The Federal Government has secured more than N6.45 billion in private sector backing to expand the 3 Million Technical Talent programme nationwide. The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, announced the development on Thursday at the 3MTT National Impact Summit held at the State House Banquet Hall in Abuja. He said the commitments from IHS, MTN, and Airtel would help strengthen training infrastructure, deepen community engagement, and widen access for young Nigerians preparing for careers in technology.
According to a presentation obtained by The PUNCH, IHS pledged N2.5 billion, MTN committed N2.95 billion, and Airtel supported the initiative with N1 billion. Tijani linked the programme’s rapid progress to strong national demand and ongoing reforms led by President Bola Tinubu in the digital economy sector. He said, “Every agenda of his administration and all the reforms that he’s made are solely for the average Nigerian,” noting that the summit also served to acknowledge the President’s contribution to the country’s digital economy.
Highlighting interventions that restored investor confidence, Tijani referenced the National Data Protection Commission Act, the 2023 launch of 3MTT, the approval of a $2 billion, 90,000-kilometre fibre project, the designation of telecom infrastructure as critical national assets, and tariff adjustments for operators. He also detailed earlier private-sector support, explaining that IHS was the first to back the programme with N1 billion at its launch and later invested N1.5 billion to rehabilitate a damaged tech park in Kano. MTN contributed N3 billion for training, devices, and data, while Airtel supported the 3MTT NextGen stream with N1 billion.
“These gave us the foundation to produce what you’re seeing in the room today,” Tijani said. He added that non-cash support from global technology firms, including AWS, Google, Huawei, and Microsoft, further strengthened the programme. The minister said the overwhelming public response showed that 3MTT was addressing a real national need, with more than 1.8 million Nigerians applying within the first month from all states and local government areas. Applicants registered using NIN or BVN to ensure unique identification.
Tijani explained that the programme is being carried out in phases. The first phase trained 30,000 learners starting in December 2023, the second expanded to one million trainees by July 2024, and the final phase aimed at training three million Nigerians is scheduled to begin next year. He reported that direct employment from the first phase already exceeds 15,000, with many fellows earning above N250,000. The government has activated 201 applied learning centres across the country and engaged 583 learning partners and 37 community managers to support implementation.
He also highlighted job placement efforts, noting that the European Union and UNDP, through the Jubilee Fellows Programme, provided funding for internship placements, helping fellows move into employment at no cost to host organisations. President Tinubu, represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, said Nigeria’s goal of becoming a $1 trillion economy depends on sustained investment in digital skills and the productivity of its youth. He said, “The countries that lead the world today are those that invest purposefully in the skills of their young population,” stressing that digital skills now matter across agriculture, healthcare, finance, manufacturing, education, and public service.
Launched in October 2023 by the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, the 3MTT programme aims to train three million Nigerians in digital and technical skills by 2027, focusing on software development, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and data science through both online and in-person learning in all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
