The minister of communications and digital economy, Bosun Tijani, has stated that advancing an artificial intelligence (AI)-skilled civil service is important to leveling up productivity and service delivery across government parastatals.
This was made available to the public in a statement released on Thursday at the launch of a Google-backed AI training programme for public servants, held in partnership with Apolitical, a global learning platform for government officials.
The drive aims to provide workers with the proficiency needed to apply AI responsibly and effectively in the public sector.
“We see Artificial Intelligence as a major driver of productivity across our key sectors. We have been putting resources into ensuring that we can support our civil servants and our public service in a manner that AI can become something that is native to them,” the minister said at the event held in Abuja.
The programme, titled: “Government AI Campus” is executed in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy.
A fact-finding by Apolitical shows that even though 72 per cent of leaders in government globally are using AI pilots, more than half of them lack a comprehensive strategy for adoption. The organisation evaluates that every dollar invested in AI has the possibility to add more than eight dollars to the economy, underlining the importance of building AI literacy within the public service.
The plan is to draw the government workers from different countries including Nigeria, Brazil, Kenya, and Ghana, while acknowledging as many interested Nigerian participants as possible.
The programme is focusing Nigerian public servants across ministries, departments and agencies as part of Google’s broader commitment to train one million government workers globally on AI skills.
The participants in the program will have access to online training enveloping AI fundamentals, leadership and implementation, expert-led events, tools and frameworks that can help them apply AI knowledge within their roles.
Training that encompasses AI fundamentals, leadership applications and practical tools, which will help integrate AI in policy and service delivery will also be thought.
Google’s West Africa Director, Olumide Balogun stated that the collaboration reflects the company’s belief that investing in people is critical to Nigeria’s digital transformation.
“Championing Nigeria’s digital transformation means investing in the people who shape its future,” he said.
“By working hand-in-hand with public sector leaders and practitioners, we are not only providing technical resources but sharing knowledge that empowers them to deliver better, more efficient government services.”
The vice president of Apolitical, Chris Ferguson, described the initiative as introducing effort to nourish governance and build confidence among public servants by adopting new technologies.
“Structured training is the cornerstone for successful AI adoption in government,” he said.
“This initiative is a pioneering effort that will equip Nigerian public servants with the capabilities to lead the digital transformation with confidence and foresight.”
According to Adewolu, Google’s objective is to make technology accessible not only to the private sector but also to policymakers.
