SSDC Partners NITDA to Drive Digital Skills, Youth Innovation in South-South

The South South Development Commission (SSDC) has taken a major step toward positioning the South-South region as a hub for digital innovation, as it moves to strengthen collaboration with the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) to expand youth-focused technology programmes.

The Managing Director of SSDC, Ms. Usoro Akpabio, during a courtesy visit to the Director General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, on Tuesday at the Agency’s headquarters in Abuja, said the Commission is determined to unlock the region’s vast digital potential through strategic partnerships.

Akpabio noted that the South-South boasts a large, tech-savvy youth population whose potential can be fully harnessed through structured digital skills development, innovation support, and improved access to ICT opportunities.

She stressed that collaboration with NITDA would help bridge critical digital skills gaps, open up employment pathways, and stimulate innovation-driven growth across the six states of the region.

Describing NITDA as a pivotal institution in Nigeria’s digital transformation drive, the SSDC helmswoman said the Agency’s leadership in ICT infrastructure development and capacity building aligns with the Commission’s mandate of fostering sustainable socio-economic development in the South-South.

In his remarks, NITDA Director General, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, expressed the Agency’s readiness to partner with SSDC in deploying technology-driven initiatives aimed at youth empowerment, innovation expansion, and economic diversification.

The engagement reflects a growing synergy between federal digital economy initiatives and regional development strategies, with stakeholders optimistic that the South-South is well positioned to emerge as a leading centre for digital talent and technology-driven enterprise in Nigeria.

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