From: Walter Ukaegbu, Abuja
Minister of Communications, Adebayo Shittu, has commended the Hewlett Packard (HP) Nigeria for being on the forefront to take the initiative of collaborating with the ministry in the establishment of ICT University of Nigeria (UICT).
He stated this during a meeting with Hewlett at seeking areas of collaboration in the development of UICT.
He challenged the HP to prepare to adopt one of the campuses, focused on a specialized area and develop it to a Smart Campus for business interest, adding that the vision to open UICT was predicated upon findings that most Nigerian ICT related graduates lacked skills and also with the availability of infrastructure at the Digital Bridge Institute (DBI) among others.
He urged the HP to develop a business model, creating areas of entrepreneurship which would ensure that graduates of the ICT University become self employed; advising them to send in their proposals for consideration and a possible signing of an MoU, soon.
MD, HP Nigeria, Chukwuma Okpaka, said the visit was to intimate the minister of the willingness to collaborate on ICT capacity development and rollout, with special interest in the proposed establishment of UICT.
He also said his organization was ready to venture into content and ICT infrastructure road-map development for the regional institutions coupled with smart-campus roadmap development, rollout, and support; with special discount to the ministry on purchases of Hewlett Packard Products and Services.