Nigeria has inked a substantial $116 million financing agreement with the French Government to bolster the investment in the Digital and Creative Enterprises (I-DICE) program.
Spearheaded by the office of Vice President Senator Kashim Shettima, this initiative is aimed at fostering growth in the creative and digital technology sectors.
Dr. Bosun Tijani, the Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, shared this development on his social media handle, highlighting that the $116 million is part of a larger $600 million financing agreement from a consortium of development partners.
The financing partners involved in this significant agreement include the French Development Agency, the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Islamic Development Bank, and the Bank of Industry.
Dr. Tijani emphasized that this funding injection is poised to create substantial job opportunities, propelling the creative and digital technology sectors to new heights within the Nigerian economy. The agreement is seen as a pivotal step in repositioning Nigeria’s economic landscape for greater achievements.
In a related update, he revealed that over one million applicants for the government’s Three Million Technical Talent (3MTT) program will undergo an introduction to Artificial Intelligence (AI) course. The minister noted that all applicants are being onboarded onto the platform as part of the preparations for the selection of the first cohort of 30,000 fellows.
Earlier in the week, the Minister had announced that applications for the 3MTT program had surpassed one million, assuring applicants that the next steps would be communicated via email.
