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Visualizing
critical data that informs Arewa leaders and organizations of the region's
unique characteristics.
Strengthen Arewa Regional Collaboration and Innovation Networks
The mainstay of the ACRD Center of
Excellence’s collaboration work centers on its Strategic Doing
initiative.
This
program will focus on the use of States within the regional
networks to accelerate innovation, partnership and
collaboration. Strategic Doing quickly develops sophisticated
collaborations that help advance open innovation across
organizational and political boundaries within the entire
region. Strategic Doing ignites the spark of regional
innovation, partnership and collaboration enabling people in
loosely-joined, open networks to think and act strategically. In
partnership with Small Business Development Center’s across the
World, this program showcases the pivotal role of second-stage
firms to employment growth and prosperity and development growth
strategies, with the goal of making Arewa region an investment
destination.
Building Capacity of Local
and State Governments to effectively Address Economic and
Environmental issues
The mainstay of the ACRD
environmental considerations in the overall policy-making,
planning, and development process at local and regional level
are:
-
Building
capacity of local and States governments within the region
to effectively address specific environmental issues,
concerns, and strategic measures in areas like agriculture,
transport, waste management, and freshwater availability
that have significant relevance and implications in the
context of sustainable regional development;
Responding to emerging issues of
concern, such as climate change and human health impacts;
and
Fostering community-based
natural resource/environment management to achieve the
United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
ICT is the convergence of communications, computing and
information technologies and has become the catalyst
that enhances development process of a nation...READ
ON
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AREWA INFORMATION &
COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY (ICT)
More
than ever, the advent of the knowledge economy and global
economic competition
compel governments to priorities
educational quality, lifelong learning and the provision of
educational opportunities for all. Policymakers widely accept
that access to information and communication technology (ICT) in
education can help individuals to compete in a global economy by
creating a skilled work force and facilitating social mobility.
They
emphasize that
ICT in education has a multiplier effect
throughout the education system, by enhancing learning and
providing students with new sets of skills; by reaching students
with poor or no access (especially those in rural and remote
regions); by facilitating and improving the training of
teachers; and by minimizing costs associated with the delivery
of traditional instruction
At the international level, policy for integrating ICT for
development was first formulated in the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs)
Target 8.F, which states that “in cooperation with
the private sector, make available the benefits of new
technologies, especially information and communications” (United
Nations, 2000; 2012). Moreover, while not mentioned explicitly
in the Education for All goals, it is arguable that ICT plays a
pivotal role in achieving these goals, including broadening
access, eliminating exclusion, and improving quality (UNESCO,
2000). That is why, more than ever, there is the need for a
comparative analysis of ICT integration and e-readiness in
schools across the Arewa region.
The
global economy is changing and affecting the way Region needs to
plan its economic and social growth in that new economy. The
shift in the economy from manufacturing to services places
‘knowledge work’ and the human resource as key factors of
production in sustainable development. Global statistics show
productivity gains in all sectors resulting from use of ICT, and
further evidence shows the relationship between productivity and
broadband availability. In this regard, ICT infrastructure
underpins the knowledge economy of the so-called ‘Information
Society’. Several issues in the global environment have impacted
and will continue to shape the regional environment, therefore
for a sustainable economic development of Arewa region, the
States within the region must come together in a concerted way
to formulate the Arewa Regional Information and Communication
Technology (ICT) for Development Strategy or more appropriately
to be named AREWA REGIONAL DIGITAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY (RDds),
to acknowledge the vision for the entire Region.
