WE MUST KEY INTO TRANSFORMATIONAL TECHNOLOGY – DIRECTOR, SCI &TECH
By: Ngozi Dike-Nkemjika
The Director of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Department of Science, Technology and Innovation, Mr. Kolawole Olobashola, has called on staff and teachers within the schools under the Department to brace up to emerging transformational technologies, as it is paramount at this time when the world is rapidly advancing into a future defined by technology.
The Director made this call recently in Abuja while declaring open a one-day sensitisation workshop on Blockchain, Digital Assets Management and Artificial Intelligence, organised by the Department in partnership with Digital Assets Management Academy (DAMA).
The Director said that it is essential that staff are continuously trained on such applications to further reposition them to be at par with their contemporaries in ICT proficiency, considering how fast the world is moving in the application of digital technology.
“In this era of AI-facilitated businesses, computer-based assessments, robotic engineering, and regenerative technologies, our staff, teachers, students, and every other individual desiring enhanced accomplishment must sprint up with digital evolution,” He stated.
Giving an overview of Digital Assets, the CEO of DAMA Academy, Prince Ozioma Nwankwo, described it as an electronically stored item that exist in a digital format and has value or ownership rights.
He said the programme is categorised into Traditional Digital Assets, which do not require blockchain technology to prove ownership, and Blockchain Digital Assets, which are newer types of assets with a secure and transparent digital ledger to record ownership and transactions, having core features such as decentralisation, immutability, consensus, trust, and transparency.
Prince Nwankwo stressed that the concept of blockchain digital assets and artificial intelligence are no longer futuristic as they are already reshaping industries, economies, governance and people’s daily activities.
He therefore called on industrialists, SMSEs as well as government agencies to seize the new opportunities being created by digital assets management to boost entrepreneurship and gain access to global markets and investment tools previously out of reach.
Delivering a brief on Artificial Intelligence, Mr. Moses Obaje refers to AI as a branch of computer science that develops machine systems capable of demonstrating behaviors linked to human intelligence.
He said AI programmes use collected data to improve the way they mimic humans so as to perform tasks such as learning, planning, and presentation; thereby revolutionising problem-solving, from predicting healthcare and smart agriculture to education and urban planning.
Obaje stressed that AI application is a necessity for all, particularly for young minds in developing nations, noting that with AI, people can build smarter businesses, create faster solutions, and unleash a wave of innovation that transforms how they work, learn, and live.
“As a transformative force, applying AI in education will change the way humans of all ages learn, such as in natural language processing, facial recognition, digital textbooks, smart classrooms, and many more,” he explained.
Concluding, he said the AI may come with its own challenges but called on youths, inventors, and entrepreneurs to see beyond challenges and position themselves as creators, developers, and leaders in the global digital economy, building a stronger and more prosperous society.
