Church of God Mission International (CGMI), Garden City, Lekki, Lagos, recently, gathered IT experts, industry leaders and other stakeholders in a conference, tagged: “The Roundtable Lekki” where discussion on how Nigerian youths could leverage the opportunities in tech space to earn a living was held.

With the topic: “Winning Through Innovation: The Tech Advantage,” experts at the event described what is happening in the techspace as one of the simplest ways to create jobs and reduce unemployment in the country.

They urged Nigerian youths to appropriate the opportunities offered to resolve problems for themselves and the society.

The founder of Interswitch, Mitchell Elegbe, explained that building tech-driven solutions in a growing business environment like Nigeria and Africa, would resolve the increasing unemployment and better global competitiveness.

For any business to survive, Elegbe said there is a need for proper strategy, innovation, solutions and service delivery.

Highlighting the use of AI, he said: “Like every new technology, AI has its good and bad sides. AI is known to boost productivity, but it could potentially change the way we work, meaning some people could lose their jobs.”

On his own part, founding Partner at Future Africa, IyinoluwaAboyeji argued that adopting technology would make one more productive and efficient.

Aboyeji said: “If you adopt technology, it tends to make you more productive. And when you are more productive, you are able to do things faster and better than people who do not use technology.

“I am sure you would not be asking whether a computer is a threat to people who were typists. People simply have to learn how to use computers, so, they could become as efficient as those already using them.”

Allaying fears that AI is taking over new and existing jobs, Aboyeji said: “AI is not coming for your job, but if you don’t learn it, then the people who have learnt how to use AI will come for your job.”

Convener of The Roundtable Lekki, Chris Ubamadu, said the desire to solve societal problems inspired the mission to organise the event.

According to him, “we want to help people increase their earning capacity, become economically empowered, and reduce poverty in the land.

The host and Zonal Coordinator, Church of God Mission, Victoria Island Zone, OsasObaisiagbon, stressed that they focused on tech this year, because it would provide the necessary leverage for Nigerians, especially young people, to become technically self-employed and independent, rather than waiting for government jobs.

He said: “If you look through the history of technology, you will see that the Internet has created more millionaires than the industrial revolution. In this era of artificial intelligence, we also believe AI will produce even more millionaires than the Internet age did. Our aim is to open people’s eyes to the opportunities the tech world.”

In the same vein, Chairman of the organising committee, Omoregie Samuel, said: “We are in an era of rapid technological evolution where technology has become highly accessible. Regardless of economic status or location, people now have greater access to technology than ever before.”

Advising Nigerian youths, Omoregie,noted that no matter how saturated one thinks the tech sector is, there are still space for everyone, adding that there is always an opportunity to innovate and create solutions that can make a difference.