Mr Samuel Umejiaku, the Partnership Manager, Public and Private Development Centre (PPDC), Abuja,
says Social Media Week is to promote collaboration on how to use technology to enhance social, cultural and economic issues that affect the country.
He said this in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja.
The SMW is a global event marked between Feb. 4 and Feb. 8 to highlight the interconnection between travel and digital media, where series
of events are organised to provide answers to how technology and digital media are used.
The 2019 Social Media Week in Lagos, Nigeria, is anchored by Afrika21 with a conference that provides ideas, trends, insights and inspiration
to help people and businesses to understand how to achieve more in a hyper-connected world.
According to Umejiaku, SMW is an event that brings together people from different walks of life to discuss the use of technology to promote
social, cultural, economic issues and how it has been able to change peoples’ lives.
He said that it was a networking event where people brainstorm on technology and how it enabled improved lives, enhanced businesses and work.
He added that “the SMW, therefore, has people from the entertainment industry, arts, lawyers, just different walks of life coming together
to network and interact on how they can collaborate to promote co-existence in the society.
“And I think it has tremendous effect in Nigeria because many innovations evolve, while platforms are created to link
up people of like minds who will continue to interact to gain fresh ideas to improve on their work.
“The SMW also opens new doors to solutions to challenges some individuals might be facing concerning their area of assignment.”
The manager said that PPDC had been a beneficiary of a platform created through SMW which gave the centre room to
explore other innovative ways to get work done and also meet new people toward achieving its goals.
In a separate interview, Mr Kabiru Idris, an ICT expert, called on government to utilise the week to sensitise citizens,
especially the young ones and the youth on using the internet to promote national development.
According to him, the world has recognised the need to educate users of the internet on the benefits.
He added that “the world has gone digital and internet tools are open and available to everyone that cares to use
them which on its own generates its own negative concerns.
“Since the internet is open to everyone, there is the tendency that some people will capitalise on it
to negatively influence others, especially children.
“So, the social media week is to bring to the consciousness of people, the good uses of the internet while emphasing
the presence of perverts that are out to cheat or destroy.
“On the web, you find hackers, cyber criminals, sexual perverts, fraudsters and what have you, they are all preys,
so, the week gives the opportunity to hammer these into people.”
Idris said ICT experts and organisations also used the SMW to educate youths on ICT entrepreneurial skills that
could make them independent and contribute to their families, thereby fostering socio-economic development.
The week features a central stage for keynotes and panels, multiple rooms for workshops, masterclasses and
presentations, and an area dedicated to co-working, networking and interactive installations,
aimed at helping people and organisations to connect and share ideas and information. (NAN)