Mr Jide Awe, an Information Communication and Technology (ICT) expert, on Wednesday urged the Federal Government to see the proposed ICT University as a model for other tertiary institutions.
Awe, who is also the Chairman Conferences Committee Nigeria Computer Society (NCS), disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
According to him, the main focus and activities in the university should be strictly ICT-based.
He also urged the government to remove all form of restrictions, especially funding, that would deter the institution from achieving its mandat.
“All attention and activities in the university should be on ICT.
“In serving as a model, it will enable people to come from outside to carry out research and also gain some knowledge of ICT,“he said.
He called for adequate provision of infrastructure and funding of the university.
Awe said that the concept was also a good one because government was looking at ICT as a very important area that should not be submerged under science and technology.
He said that an issue that needed to be tackled was the practicability of the university in view of existing universities “that already have ICT departments that still need infrastructure”.
NAN reports that the Federal Government said it would establish an ICT university in the first quarter of 2017.
The Minister of Communications, Mr Adebayo Shittu, said the purpose of establishing the university was to provide training environment and facilities for capacity building in the ICT sector.
Shittu stated that the Digital Bridge Institute, which was set up in six locations across the country to provide short-term training programmes, will be transformed into the ICT University of Nigeria. (NAN)