ICT Development Bank, varsity to take off soon

The Federal Government will soon establish a specialised bank to cater for the development of the Information and Communications Technology industry, Minister of Communications, Mr. Adebayo Shittu, has said.

Shittu who said this at the 13th International Conference of the Nigeria Computer Society in Abuja on Tuesday also disclosed that the proposed ICT university would take off in September.
Justifying the decision to establish an ICT development bank, Shittu said the regular banks cannot cater for the needs of operators in the ICT industry because of the time it takes to develop ICT products and services, from conception to market.

The minister said the proposed bank was provided for in the ICT Roadmap which, he said, has been approved by the Federal Executive Council.
He said, “I am happy to inform you today that the Information and Communications Technology Roadmap has been approved by the Federal Executive Council.
“The ICT Roadmap is a fundamental component of the Economic and Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP 2017 to 2020) of the Federal Government.”
Preparatory to the kick off of the ICT university, the implementation committee headed by former Executive Secretary at the National University Commission, Prof. Julius Okogie, submitted its report to the minister on Monday.
According to the minister, the university will take off from the six locations where the Digital Bridge Institute has facilities.
Speaking at the event, Keynote Speaker and Presidential Candidate of the KOWA Party in the 2015 Presidential Election, Prof. Oluremi Sonaiya, advocated the use of electronic voting in general elections as well as in the proceedings of the National Assembly.