No fewer than 35 Nigerian youths on Monday graduated from a digital skills training programme jointly organised by the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction and the Digital Bridge Institute (DBI), in Abuja.
The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Prof. Nentawe Gashwer who delivered the keynote address at the graduation ceremony, themed “Skills for Empowerment,” commended President Bola Tinubu’s administration for steadily building a nation where digital skills were exported like crude oil.
Gashwer who noted that Nigerians were no longer mere consumers but creators of technology, explained that digital skills have become the foundation of economic power worldwide, adding that the global economy was being rewritten in code, driven by data, and powered by creativity.
He said: “This programme, under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, was not designed to hand out aid but to hand over agency. The future we envision is not one where people wait to be rescued, but where they rise to become solution creators, job makers, and wealth builders.
“You are not just graduates; you are the vanguard of a new Nigeria a Nigeria where young people do not flee from poverty but defeat it with knowledge; a Nigeria where digital skills are exported like oil; a Nigeria where we are no longer consumers of technology, but creators of it.”
The Minister who further noted that the government was committed to building community tech hubs where skills were nurtured, and innovation is celebrated, highlighted plans to develop online platforms to connect skilled Nigerians with local and global opportunities, and to establish funding pathways so that innovative ideas can transition from notebooks to the marketplace.
“If we want to reduce poverty sustainably, we must make wealth inclusive, digital, and locally driven.”
The President/CEO of DBI, David Daser explained that the graduands received hands-on training in Web Application Design, Graphic Design, and Image Editing, among other high-impact areas.
“These are not just technical skills.They are tools of transformation, pathways to independence, creativity, and sustainable livelihood.”
Daser who emphasized the urgent need to equip Nigerian youths with income-generating skills, stressed that Nigeria cannot attain meaningful development without investing in youth training and up-skilling for wealth creation.
“As a nation striving toward sustainable development, the importance of equipping individuals with relevant, income-generating skills cannot be overstated.”
While stating that the theme, “Skills for Empowerment,” directly addresses one of the most critical needs of the time economic self-reliance through practical skill acquisition, Daser revealed that the initiative was not limited to DBI’s Abuja campus but extended to its other national campuses in Enugu, Lagos, Yola, and Kano, thereby bringing opportunities closer to diverse communities and advancing the institute’s mission of bridging the digital and development divide in Nigeria.
He urged the graduands not to see their certificates as an end, but as the beginning of a journey filled with innovation, contribution, and value creation saying, “I encourage you to see yourselves not just as job seekers, but as job creators as catalysts of hope and change.”
Daser reaffirmed DBI’s commitment to national development through technology, capacity building, and strategic partnerships that empower lives and reduce poverty across Nigeria.
