Digital Revolution: Former Minister Clem Agba Charges Youth to Lead Nigeria’s Economic Future as PNGI Hosts Digital Intelligence Masterclas

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In a stirring call to action at the Jabi Lake Mall, Prince Clem Ikanade Agba, CON, the immediate past Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, has declared that digital literacy is no longer a luxury but a “necessity” for Nigeria’s survival in the 21st century.

Speaking on February 28, 2026, at the Digital Intelligence and Data Leadership Masterclass, organized by the Progressive Next Generation Initiative (PNGI), Agba urged young Nigerians to pivot from being mere “spectators” to becoming the primary “shapers” of the global digital economy.

A Necessity, Not a Hobby

Addressing a crowd of aspiring digital entrepreneurs, Agba emphasized that skills like content creation, digital marketing, and data analytics are the “building blocks of the digital economy”. With Nigeria’s median age hovering around 18, he argued that the traditional economy can no longer absorb the millions of graduates entering the workforce annually.

“The traditional economy, as it exists today, simply cannot absorb them all, but the digital economy does not have those same constraints,” Agba stated. “A young person in Maiduguri can build a YouTube channel that reaches audiences in Lagos, London, and New York… The digital economy removes the barriers of geography and capital that have held back so many of our people for so long”.

The AI “Elephant in the Room”

The former Minister did not shy away from the rapid disruption caused by Artificial Intelligence. He cited recent market shocks where AI tools from companies like Anthropic caused stock prices of global cybersecurity giants and legacy firms like IBM to tumble overnight by automating tasks that once required “armies of engineers”.

“Billion-dollar companies, built over decades by some of the finest minds in the world, are being re-valued overnight because a tool can now do in minutes what their armies of engineers and consultants used to do in months,” Agba noted. “The world is not waiting, it is moving, and it is moving fast”.

He challenged the participants to look beyond just using a computer, urging them to learn how to “think alongside intelligent systems” and “direct intelligence… towards solving problems that matter”.

From Follower Counts to Nation Building

Drawing from his experience in government, where he utilized data to launch the Eyemark app and conduct the Multidimensional Poverty Index study, Agba stressed that digital skills are fundamentally “nation-building skills”.

He issued a direct challenge to the youth to move past vanity metrics: “Do not leave here today and use what you have learned only to grow your follower count. That has its place, but think bigger. Think about how data collection can improve the primary healthcare centre in your local government area. Think about how AI can help smallholder farmers solve their harvest and post-harvest problems”.

A Nationwide Vision

The Masterclass, which offered free training in AI-generated skills, cybersecurity, and monetization strategies, is part of a broader vision by PNGI to replicate the program across all six geopolitical zones.

Agba concluded by commending the initiative, noting that the combination of his generation’s experience and the youth’s digital fluency is “where the real power lies” for Nigeria’s development.

PNGI Convener, Comrade Jeffery Omoh Ozemegwa, praised the attendees and hailed the keynote speech as inspirational and action-oriented as the Digital Intelligence Masterclass continues on Monday in Abuja and ends on Tuesday.

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This post has already been read at least 11337 times!