Samuel Mobolaji
Key figures from Nigeria’s non-profit sector convened at the 2024 Microsoft AI for Social Good Summit in Lagos, advocating for expanded use of artificial intelligence (AI) to drive social impact.
The event gathered Audrey Odogu, Philanthropies Team Lead, Microsoft Nigeria; Nonye Ujam, Government Affairs Lead, Microsoft Nigeria, Odunayo Sanya, Executive Director , MTN Foundation; Dr. Bayo Adekanmbi, CEO/Co-Founder of Data Science Nigeria; Dr. Oladipupo Sennaike, Lecturer at the Department of Computer Sciences, University of Lagos and Mr. Sunday Taiwo, GIEVA Head of ICT and Vice President.
Speaking at the event, the Executive Director of MTN Foundation, Odunayo Sanya noted that despite a lot of efforts, training and projects put in place to impact lives and develop digital skills, there is still a lot to be done.
“There is a lot of training and upskilling, however, it is important that we continue. We need to structure our plannings. For instance, every year for the past two years, we train around 8,000 young people.
“We need to come together and make an impact, and then it’s no longer about MTN Foundation, but a lot more about those young people we want to reach.. We also need to put a structure behind all we are doing as non-profit organizations, this will give intervention programmes a life of its own and it will attract its own resources.
“Nigeria is a nation of young people by demography. We need to get a digital skills curriculum into the classroom. We need to do things differently to get things done accordingly. Understanding the power of technological skills will help our young ones do things differently.”
Also, the CEO/Co-Founder of Data Science Nigeria, Dr Bayo Adekanmbi, highlighted the importance of AI adoption among non-profits for humanitarian causes and sustainable development.
“There’s a critical need to nurture talent and innovate for Nigeria’s future,” Adekanmbi emphasised.
MTN Foundation, a key corporate social investment arm of MTN Nigeria, recently collaborated with Microsoft and Meta to empower young Nigerian entrepreneurs with ICT and business skills, underscoring their commitment to fostering innovation and sustainable growth in Nigeria’s business ecosystem.
