Caption: L-R: David Daser, President/CEO, Digital Bridge Institute (DBI), Nigeria; Robyn Fysh, Senior Digital Skills Officer, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Geneva; and Engr. Babagana Digima, Director, Research and Development, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), during a courtesy visit to the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja on September 30, 2026.
Bolatito Mercy
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has pledged to leverage the Digital Bridge Institute’s (DBI) designation as an International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Digital Transformation Centre (DTC) to expand digital literacy and inclusion across Nigeria.
The Commission said the recognition would provide an opportunity to strengthen digital skills development and equip more Nigerians, particularly those in underserved communities, with skills needed to participate effectively in the digital economy.
The NCC made this known when the Senior Digital Skills Officer at the ITU headquarters in Geneva, Robyn Fysh, paid a courtesy visit to the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja on September 30, 2026.
Fysh was in Nigeria as part of her official engagement with DBI following the Institute’s designation by the ITU as a Digital Transformation Centre. DBI also serves as the ITU’s Digital Training Academy in Nigeria.
She was received on behalf of the NCC Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Dr Aminu Maida, by the Commission’s Director of Research and Development, Engr. Babagana Digima. The DBI delegation was led by its President and Chief Executive Officer, David Daser.
Digima said the NCC viewed DBI’s new status as an opportunity to deepen collaboration between the Commission, DBI and the ITU in promoting digital skills and inclusion nationwide.
He described the designation as a major milestone for Nigeria’s digital skills ecosystem, noting that it could help widen access to digital literacy and capacity-building programmes.
According to him, digital literacy and capacity development remain important to the country’s digital economy ambitions, particularly in reaching underserved and vulnerable populations.
He added that the NCC would continue working with government agencies, state governments, development partners and other stakeholders to expand access to digital skills training and support Nigeria’s digital transformation.
Fysh commended the existing partnership between the NCC and ITU, saying the collaboration had contributed to efforts to advance digital development and skills acquisition in Nigeria.
She explained that the ITU Digital Transformation Centres initiative, launched in partnership with Cisco in 2019, had reached more than 870,000 participants globally, with women accounting for more than half of the beneficiaries.
According to her, the programme focuses on providing people in underserved communities with practical digital skills that can improve employability, entrepreneurship and participation in the digital economy.
Fysh said DBI’s new status would further strengthen efforts to provide Nigerians with relevant digital skills and opportunities.
Also speaking, Daser expressed appreciation to the NCC for its support, which he said contributed to DBI’s attainment of the ITU Digital Transformation Centre status.
He said the recognition demonstrated the ITU’s confidence in DBI and the NCC’s commitment to strengthening digital capacity development in Nigeria.
Daser noted that DBI had recently become the first institution globally to simultaneously hold the status of an ITU Academy Training Centre and an ITU Digital Transformation Centre.
He called for continued NCC support to expand digital skills training and certification opportunities to underserved communities across the country.
Daser further said the initiative was aligned with Nigeria’s National Digital Literacy Framework, which targets 95 per cent digital literacy by 2030.
He stressed that achieving the target would require stronger collaboration and sustained investment in digital skills development, especially for underserved populations.
He added that DBI’s new status would position the institute to expand its contribution to developing a digitally skilled workforce in Nigeria and across Africa.
