President Bola Tinubu during a meeting with delegations from Meta Platforms Incorporated, led by former UK Deputy Prime Minister and Meta’s President of Global Affairs, Sir Nick Clegg in Abuja on Thursday delegations has said that his administration is sustaining investments in digital technology to enhance the sustainability of small businesses, expand opportunities across sectors, and propel Nigeria to become the lodestar of information and communications technology in Africa.

Tinubu said Nigeria cannot afford to be left behind in this age of technological advancements and that is why this current administration is opening up channels of opportunities in information and communications technology, deepening capacity, and fostering partnerships.

Speaking about the 3MTT program, that is training three million Nigerian youths in digital technology and essential skills before deploying them to innovation hubs across the nation, the president emphasized that Nigerian youths are the most critical asset in Nigeria’s arsenal as it moves to achieve digital economic expansion.

The president said “For us in Nigeria, we have a vibrant, gifted and resourceful youth population. Recognizing that the future is most likely to be AI-enabled, we have to prepare our youths and make them ready to compete and participate in the global economy.

“I can assure you that Nigeria is open for business. We want to lead the African continent in digital technology. Data is valuable to our development. We are ready to cooperate on technological advancements. It is the only way to go. We need a collaboration that will be a win-win for all”.

Sir Clegg on the other hand appreciated the President for giving the Executive order to enable the landing of Meta – backed deep-sea cable in Nigeria.

He said that by June 2024, Meta will introduce a new feature that will enable content creators to get rewarded for their content.

In the meeting was also the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani who said platforms such as Meta are critical to the development of digital infrastructure in Nigeria and it will also create more opportunities for our people to share in the global prosperity.