The Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi revealed that blockchain technology will be used for the creation and verification of National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificates in Nigeria.
NYSC is a Nigerian program that requires graduates under the age of 30 to undergo a one-year national service period involving community development and intercultural integration projects.
The statement was made on the sidelines of a political dialogue with stakeholders, which focused on the implementation of the National Blockchain Policy. The meeting was organized by NITDA in collaboration with stakeholders from the Blockchain Technology Association of Nigeria (SiBAN).
The Chief Executive of NITDA said that the NYSC certificate has been the subject of significant forgery in Nigeria. As a result, the CEO approached NITDA for assistance and a mutual agreement was reached to help build a blockchain-based certificate authentication system. The initiative aims to host all NYSC certificates on the blockchain, providing a means for people to easily verify and authenticate them.
In addition, Abdullahi outlined a plan to provide certificates powered by blockchain technology to individuals who successfully complete training programs under NITDA. He also highlighted the willingness of the Central Bank of Nigeria to partner with the wider ecosystem.
According to the head of NITDA, blockchain has significant economic potential and there is a solid opportunity to realize the vast potential of blockchain technology and its application in certificate issuance. Abdullahi said:
“I believe that blockchain, with its potential to add $1.7 trillion to global GDP, will be a great technology for Nigeria to exploit. And if we position ourselves well based on the BWC report Nigeria could add about $40 billion to its GDP by 2030″.
A prominent voice of the meeting was that of SiBAN President Obinna Iwuno, who expressed a positive view on the future prospects of the sector. He emphasized that the government has taken a comprehensive view of our region and its future prospects.
As a result, it has begun to take a more general and comprehensive approach, expressing its desire to build an even stronger partnership with SiBAN, with the aim of ensuring a solid expansion of the industry.
Translation by Walter Rizzo
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