Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country and largest economy, is home to more than 230 million people, with young people making up 60% of the population. Nigeria’s youth are notoriously hungry for education and opportunity, creating the perfect environment for digital technologies such as blockchain to thrive.
While in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, he came forward to reveal his plans for the BSV blockchain.
Explore education in your region and the role it will play in Nigeria’s digital revolution.
My first stop was Digital Nigeria, an annual conference dedicated to leveraging digital technologies to create jobs and grow the economy. One of the key partners of the event was the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) of Nigeria, led by NITDA Director-General Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi CCIE and Director Dr. We were given the opportunity to speak with Usman Abdullahi.
“We are in the digital age. It’s all about technology. People should come and immerse themselves in technology to experience the latest technologies and spark conversations about how to harness the power of these digital technologies,” Abdullahi said.
“Nigeria in particular, and Africa in general, is a continent with a young population. What we’re trying to look at is finding ways to increase youth productivity. The talent of Nigerian youths in particular is exceptional,” Abdullahi added.
“We think emerging technologies in general and blockchain in particular are areas that will be of much greater interest. “It will be something attractive enough for young people to think about,” he said.
BSV Academy has worked closely with NITDA to create a program to train 500,000 Nigerians in useful blockchain technology.
“We believe in Nigerians because they fundamentally have the power to create the future here,” said Evan Freeman, Director of Education at BSV Blockchain Association.
Freeman revealed that the Nigerian government and NITDA are very interested in the BSV blockchain, particularly because of its scalability and micropayment capabilities.
“Knowledge is the cornerstone of everything. This is why we are starting training and we are truly grateful to BSV Academy for this support,” said Abdullahi.
“Intelligent people will come up with many innovative ideas. In Nigeria and Africa in general, it is easy to take a leap forward with these emerging technologies. And by taking leaps, we can actually create social and economic impact,” he said.
Abdullahi added, “I think we are already creating the future. I think the future is already here and it’s coming faster than we expected.”
NITDA, with the help of Domineum founders, first introduced the BSV Academy concept at the 2022 Global Blockchain Convention (GBC) in Dubai. Abdullahi quickly recognized the opportunity and began working with the academy to provide Nigerian youth not only with new skills, but also with the business development to go along with those skills.
“You’re looking at a country with a fairly young, tech-savvy population that speaks English and is hungry. They want to build the future. They have many problems and challenges within their societies and countries that can be solved using BSV blockchain technology,” Freeman pointed out.
The first cohort of the BSV Academy program produced 12,000 graduates, ranging from university students to members of institutions within the Nigerian government. The academy plans to have 30,000 students participate in Cohort 2.
Freeman explained how content is delivered to students through a BSV-based “Get and Learn” platform. This means that if students answer assessments correctly, they will be rewarded with BSV through Centbee.
“We are not only educating individuals but also creating more users for the BSV ecosystem,” explained Freeman.
“By creating more users, you can actually allow the ecosystem to grow, not only from a personal perspective, but also from a business perspective. So we are sowing the field, so to speak,” he added.
Nigeria-based Yusuf Idi Maina, a BSV Academy graduate and NITDA mentor, traveled from his hometown to Abuja to attend Digital Nigeria. Maina first learned about blockchain in 2022, and through his academy course discovered sCrypt, a tool that simplifies BSV blockchain development.
Maina talked about the simplicity of sCrypt and its ability to onboard web2 developers to web3 without issues. Using tools like sCrypt, Maina, and our students have built a decentralized voting system and social media app that incentivizes users with generic non-fungible tokens (NFTs) thanks to the unique capabilities of BSV.
“The BSV blockchain is different. If you look deeper into the world of blockchain, you will realize that BSV blockchain is the blockchain of the future due to its specific features such as low transaction fees, scalability and speed, scalability and security,” Maina said.
It is Maina’s passion to highlight the difference between the usefulness of the BSV blockchain and the “cryptocurrency hype”. He even calls BSV “the future of the Internet.”
“Blockchain is so much more than (cryptocurrency), you can build amazing products on one blockchain that are worth millions of dollars, so we show (students) how to leverage blockchain and build real products beyond cryptocurrency. “There is,” he said.
Obinna Iwuno, President of the Blockchain Association of Nigeria, also attended Digital Nigeria. He said he is interested in interacting with Freeman and working closely with the BSV Academy to promote the unique capabilities of the BSV blockchain.
“We can have an African BSV community that understands the solutions the BSV blockchain provides. “I seek growth and development,” he emphasized.
Although BSV blockchain education has only just begun in Nigeria, a lot of progress has already been made. Our partnerships with NITDA, Domineum and organizations such as the Nigeria Blockchain Association and Digital Nigeria will accelerate the reach of the BSV Academy program as the engine of Nigeria’s digital revolution.
As Abdullahi said, the future is already here in Nigeria and BSV Academy is ready to take the path.
Watch: Digital Nigeria 2023 highlights Nigeria’s efforts to leapfrog into the modern world
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