A renowned tech executive, Dr Kyari Bukar, on Sunday lauded the students of the Future Prowess Foundation in Maiduguri, Borno State, for showcasing their intellectual prowess in the development of high-tech patents.

The tech veteran, who spoke in a live programme, mentoring student innovators during an innovation showcase in Maiduguri, expressed optimism about the students’ capability to forge Nigeria’s path into digital sovereignty in the near future.

Mr Bukar, also the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Inlaks Ltd, insisted that the future of technology and the young people in Africa, especially in Nigeria, was quite bright.

Mr Bukar, however, emphasised the need for the government to update the school curriculum in line with contemporary global demands in the education sector, particularly in the fields of science and technology.

He said, “There have to be changes in the education curriculum; you cannot drive the next wave of technological changes with the old curriculum and the old method of teaching. Certainly, I have seen many schools that have imbibed the culture of writing, etc., but there is a lot of emphasis on the step.

“I loved what I have seen at the future prowess today, it is not only the teaching, but is also encouraging them to be innovative in building items, the rethinking of some of the problems that exist and looking for solutions and changes coming out with the first generations of products.

“Essentially what we are saying is that the curriculum of yesterday cannot build a future. The curriculum has to be customised. The students must be well-equipped and well-skilled to meet the educational global demands.”

Also speaking, the founder of the school, Zannah Mustapha, said that the school had educated a number of science and engineering students since 2017 who are now at the forefront of the technological revolution in the country.

Mr Mustapha said that the showcase was a unique opportunity for the public to see how the youth, supported by his foundation borne out of the humanitarian crisis in the North-East were pivoting toward technology and entrepreneurship to rewrite their futures.

The founder, who is also a lawyer, said that the foundation was also looking for investors to partner with the school to move the students’ ideas from academic concepts to scalable, real-world solutions.

The school has demonstrated its brainpower, showcasing several products invented by student innovators which include a small camera chip embedded in a cap to capture a person’s interaction with others, and a device that senses fire within seconds. 

(NAN)