The Federal Government has intensified efforts to close Nigeria’s digital gender divide with the empowerment of over 3,700 girls through the 2026 National Girls in ICT Competition, a nationwide initiative aimed at building a stronger pipeline of female tech innovators.

The programme, driven by the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy, reached its climax on Friday with a grand finale and a celebratory dinner at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, where the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, joined as Special Guest of Honour.

The initiative, now in its fourth edition, drew participation from girls across all six geopolitical zones, with regional teams advancing through stages of training, mentoring, and innovation challenges focused on real-world problems in healthcare, education, agriculture, accessibility, and public service delivery.

Addressing the participants, the First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, commended the girls for their ingenuity, describing them as active contributors to national development rather than passive beneficiaries.

“I applaud the innovation and creativity displayed by our girls. Your solutions remind us that young people are not merely beneficiaries of change; they are key drivers of change,” she said.

The First Lady urged the participants to remain confident in their abilities and continue to harness technology for societal impact, noting that initiatives such as the Code Clubs programme reflect a broader national commitment to digital inclusion and youth empowerment.

In his remarks, the Minister of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, said the scale of participation demonstrated that talent is widely distributed across the country and only needs opportunity to thrive.

“Tonight has reminded us of something very important; talent is everywhere in Nigeria and opportunity must be provided everywhere too. We have seen creativity, confidence, innovation, and problem-solving from all regions of the country,” Tijani noted.

He added that empowering girls in science, technology, engineering and mathematics remained central to Nigeria’s ambition of building a competitive digital economy, stressing that inclusion was both a moral and economic necessity.

The competition’s grand finale, held earlier at the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) Annex in Abuja, featured presentations from six regional finalist teams before a panel of judges drawn from government, industry, academia, and the innovation ecosystem.

At the end of the contest, Hands that Speak from the Special Education Centre, Bauchi State, representing the North East, emerged overall winner with SignCare, a digital health accessibility platform designed to improve communication between deaf patients and healthcare providers.

Other top performers included Team Divas from Cross River State (South South), which placed second; Team Resonance from Abia State (South East), which came third; Team FarmShield 360 from Kano State (North West), fourth; Team Tech Expert from the Federal Capital Territory (North Central), fifth; and Team Elite from Osun State (South West), which placed sixth.

Goodwill messages were delivered by key digital economy stakeholders, including Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi (National Information Technology Development Agency), Jane Egerton-Idehen (NIGCOMSAT), and Tola Odeyemi (Nigerian Postal Service), all of whom encouraged the participants to deepen their engagement in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

They praised the participants for their creativity and urged sustained investment in youth innovation as a pathway to national development.

The initiative, according to organisers, is part of broader efforts to bridge the gender gap in technology, strengthen digital literacy, and ensure that young girls are not left behind in Nigeria’s ongoing digital transformation agenda.