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Restructuring
is good for the North because
the North has so many Potentials of
Solid Mineral Exploration, so great
that by the time the northern
Governors realize it they will
almost forget about allocation funds
coming from Federal Government and
too much Taxes on its citizens to
generate more internally generated
revenue (IGR). The potential is
great and better than crude oil of
the south. Gold, Uranium, Iron Ore,
Gemstones, Columbite, Tantalite,
Kaolin, Goshenite and other precious
minerals are everywhere across the
north, but also Lithium Brine Rocks,
lithium-bearing pegmatite and
spodumene, a critical component for
making electric car batteries. By
2030, oil will no longer be that
important as electric cars will take
over, lithium batteries will also be
used for powerhouses and so much
more. The potentials for export of
these natural minerals and local use
in manufacturing from the north are
unparalleled. The Southerners are
just beginning to realize the
potentials and if we begin to
explore them, what it will mean to
their so-called oil; and clamour for
Restructuring. That is why some of
them are beginning to downplay the
issue of restructuring now: every
region to control its resources, but
the north must insist on
Restructuring Now. Because the
southerners erroneously believe that
northerners are backward and
uneducated and think that the north
is dependent on the south simply
because they have oil while
forgetting that the south depends on
the north for its staple foods. 80%
of food consumed in the south, apart
from cassava comes from the north:
rice, beans, maize, guinea corn,
yam, wheat, tomatoes, onions,
pepper, spices and meat: cow, goat,
and donkeys, etc. Nigeria plans to
spend 15 billion naira, about $42
million over the next year or so to
explore minerals and attract
investors into mining and reduce its
dependence on oil. Also, the north
has oil too but abundant of natural
resources: solid minerals. The North
must get its act right and the
future will be much brighter, more
prosperous and better. The teaming
Youths will have ample jobs and
things to do; and for every mining
job, 4 more jobs will be created and
the north will virtually have
near-zero-unemployment.
The
northern demographic shifts will
fuel the growth of new sectors,
markets and service lines. They will
begin to innovate and with
creativity build viable businesses
in areas of the business supply
chain, and in agriculture, livestock
mainstreaming, no more transporting
live animals to the south but
slaughtered and freight in
refrigerated trucks, renewable
energy like solar farming, ICT,
Business Processing Outsourcing and
in healthcare, manufacturing and
revitalize the Kannywood
entertainment industry in
partnership with Indian Bollywood.
Staple food commodity would no
longer be transported to the south
but buying-zones can be created
along the borderlines between north
and south for southerners to come
and purchase there. “Wallahi it is a
matter of time and the time is very
soon, it has already begun. The
unity of northern diversity is the
power that will propel the business
communities and consequently, the
northern upcoming industries into
new dimensions of performance. Soon
there will be on the horizon, more
northern banks, northern media and
corporations; and northern
intelligentsia that will meet every
contemporary challenge; build
capacity and human capital
knowledge-pool; and the end of
youths banditry, kidnappings,
communal crises, terrorism and
religious violence because everyone
will have work and meaningful things
to do under strong, compassionate
leadership, propelling the country
to a Greater Height as a whole. ICT-enabled
solutions in healthcare,
agriculture, education, financial
services and States-public services
will drive socio-economic inclusion
of everyone in the region and the
country faster, cheaper and more
efficient than traditional methods.
Indeed, the North; and Nigeria will
be Great Again. The PAN-Niger Delta
Forum said that the news that
Northern leaders, who identified
themselves as Friends of Democracy,
advocated a return to the 12-state
federal structure of 1967 and 100
percent resource control was
thought-provoking but calls for
restraint and further
cross-questioning. The Pan-Yoruba
socio-political organization,
Afenifere, said it agrees with most
of the views of the northern leaders
and hoped to inter-face with them
later, but said for a group of
northerners to now be advocating for
100 percent resource control, calls
for caution and further
interrogation.
The question been are asked is that
who will suffer if Nigeria is
restructured or in the event of a
break-up of the country in terms of
food security or development?...
READ THE WHOLE INTERVIEW |
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“Given the emergence of
new regional dynamics in development policy and
practice, Arewa region MUST fine-tune current regional
development perspectives and
to develop new ones that are not only more in sync with
the present and future global context but with the
governance systems being currently adopted that are
becoming more and more decentralized and grassroots
oriented. States Governors within the Arewa region must
come together to create and adopt the Arewa Regional
Economic Plan with emphasis on a balanced approach to
development and opportunity for all diversity
irrespective of one’s tribe, social class, religious
belief and even political affiliation; and establish
targets for economic growth of the entire region taking
advantage of our Demographic Shifts, which will fuel the
growth of new sectors, markets, and service lines in our
communities. The ability of our diversity to build
strength and unity is the power that will propel the
region and consequently, the Nigerian industry, into new
dimensions of performance and inclusive growth.
Catalyzing Inclusive Growth Through ICT-enabled
solutions in healthcare, education, financial services
and public services can drive socio-economic development
and inclusion of more than 30 million citizens each
year, faster, cheaper and more effectively than
traditional models. The economic plan should be built on
current regional opportunities, collaboration and
innovation linking States macroeconomic models with
regional development and economic plan termed: Regional
Econometric Model”…President
ACRD
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