Education stakeholders have lauded the Federal Government’s ambitious target of achieving 95 per cent digital literacy by 2030 as both commendable and necessary, given the increasingly digital nature of the global economy and governance. They weigh in on collaboration between National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and the Ministry of Education, which has successfully integrated digital literacy into the national curriculum at all levels of education. They also dissect how to maximally achieve the digital literacy goals, asserting that the feasibility of the goals hinge on several critical factors, BOLA OLAJUWON and DAMOLA KOLA-DARE report.
Digital literacy is vital for national growth because it drives economic growth through innovation and skilled workforces, empowers citizens with access to information and e-services, promotes social inclusion by reducing the digital divide and enhances personal and national security by enabling cyber-security. It also fosters more informed, engaged citizens capable of participating in the digital society and economy.
The Federal Government must have put these vital points into consideration before recently announcing plans to achieve 95 per cent digital literacy among Nigerians by 2030, with a specific target of training and empowering at least 30 million citizens by 2027.
The Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Abdullahi, who was represented by the agency’s Director of Stakeholder Management, Aristotle Onumo, announced this in Abuja at the grand finale of the Tech4Dev Digital for All Challenge 2.0.
Abdullahi explained that NITDA was driving the initiative with the Federal Ministry of Education, through strategic partnerships, particularly with the National Youth Service Corps and educational institutions across the country.
“The DFA 2.0 competition aligns with NITDA’s vision. Our aim is to ensure that 95 per cent of Nigerians are digitally literate by 2030. By 2027, we want to see 30 million Nigerians trained and digitally empowered. We cannot do this alone, which is why we are working with partners,” he said.
Abdullahi, while highlighting the role of NYSC, noted that the agency had trained corps members as Digital Literacy Champions, who are now deployed nationwide.
“Currently, in every local government area of Nigeria, there are Digital Literacy Champions training citizens. Our portal also provides real-time data on the number of Nigerians trained so far,” he added.
He asserted that NITDA, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, had successfully integrated digital literacy into the national curriculum at all levels of education.
“Recently, digital literacy was officially launched as part of the curriculum for primary, secondary and tertiary institutions. At Nasarawa State University, for instance, digital literacy has been embedded into the General Studies programme. By the end of their first year, students are certified by Cisco, equipping them to participate in the digital economy,” he explained.
Abdullahi said civil servants were also being targeted to ensure efficiency and effective service delivery.
“For civil servants, digital literacy is now a compulsory component of promotion examinations. This is another step towards achieving our target of a digitally-literate nation by 2027,” he stated.
Ministry’s digital skills initatives under Alausa
The Federal Ministry of Education, under Tunji Alausa, has also initiated several digital skills programmes to drive the achievement of 95 per cent digital literacy programme.
According to the minister at a recent media briefing, the programmes are aimed at educational and digital literacy development among others.
The ministry has integrated digital literacy into the national curriculum at all levels of education as well as implementation of overhaul and upgrade of technical schools reform, training of teachers and payment of the stipends to pupils under Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) with N120 billion funding backing. The Future-Ready Curriculum for Basic, Secondary and tertiary education is part of the programme.
The government had also approved N80 billion for upgrading of unity schools, implementation of teachers development and digital re-skilling as well as digital innovation in education programmes.
The ministry embarked on a six-month free digital skills training programme targeting millions of Nigerians to bridge the skills gap in the country’s industrial and technology sectors.
Also being supported by the ministry is a microsoft-led initiative empowering youths (ages 16-35) with digital skills, from basic literacy to advanced tech training in areas like cloud computing, data science, and AI.
Other initiatives and focus areas of the ministry is N-Power Tech, a category of the N-Power scheme focusing on digital skills like software development, hardware repairs, and creative animation as well as digital job creation programme – an online programme with the Federal Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy to equip Nigerian youths with technical and social skills for global relevance.
The Federal Government, through the ministry, launched an Artificial Intelligence training programme to equip 6,000 selected senior secondary school teachers across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
The ministry also convened Science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) realignment taskforce among universities, polytechnics and monotechnics. It has committed to funding research in STEMM and leveraging innovation-driven solutions, including in digital literacy. It is also collaborating with universities, polytechnics, and monotechnics to align programmes with national priorities.
