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| ICT roadmap would create about 2.5 million jobs |
It also gave the go ahead for the ratification of intellectual property of organizations of copyrights treaties to protect the work of creative artistes.
Briefing State House correspondents after its regular meeting presided over by acting President Yemi Osinbajo at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Minister of Communications, Adebayo Shittu, announced that the ICT roadmap would create about 2.5 million jobs within its lifespan.
He said: “We thank God that at last the ICT roadmap 2017 to 2020 has been approved for implementation by the government.
“This roadmap is essentially is a framework for development of ICT in Nigeria generally. It is also one of the pillars of Economic Recovery and Growth Plan and the aim among others is to ensure the creation through ICT 2.5 million jobs between now and year 2020.
“Another aim is to ensure broadband penetration to all parts of Nigeria particularly to ensure that by year 2020 we will have penetration level of 30 per cent.
“We believe that the contents of the ICT roadmap would assist in harnessing innate skills and opportunities available to Nigerians.
“We know that are youths are very intelligent, very dynamic and they would utilize the implementation of the ICT roadmap to ensure that jobs are created and to really get Nigeria digitized.”
He added that when the policy was properly implemented, it would contribute to growing the Nigerian economy and increase the GDP to about 20 percent by 2020.
He was confident that ICT would also contribute in making businesses and service delivery easy because of the e-government and e-commerce components of the roadmap.
Also speaking, Minster of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, said as a signatory to intellectual property of organizations of copyrights treaty, FEC approved Nigeria’s ratification of the Beijing and Marrakesh treaties.
He explained that the treaties were intended to provide protection to the nation’s creators, musicians, audio visuals as far as the copyrights of their productions are concerned.
According to him, “as a signatory to those international conventions, we have a responsibility to ensure that they take the benefits and enjoy the advantages of the treaties by way of Nigeria being a signatory to those treaties and conventions.
“So, the presentation of a memo was made to the council seeking the approval of the council for the ratification of the treaties.
“Arising from that, the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and general had been mandated and instructed to draft the necessary instrument for transmission to the world body in terms of ratification of world treaties associated with intellectual property of copyrights.
“So, the council has given the approval and so the ratification of the treaties has been granted by the council.”
He said by this singular act, the suffering of thousands of Nigerian young doctors would be put to an end.
“This new programme will be centrally coordinated by the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria with effect from 2018,” he added.
