Priscilla Akpanettot
Preparations are in top gear for the 2024 Akwa Ibom Tech Week, the central planning committee has disclosed at a press briefing over the weekend in Uyo.
Chairperson of the Planning Committee, Amanda Etuk gave the briefing while bringing newsmen up to speed on projections of the Week-long activity themed: “Building a Resilient Innovation Ecosystem.
According to the chairperson, the event will commence with a hack-a-thon and a cultural night on Tuesday, October 29, 2024, followed by a Conference on Wednesday, October 30, 2024.
A career fair and creative showcase will hold on Thursday, October 31st to demonstrate how technology is enabling creativity in arts and interactive media, while recruiters and HR firms will interview and offer jobs to deserving candidates. An ecosystem hub tour and closing dinner will draw the curtains for the week’s events.
The venture showcase is a platform where tech enthusiasts in Akwa Ibom State and across Nigeria who are building innovations in their small space would be funded and given visibility, she explained.
Justifying the theme for the event, Etuk narrated that the operating landscape in the country generally was becoming almost unbearable for businesses to survive hence, the need to find better ways of getting things done with technology, research and industry.
While acknowledging the tough economic climate and its impact, she submitted that technology, startup enterprise and rapid innovation will pull Nigeria out of the current economic slope she has found herself.
“The tech landscape in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria, is poised to transform a nascent ecosystem into a resilient, thriving and innovation powerhouse for what is now known as ‘Africa’s New Tech Destination’. The event promises to be a convergence of visionaries, creators, and change-makers. Together, we’ll shape Africa’s new tech destination—one that thrives on resilience, innovation, and local talent”, she stated.
She therefore called on policymakers, innovators, educational institutions and investors to collaborate with the planning committee to make the transformation a reality.
Speaking on successes the Tech Week has birthed over the years, a co-planer of the Ibom Tech Week and President, Ibom Innovation Hub, Hanson Johnson reported that Akwa Ibom State has today emerged a hub for tech enthusiasts and professionals, with a developer ecosystem growing at an impressive 29.7% month-on-month since March 2023. This growth he noted, rivals that of Lagos, positioning Akwa Ibom as a key player in Africa’s tech scene1.
He also announced that 500 learners in the State, consisting of the young and old have received Google licenses to access Coursera courses, with more than 350 of the learners completing certifications in project management, cybersecurity, user experience design, and e-commerce. These skills empower our youth to contribute to the digital economy.
Meanwhile, they have been able to provide job placement for 1,500 youths through their member hubs and with support from the UNDP, Johnson stated.
“We acknowledge that professional successes are largely dependent on leadership and soft skills. Through our mentorship programme, we are able to develop soft skills and leadership capacity of 150 cohorts in the last 10 months”.
“We have been able to setup and deepen diaspora engagement for the community in order to connect development activities back home with patient funding initiatives and professional competences abroad”, he added.
Stressing the imperatives of resilience in technology, CEO Tedikom Wireless and Founder, Paid Dimension Technology, Edidiong Ekpe observed that resilience allows people to adapt, learn, and thrive even in adversity.
He suggested government’s support through the creation of an enabling environment; collaboration between government, private sector, academia, and civil society; provision of sustainable solutions by innovators as well as international partnerships as means by which resilience can be enhanced.
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