Tech giants, Microsoft and the Cross River State Government have entered into a partnership to establish an ICT/Data Academy in Calabar.
This development is a boost to the efforts of Governor Ben Ayade to make Calabar the first smart city in Nigeria.
Speaking in his office at the end of a technical session with representatives of Microsoft, Ayade said the partnership will define the roadmap for the digital transformation of the state.
“Let me thank Microsoft for the partnership. It is a demonstration of confidence in Cross River to start a digital transformation of the first African city that will be the first smart city,”the governor said
He explained the key objectives of the partnership was to create opportunities for young men and women to develop an ICT paradigm, a data management academy to teach and educate them on data management, particularly on the proposed ICT platform. The governor opined that through the Microsoft/Cross River partnership, digital transformation objectives will be achieved for young Africans using the platform to market their talent and products.