NITDA expands iHatch initiative to drive job creation, economic diversification

The Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa, has announced the nationwide expansion of the Hub Managers training programme in harnessing technological innovation to improve the lives of Nigerians, create jobs and foster economic diversification.

The DG made this known at the iHatch Cohort 4 -Onsite Training for Hub Managers, which was organised by the agency in partnership with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Office for Nigerian Digital Innovation (ONDI) in Abuja.

While emphasising the current administration’s commitment to reforming the economy for sustained and inclusive growth, Inuwa highlighted that the key to achieving this goal lies in leveraging digital technology at the grassroots level to solve local problems across various sectors, including agriculture and small-scale trade.

Inuwa disclosed that the pilot phase of the iHatch, which was conducted in Abuja, successfully trained 50 startups, which led to the creation of 179 direct jobs and over 1,500 indirect jobs, Inuwa stated that the expansion of the initiative to accommodate all the 37 states will create 740 direct jobs and 7,400 indirect jobs before the end of the year.

He said, “this initiative will domesticate innovation in states and enable start-ups solve real-life problems in areas of agriculture, healthcare, transportation and other sectors, that are peculiar to their different states”.

While stressing that innovation thrives in clusters where critical stakeholders can exchange ideas and incubate solutions, the NITDA DG underscored the importance of collaboration, networking and ecosystem development in driving innovation.

“To sustain this initiative, we must build a strong community where startups, entrepreneurs, and stakeholders can continuously share ideas and collaborate. We don’t want startups to just pass through the programme; we want them to remain within the iHatch ecosystem because we want this initiative to expand to all the 774 local governments of the country.” Inuwa explained.

Inuwa therefore urged the participants in the iHatch programme to act as champions in their respective states, spreading awareness about the Act and encouraging other startups to register and benefit from its provisions.