According to an official in the ministry, who craved anonymity, the above programmes are also aligned to drive educational as well as digital literacy in the country.
Stakeholders: digital literacy initiative is both commendable, necessary
Commenting on the digital literacy initiative, the National President of the Association of Nursery and Primary Education Instructors in Nigeria (ANPEIN) and a lecturer at the Lagos State University of Education (LASUED), Dr. Sunday Fowowe, said the Federal Government’s ambitious target to achieve 95 per cent digital literacy by 2030 was both commendable and necessary, given the increasingly digital nature of the global economy.
He noted that the feasibility of this goal hinged on several critical factors.
Fowowe said: “Firstly, accessibility is a key issue. While urban areas may have more access to technology and internet connectivity, rural regions often face significant barriers, including poor infrastructure, unreliable power supply, and limited internet access. For the target of empowering 30 million citizens by 2027 to be met, we need to ensure that both urban and rural populations are equally equipped with the resources and skills to thrive in a digital age.
“Secondly, sustainability is another concern. Digital literacy programmes require continuous investment, not only in training but also in maintaining the technological infrastructure needed for education. The rapid pace of technological advancements means that the training programmes must be regularly updated to remain relevant. We must also consider the socio-economic factors that influence access to devices like computers and smartphones, which are essential for digital learning.
“Lastly, integration into the curriculum is critical. For digital literacy to have a long-lasting impact, it should be systematically incorporated into the national curriculum from the primary level onwards (which has been done but waiting for the contents and the implementation). This would ensure that children grow up not only familiar with digital tools, but also capable of using them effectively in all aspects of life and learning.”
In terms of facilities and personnel, the don said: “The situation is mixed. The current state of infrastructure in many schools — especially public nursery and primary schools — poses a significant challenge. Many schools lack basic resources like computers, reliable internet, and even electricity, which are fundamental for digital learning. Thus, there would need to be substantial investments in infrastructure, including building digital classrooms and equipping schools with the necessary tools.
“As for personnel, there is a shortage of trained teachers who are proficient in digital tools and pedagogies. Our teachers, particularly at the nursery and primary levels, are often not adequately trained in technology integration. For a nationwide digital literacy initiative to succeed, there must be a strong focus on teacher training and professional development. We need to equip our educators not only with digital skills but also with the knowledge of how to effectively incorporate digital tools into their teaching methods. This would require collaboration with various education stakeholders, including state governments, educational bodies, and even the private sector.
“Moreover, the training of support staff — such as school IT technicians — is essential for the smooth running of digital facilities in schools. Without proper maintenance, digital infrastructure can quickly become obsolete or dysfunctional.
“While the goal of achieving 95 percent digital literacy by 2030 is ambitious, it is achievable if the necessary resources are invested in infrastructure, personnel training, and curriculum integration. There must be a coordinated effort across all levels of government, education stakeholders and the private sector to address the challenges of accessibility, equity and sustainability.”
Team Lead, NCAssociates EdTech Consulting and an EdTech specialist, Isaac-Joseph Olanrewaju, said the target was ambitious, but technically feasible for the 30 million by 2027 tranche only, if it is tightly defined, financed, delivered through multi-channel partnerships (NYSC, schools, telcos, private sector), and paired with robust assessment and inclusion measures.
He said achieving 95 per cent by 2030 was a much larger system transformation that would require sustained investment in schools, teachers, electricity, broadband, and adult literacy beyond a time-limited campaign.
According to him, suggested next actions for stakeholders include convening a 30-day technical working group involving NITDA, NYSC, telcos, donors, EdTech providers; agreeing to a clear competency standard and verification process; piloting a high-output training and assessment model in three states (urban, semi-urban, rural) and publishing independent results.
He also stressed the need to mobilise private sector (telcos, banks, platforms) for device/data bundling and employer-backed micro-credentials, adding that it was essential to embed teacher ICT training into teacher professional development as a long-term sustainability plank.
