Nigeria/Africa Masterweb News Report
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Nigeria to set up a 'silicon valley' - Masterweb News Desk (Thursday, November 18, 2004)
The Nigerian government has plans on the table to invest 600 million US dollars to establish an Abuja Technology Village modeled after the United States Silicon Valley, Nigerian Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Malam Nasir el-Rufai said Wednesday. Briefing journalists after the routine Federal Executive Council meeting in the capital Abuja, el-Rufai said the hi-tech village would cover an area of 650 hectares near Lugbe on Airport Road. Malam Nasir el-Rufai said that the government would provide a seed fund amounting to 5 billion naira(about 38 million dollars) for the provision of infrastructure in the village. He said the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology had been on the project since 2001, adding that the support of Nigerian scientists based abroad had been secured for their expertise.
The minister said the village would be "a base for the provision of information, communication and technology services to foreign companies willing to outsource their info tech services."
He said that the village would create job opportunities for some 40,000 information technology (IT) experts.
According to the minister Nigeria had also concluded plans for the African Institute of Technology to be located in Abuja for the training of youths in computer and IT.
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