Omobola Johnson
.jpg)
Omobola Johnson (born 28 June 1963) is a Nigerian technocrat and the Honorary Chairperson of the global Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI). She is also a former and first Minister of Communication Technology in the cabinet of President Goodluck Jonathan. She is also the founding chairperson and trustee of Women in Management in Business and Public Service (WIMBIZ), a non-governmental organization she co-founded in 2001, and a trustee of the World Economic Forum’s Future of the Internet Initiative. Additionally, a fellow of the Aspen Global Leadership Network, the engineer and ICT expert. Between August 2010 and July 2011, she worked as an independent director for the now-defunct Diamond Bank Plc. In 2011, she also held the position of director at Custodian and Allied Insurance Plc. [1]
Quotes
[edit]- Co-working spaces are important for the development of the young tech ecosystem in Nigeria.
- A Co-working space operator cannot be a Real Estate manager; co-working spaces need to be managed by people interested in collaboration with, and growth of, the tech ecosystem.
- IF WE DON'T TRY TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM OF GENDER INEQUALITY, NOBODY IS GOING TO SOLVE IT FOR US.
- The digital transformation of Africa is no longer a luxury or a nice-to-have. It has become a necessity; a necessity spawned in fact by Africa’s developmental agenda setters. This is because none of our documented aspirations - the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Agenda 2063 – the Africa we want, Africa Continental Free Trade Area, Boosting Intra Africa trade, the Single African Air Transport Market can be achieved without significant advancements in information and communication technology.
- The narrative and hype that we hear about digital transformation is again being largely fueled by what people see. And what do they see – they see the tremendous opportunity and potential that is before us to truly transform this continent through digital technology.
- About 50% of Africans own a mobile phone; another 15- 20% who do not own a mobile phone have access to one, making the mobile phone access rate about 65-70%. Arising from this is a paradox: more Africans have access to mobile phones than to pretty much anything else that they really need – only 28% of Africans have access to financial services, only 33% have access to power through their home country’s national grid and only 31% have access to decent sanitation.
- Africa doesn’t have enough software developers, network and communication engineers, data analysts, data scientists and even the few that we have are looking for the next opportunity to board a plane to Canada, Germany or whichever country is the highest bidder for the world class skills that they possess.
- It is not enough to say that women are less likely to own a phone or be connected to the internet than men, which is by itself a serious problem of gender inclusion that needs addressing.
- The goal of universal access requires several billions of dollars to be invested in the expansion and improvement of digital infrastructure across Africa. African governments need to make it easier for both private and public capital to be deployed to finance the expansion of internet/digital infrastructure. All African countries must have a coherent, well-articulated and documented broadband plan that provides the public and private sector with clear guidelines and a roadmap to sector development and gives mobile network operators and other infrastructure providers the legal and regulatory certainty that promotes investments.
- Africa needs to prioritize the funding of institutes of middle and higher learning that focus on the development of STEM skills and ensure that the curriculum for these courses are aligned with the needs of companies in the market.
- There are 1 billion Africans and the continent’s median age is 19.4 years, both of which suggest there is a larger demographic pool of potential STEM students and eventually, professionals, in Africa than in most other continents.
