Foundation To Give Youths N90m ICT, Business Skills Equipment 

MTN Foundation, has announced the opening of applications to its MTN ICT and Business Skills Training, a youth development initiative “aimed at equipping young entrepreneurs between 18 and 35 years with tech-enabled skills to keep their small businesses relevant and competitive”.
The Foundation says the training will be delivered through a 5-week online programme which includes Masterclasses from key industry experts.
According to information on the foundation’s website, “Participants will be given data for the duration of the programme to support a seamless learning experience. Not only that, the top 300 participants will be supported with an Equipment Grant worth N90,000,000.
“The training is in partnership with some of our ecosystem partners – Oracle, KPMG, IBM, Digital Bridge Institute, CISCO, Google, Meta, and Microsoft.
“Five Phases of the ICT and Business Skills Training have been implemented in 16 states since 2018.
“They are Abia, Adamawa, Akwa-Ibom, Anambra, Borno, Cross River, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kogi, Lagos, Nasarawa, Oyo and Rivers. So far, 4,036 young people have completed this programme”.
The programme, now in its 6th phase, will see 3000 youths participate this time, with a promise for bigger impact due to its partnership with Microsoft and Meta, the foundation says.
“Microsoft will train participants on Entrepreneurship in the Digital Age, ICT for Business Success and their new Generative AI skills.
“Meta will train participants on Skills to Build Brands and Grow Businesses Online through their Meta Boost for Small Business”, according to information on its website.