TECH DIGEST- Khalil Halilu the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) and founder of KSH Foundation has charged it newly unveiled Fellows with utilisation of tech skills for community development.

Mr Halilu gave this advice while fielding questions from journalists in Abuja on Thursday at the unveiling ceremony of 15 young girls who participated in the 90-day immersive phase of the EveryGirl 2.0 (Girl Connect) Initiative training programme organised by the foundation.

The event-themed, “Empowering Tomorrow’s Women, One Connection at a Time,” featured the young fellows sharing their experience with the EveryGirl Initiative with a focus on their internet connectivity learning.

“Mainly, you see young people, especially in their teens, facing a critical gap when making career decisions after completing secondary school and planning for tertiary education. This is a make-or-break point for them.

“The idea is to provide them with mentorship, support, tools, gadgets, and some initial capital to start and run one or two businesses. It is okay if they fail, as the main goal is to gain experience and pair them with mentors who can show them how businesses are run in the real world, thereby encouraging them.

“It is not easy to be selected from among so many Nigerians. A significant amount of resources have been invested in their training, and mentors have generously given their time. Therefore, they should not take this opportunity for granted, and they should utilise it to make a difference in their various communities,” Mr. Halilu stated.

Commenting on how to encourage the participation of vulnerable and downtrodden at the grassroots across the country he said, “We hope this programme will reach them one day. When we started, we began with 100 girls, and now we are talking about nearly 400, so we hope to continue expanding it. We also welcome other partners to join us in boosting and expanding this programme”.

The Fellows include; Unwana Benson, Ogunwale Praise Ifemid, Owei Sylvia, Peter Chidimma, Samson Deborah Testimony, Fatima Sanusi, Sidiqat Usman, Adetunji Lateefah Adedoyin, Saka Amirah Demilade, Ogechi Grace Abayomi, Precious Nwaobasi Udoka, Helen Abbey Paul, Eze Mmesoma Favour, Fawziyyah Muhammad and Unwana Okposin drawn across six geo-political zones of the country.

Recall that KSH Foundation select 15 exceptional young girls for the immersive phase EveryGirl 2.0 from a pool of 300 who participated in the virtual training phase.

The post Utilise Tech Skill for Community Development, KSH Foundation Charges Fellows appeared first on Tech Digest News.

KSH Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to leveraging technology to bridge social gaps for early development, has achieved significant recognition in the IEEE Connecting the Unconnected Challenge for its project, “Girl Connect.”

The foundation secured first place in the community enablement category and was also honored with a special prize for gender inclusion by USAID for their visionary plans with the Girl Connect initiative.

The IEEE Connecting the Unconnected Challenge is an annual global competition that seeks solutions from start-ups, grassroots organizations, universities, or individuals with projects or ideas that offer unique ways to increase Internet access and usage for unconnected populations and to bridge the digital divide in innovative ways.

“We are thrilled to have our project selected as a winner amongst the many submissions that the challenge received, said Augustina Okpechi, Project Lead at KSH Foundation. “This recognition from IEEE and USAID is a validation of our commitment to bridging the digital divide and ensuring that all individuals, especially young women, have access to the opportunities provided by technology. We see this acknowledgment as a pat on the back, driving us to carry on with more determination.”

The Girl Connect project is a spin-off of KSH Foundation’s flagship project, EveryGirl. While EveryGirl focused on tech-enablement, Girl Connect aims to empower communities to choose to use the Internet where previously they did not by providing them with a means to
access the Internet and educating them on the opportunities it offers, fostering a choice to embrace the digital world.

“The gender digital divide remains a key priority area for us at KSH Foundation, and in keeping with our founder’s vision, Girl Connect offers us the support and leverage to equip more girls in underserved communities across Nigeria with access to the empowering world of the internet and provide them with the tools to harness it’s potential to uplift themselves and their communities. We are grateful for the support from IEEE and USAID as partners for progress and look forward to delivering an impactful program”, Farida Yahya, Project Coordinator, EveryGirl.

EveryGirl; Girl Connect will be launching in the second quarter of the year. For more information, please visit everygirl.com.ng.

The post KSH Foundation Wins IEEE Connecting the Unconnected Challenge with “Girl Connect” Project appeared first on Tech Digest News.

TECHDIGEST- A newly-formed enterprise, Development Outliers Nigeria Limited, has been ranked as the second best startup by the American Founders Institute in Abuja.

With the recognition, the Outliers has become a portfolio company of Silicon Valley’s Founders Institute, the world’s largest pre-seed accelerator.

The founder and CEO of the company, is a young Northern entrepreneur, Mr. Abubakar Gana.

PRNigeria gathered that out of over 650 start-ups CEOs who applied, Gana was rated as the 2nd best Founder from the over 40 startups that were admitted into the Fall Cohort since October 2022.

READALSO: NCC Renews Commitment to Industry Collaboration, Inclusiveness

The Outliers was awarded a business consultancy service by KSH Foundation for emerging 2nd position at the end of the four-month mentorship program.

Mr. Gana, whose goal is to create a social enterprise that impact on the lives of people in the community expressed delight with the recognition,

He urged parents to encourage their children to be self-reliant and job creators through mentorship and skill acquisition programmes.

“I must commend my parents for supporting my inspirations through ensuring that I got the best education, acquired skills and encourage to relate with friends of like minds.

“I must add that parents in Northern Nigeria, Arewa for short should do more in this direction since job space in politics and public service are limited due to the current economic climate,” he added.

The Founder Institute is an American business incubator, entrepreneur training and startup launch program that was founded in Palo Alto, California in 2009.

Based in Silicon Valley, The Founder Institute has branches in over 180 cities in more than 65 nations across the globe.

In order to entrench business enterprises, the institute offers a four-month part-time program for new and early-stage entrepreneurs so as to helps them develop their business ideas and form a company.

However, the creation of a fully operational company is among the key requirements for graduation at the end of the four-month program.

By PRNigeria

The post Outliers Nigeria Becomes Portfolio Company of US Silicon Valley Institute appeared first on Tech Digest News.