are interested in working with us. We have people that came in to see how far, and they are convinced,” Johnson explained.
He noted that a total of 13 tech hubs participated in the Akwa Ibom Tech Week 2023, even as 109 members of the Tech community participated in the event, saying that within the first two days of the eleven days long event, over 1000 people have already been connected to related jobs around the globe.
“The event is a platform for visibility, opportunities and network for those who are skilful and ready. We only recommend quality talents to keep the Tech on,” he explained.
Johnson, however, disclosed plans by Ibom Tech Network to hire linguists to come up with registers, vocabularies, codes and coin words and make sure they are approved and licensed for use as communication codes in vernacular to interpret technological terms.
“A group of language experts and software developers within the communication network community have come together to start work on the Ibom Tech Language project. We are taking advantage of the event to launch the initiative.
“Number two, African talents do not have an evaluation framework with the world, Ibom Innovation Network is championing an initiative to come up with African Tech Talent Evaluation Framework. To initiate a structure in a framework that would enable revenue sharing.
“This is a situation where people are trained for free but partners are contracted to pay for such training. The framework would ensure that those who were trained would have their money split when eventually employed to pay back for their training. With such a system, partners would be more comfortable to train talents in Tech.
“We have also come up with Akwa Ibom Angels Network, within Akwa Ibom, there are already investors who are investing from outside. Ibom Angels Network is those sourcing for local and international funding for the Ibom Tech Network initiative,” he stated.
THEWILL reports that the second edition of Akwa Ibom Tech Week kicked off on October 30 and is expected to last till November 5, 2023. This groundbreaking event is expected to bring together tech enthusiasts, industry leaders, and innovators from around the globe to effectively explore the opportunities in emerging technological advancements and foster collaboration for a brighter future.
Since 2015, the Akwa Ibom tech ecosystem has grown exponentially with over a dozen innovation hubs focused on upskilling talent from software engineers, developers and the creative agency including content and digital marketing.
This event seeks to project Akwa Ibom State as Africa’s newest technology destination.
Akwa Ibom State is poised to deliver on this promise by laying the necessary development foundation through its extensive investment in infrastructure such as a fascinating road network; state-owned power generating plan; massive investment in an international airport; operating one of the most successful airlines in Africa; development of Ibom Seaport and Free trade zone; expected broadband fibre-optics landing station, as well as hyperscale data centre.
There are potentials for historic legacies in the tourism sector; green and serene environment for habitation; discovery of more commercial deposits of oil and gas; extensive coastal line with well-established maritime educational institutions; well-positioned federal and state universities with several other privately owned higher institutions; comprehensive security architecture to maintain peace; and of course the budding innovative technology ecosystem with evolving support systems expanding into diaspora connections.
According to the organisers of the event, the contemporary optimism is driven by decades of sustained development across sectors, saying that the Akwa Ibom Tech Week will feature week-long curated events to showcase talent and innovation across various locations in the State.
Highlights of the Akwa Ibom Tech Week 2023 include inspiring keynote speakers, engaging panel discussions, opportunity to participate in hands-on workshops for attendees, a startup showcase and networking opportunities among others.
Confirmed speakers and attendees include representatives of the Akwa Ibom State Government, leading members of the tech ecosystem, and founders of Akwa Ibom descent.
They include Kachif Innuwa Abdullahi, DG, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA); Oswald Osaretin Guobadia, Former Senior Special Assistant on Digital Transformation to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; Aniedi UdoObong, Programme Manager at Google; Mark Essien, Founder of Hotels.ng, Deji Sarumi of Tech Hive Advisory, Richmond Bassey of Bamboo, and Idorenyin Obong of Grey amongst others.
The second edition of the event, which is organised by the Ibom Innovation Network, is spearheaded by Hanson Johnson, Amanda Etuk, Dr Odiong Akpan, Aniekan Ani-Ezekiel, Lawrence Akubue, Victoria Fabunmi and many others.
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