In an interview with The Nation, he said: “The federal target (95% by 2030; 30 million trained by 2027) is ambitious but partially achievable if the programme is massively scaled, funded, and run as a public–private partnership with clear definitions of “digital literacy,” strong monitoring, and delivery channels that reach rural and low-literacy groups.
“Internet access and device access are improving but still uneven: urban/rural and gender gaps persist; mobile is dominant. Broadband and reliable data are not universal. Digital skills (beyond basic internet use) are low in many cohorts. World Bank / NITDA papers indicate limited levels of computer use and digital literacy, and UNESCO/UNICEF reporting highlights that many teachers lack basic ICT skills. “Literacy (general reading/writing) and school enrolment challenges complicate adult digital literacy efforts — digital literacy programmes must be coupled to basic literacy where needed.”
On facility and personnel, he said: “Many rural areas still lack reliable power and fixed broadband; mobile networks are better but not universal. Scaling to 30 million trainees in two years requires rapid expansion of low-cost access points and device access. “Feasible if the programme leverages existing networks of schools and tertiary institutions, the NYSC and other federal platforms for mass mobilisation, private telecoms for subsidised data/devices, and community hubs with solar/battery power.
“NITDA has already signalled partnerships with NYSC and educational institutions. Surveys show many teachers lack basic ICT skills, a programme of this scale will need hundreds of thousands of trainers/ mentors up-skilled quickly.
“Fast scale requires a cascade training model — national master trainers, state trainers, LGA trainers, school/community facilitators. Recruit from volunteer pools (NYSC), private sector trainers, universities’ ICT departments, and NGOs. Certification and incentives will be necessary to maintain quality.
“Is 30 million by 2027 plausible? 30 million over 24 months equals 1.25 million people trained per month. That’s large but not impossible if delivered via multiple high-throughput channels, online self-study with verification, mass classroom sessions in schools/NYSC camps, telco-led campaigns, workplace training.
Key dependencies include clarity of what “trained” means (hours, competencies, assessment); certification/assessment capacity; funding for devices/data/centres; strong monitoring and verification to avoid double-counting. Without these, the headline number risks being a vanity figure.”
Recommended implementation roadmap
Isaac-Joseph said: “It is important to define the target competency framework and assessment, adopt a tiered, measurable digital literacy framework (e.g., basic — using phone/browser/email; intermediate — productivity tools, online safety; foundational — coding/data basics).
“Use NITDA’s National Digital Literacy Framework as starting point; align with international frameworks (e.g., UNESCO, World Bank).
“Use a mixed delivery model (parallel channels), integrate age-appropriate modules across primary, tertiary; use school ICT labs and teacher training cascades. Schools reach children at scale and secure long-term sustainability.
“NYSC and civil service mass training drives for corps members and public servants for rapid reach and multiplier effect, subsidised data / zero-rated training portals; employer-led up-skilling for workers. Community hubs & mobile vans including solar-powered hubs in under-served areas, weekend bootcamps. Deploy online self-paced courses for urban and connected users; issue verified certificates via proctored assessment.”
Vice Chancellor, African School of Economics, Abuja, Prof. Mahfouz Adedimeji, noted that it was quite feasible in that Nigeria has at least 150 million mobile phone users, adding that already about 110 million of them are active internet users. He said if 30 million of them are targeted for training, it is highly feasible.
“It is a commendable and welcome initiative on the part of the Federal Government. Feasibility? It is a walk in the park. Nigeria has at least 150 million mobile phone users. Already, about 110 million of them are active internet users. If 30 million of them are targeted for training, it is highly feasible.
“Facilities and personnel are not really difficult. If they are divided into groups or cohorts, provided with data, training can be done both physically and virtually or either way. “In this age of Artificial intelligence and Internet of things, competencies in Digital Literacy and Digital Skills are necessary as means to an end and as ends in themselves.
“It is delightful to know that the government appreciates the need to equip young Nigerians with the skills of the future and the future is now,” he said.
