NCS President, Prof. Sodiya Restates Commitment to Empowerment of Tech Innovators
The President, Nigeria Computer Society, Prof. Adesina Sodiya has restated his commitment to empowering tech innovators in Nigeria.
He made this known during a press conference to update Nigerians on the operations of Africa’s largest computer professional association, according to DigiVation Network.
While speaking at the Nigeria Computer Society’s national secretariat in Alausa-Ikeja, Prof. Sodiya hailed the society’s exponential development in membership strength and chapters distributed across the country as proof of his leadership’s remarkable achievements.
According to him, the number of NCS state chapters has grown from the nine he met when his executive board was constituted to 27, with promises of more to come soon. He believes the organization’s total membership is roughly 15,000 people.
The NCS President, who is also a lecturer at the prestigious Federal University of Agriculture in Abeokuta, Ogun State, spoke about the impact of the NIN SIM linkage on Nigeria and how it will help the government and the general public resolve security issues that have become a source of concern for both the government and the general public.
According to Prof. Sodiya, NIMC’s decision is excellent, and that this policy will only serve to accurately identify Nigerians, allowing perpetrators of current security breaches to be tracked down and apprehended in the long run.
He stated that Tech Innovation Development Programme was developed because innovation and supporting young innovators are still central to the Society’s mission in his administration. This program, he said, will ensure that innovators are mentored and supported, particularly those who strive to solve Nigeria’s current concerns.
The NCS president discussed the upcoming NCS Pantami Hackathon and the goods that will be launched during the event to better support the Society’s goal of funding innovation.
“We expect to see a presentation of items related to developing technology, anti-corruption, security, intelligence gathering, and a variety of other topics.”
Sodiya further explained that the NCS was working with NITDA and other agencies, as well as stakeholders and the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy’s office, whom he described as a champion of innovation and a visionary leader in the pursuit of a digitally vibrant Nigeria.
He also revealed that the AI apps unveiled at the recently concluded AI Summit in Nasarawa are absolutely exceptional, and he reassured the developers that their work is being actively monitored and supervised by experts to ensure that the apps see the light of day.
“We are committed to ensuring the success of the AI Summit in Nasarawa extends beyond a mere exhibition; our intention is to put in place a nurturing process to integrate the benefits of the solutions and see them through to maturity,” he said.
The NCS President raised reservations about Nigeria’s readiness to absorb emerging technology, such as those used to scale up our agriculture industry in other countries.
He urged inventors to begin thinking in this approach so that Nigerians might employ locally developed innovations to address the country’s own issues before thinking globally.
On the use of technology in electoral processes, the president said that the BVAS card reader upgrade used in the 2021 Anambra election is a step in the right direction, but that more collaboration between the NCS and INEC is needed in monitoring the electoral process, especially in the use of technology, and that fully adopting eVoting is the only way to get credible results.
The NCS president expressed the Society’s desire to see an inspiring political leader emerge to lead Nigeria. “In today’s society,” the NCS President stated, “we are expecting a tech-savvy political leadership because they want to ensure that the future president would take ICT and technology solutions very seriously.”
He emphasized the country’s examination malpractice problem while applauding JAMB for its efforts in conducting computer-based tests and encouraging WAEC and NECO to take a page from JAMB’s book.
The NCS President appreciated the government and people of Nasarawa State for their strong support during the recently ended AI Summit in Nasarawa. Nasarawa was chosen for the summit, he continued, since its governor, Engr Abdullahi Sule, is the NCS’s Digital Governor of the Year. The Summit was held to assess young Nigerians’ readiness to compete in AI and robotics against global competition.
Prof. Sodiya, on the other hand, feels that without government support, little will be accomplished in AI and robotics.
He stated that the organization is seeking to build a partnership with the government in order to implement AI and robotics.
“We feel that automating government operations is a good place to start before completely smart cities may be realized in the future,” he explained.
He concluded his press conference by mentioning the country’s security challenges, which clearly affect everyone.
It is possible, according to the president, to monitor and follow criminals throughout the country using technology and command devices, unmanned vehicles, listening devices, and other means.
Prof. Sodiya stated his discontent with the way the country’s insecurity issues are being handled, but he believes that with proper technological adoption, they may be fully eliminated.