Cisco: Digitisation Will Displace 85m Workers, Create 97m New Jobs by 2025

Emma Okonji

The ongoing digital transformation and digitisation of processes across the globe will displace as much as 85 million traditional jobs and at the same time, create as much as 97 million digital jobs by 2025, according to Cisco’s prediction.

Senior Vice President and Global Innovation Officer at Cisco, Dr. Guy Diedrich, who gave the prediction in Lagos during the launch of Cisco EDGE Centre in Nigeria last week, however said only those that fail to acquire new digital skills would be displaced.

According to him, new digital jobs will be created and companies should begin the process of retraining their workers that are trainable and place them on the jobs that have demand for digital skills and higher pay.

“So, digitisation will create opportunities to train millions of workers with digital skills from now till 2025. The point is that in Nigeria, there are youths who are young and determined to learn. So the Cisco EDGE Centre will offer them access to training and education that will lead to digital transformation,” Diedrich said.                        

Also speaking during the launch of Cisco EDGE Centre in Nigeria, the Executive Vice President and Chief People, Policy and Purpose Officer of Cisco, Fran Katsoudas, said: “With its vibrant economy and young population, Nigeria stands to benefit from the promise of an inclusive digital future. Cisco is here to help the nation with digital skills development, innovation and incubation as well as cutting edge technologies.”

Coordinating Managing Director of TD Africa, Chioma Chimere, said: “Through this collaboration with Cisco, we aim to enable SMMEs scale rapidly by providing the tools, resources, and knowledge required to thrive in the digital age. By fostering skill retention and development, we can ensure that individuals are adequately empowered with the expertise to excel in the ever-evolving technology landscape.”

Director-General/CEO, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, while commending Cisco for the launch of Cisco EDGE Centre in Lagos, said the centre would further accelerate digital transformation in Nigeria and create digital jobs for Nigerian youths.