Less than 50 per cent of Nigerians are computer literate, Dr Emmanuel Okonta, Chairman of the Delta Chapter of the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS), said in Asaba on Thursday.  

Okonta told newsmen that the situation was due to the lack of sufficient awareness of the essence of Information Communication Technology (ICT) among Nigerians.

He said that the condition was worse in sub-urban and rural areas in the country, where little or nothing was known about ICT.

The chairman said that the situation was unlikely to improve unless efforts were made to enlighten the populace on the imperative of computer literacy.

He also said that there was the need to deploy more ICT materials in the country.

Okonta said, “ICT materials available in the country and, indeed Africa, are so insufficient that they are less than 50 per cent of the materials deployed in New York alone.’’

He pointed out that majority of Nigerians were unaware of the impact of ICT on the country’s economic and political development.

He described information as a resource and said that the major problem facing ICT development in the country was that there were lots of “analogue” information technology managers in a digital age.

Okonta regretted that the people, who should make ICT work in the country had been displaced by those “who know nothing about ICT’’.

He said that the conference would expose participants to the merits of e-payment being introduced by the Federal Government, noting that it would help to decongest offices and safe guard revenue.

On Internet fraud, Okonta said that greed was central to it, as majority of the victims were people who wanted to cut corners and were not contented with what they had.  He, however, said that Internet fraud could be checked if the level of security in the country was enhanced and ICT professionals were alive to their responsibilities.

The NSC chairman advocated the establishment of a regulatory body for ICT service providers, adding that the body would monitor and control their operations.