Fayemi: I’m Working Hard to Make Ekiti Nigeria’s ICT Hub

Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti

The Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has said his government is determined to make the state the Information, Communication and Technology Capital in the country , saying the 90 per cent literate rate among three million Ekiti citizens was enough to realise the dream.

Fayemi, spoke on Saturday at a one- day dialogue and launching of innovation action organised by The KTN Global Alliance Africa in Ado Ekiti .

Fayemi, represented by the commissioner for Finance, Mr. Akintunde Oyebode, commended the group for coming up with the plan within four more months, saying it was in tandem with the administration’s plans with knowledge economy.

Oyebode noted that “with the 90 per cent literacy rate and three million population in the state, the government is determined to make Ekiti the technology capital and the sandbox for innovation in the country.

“This is the result of a partnership between an institution committed to development and a government that puts development at the core of all it does.

” I will like to once again thank KTN for taking this leap of faith with us and reinforce our full commitment not only to this programme but to ensuring our vision to make Ekiti the technology hub of Nigeria is achieved.”

The KTN’s country lead, Olamide Johnson, noted that the action plan became necessary for stakeholders in the state’s innovation ecosystem to discuss how Ekiti will tap into the increasing opportunities in the technology world for growth and development.

He explained that the painstakingly drafted plan when fully implemented by stakeholders including the government would in no small measure place the state, ” as a beacon of knowledge and innovation for Nigeria.”

He said, ” The PBI Report and the IAP are strategic documents that have been co-created with stakeholders in the innovation ecosystem to project a shared vision of Ekiti State as a beacon of knowledge and innovation for Nigeria.

” Commissioning a cross-sectional study, KTN Global Alliance Africa gathered data from stakeholders to explore the challenges and impact on the Ekiti State innovation ecosystem of PBI Intervention, and how the findings and recommendations can be effectively used to strengthen Ekiti State’s innovation response.

” The comprehensive report highlights the industrial DNA, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the ecosystem. Key recommendations it contains include offering technical support on entrepreneurship and innovation by levering on local innovation hubs in Ekiti. It will support training and workshops for key players within the agricultural sector on value and supply chain management, improving strategic public/private partnerships to identify and address similar challenges within various sectors, amongst others.”