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Beneficiaries Applaud Coven Works, GIZ On Data Science & Artificial Intelligence training
As the world faces the transformative economic, social and environmental challenges of Globalization 4.0, it has never been more important to invest in people.
Valuing human capital not only serves to equip individuals with the knowledge and skills to respond to systematic shifts, it also empowers them to take part in creating a more, equal and sustainable world.
Education is and will remain critical for promoting inclusive economic growth and providing a future of opportunity for all.
It is in line with this, that Coven Works’ has partnered with The Deutsche Gesekkschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) to successfully train 100 youths from underserved communities in Nigeria on Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Coven Works’,the leading Data Science and Artificial Intelligence education organization in Nigeria, schooled and mentored these 100 participants for a period of twelve weeks and secured placements for each trainee in a three months internship, where they will work in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence related job functions.
While speaking at the Project Demonstration day of the Beneficiaries, Mr. Dunsin Fatuase, country director, Coven Works said that “Coven Works through Coven Labs will continue to focus on upskilling youths in underserved communities , by providing cutting edge knowledge in data science and Artificial Intelligence for Africans, and other working professionals to the point where we can say that Africa has a refined workforce fully ready for the future of work.”
He expressed his joy as 100 of these beneficiaries could boost lives, projects and technical confidence to better the African market with their new skillset.
According to The World Economic Forum (WEF) report on “The Future of Work” supports this notion as it posits that more jobs will be dependent on skills in technology and those who can acquire these relevant technological skills will have job security and inevitably be empowered to achieve more.
The GIZ and its Nigerian German Centre (NGC) have from inception been on the path of supporting as many Nigerians to realize their role in the countries social economic system and it has through this collaboration with Coven Works aided the youth population from some of Nigeria’s underserved communities to acquire skills that would make them relevant in future of work.
The impact of these skills being acquired have been heralded by some of the direct beneficiaries of the training program who have stated that: “The vocational training in Data Science from the GIZ and NGC came at a time that I needed it the most.
“I did not believe that I could learn it in 6 weeks but the delivery by the Coven Works facilitators made all the difference for me.” – Adedoyin Lukmon.
In the same vein, Augustine Adugbe stated that ” The guidance and mentoring during the last 6 weeks was my motivation and I would like to say a big thank you to the GIZ and Coven Works for not only teaching me how to code and generate insightful visualizations but also, helping me make the quantum leap into working in this field. I almost can’t believe I am starting my internship in a few days”.
The results of the 100 participants in the training programme and their feedback has not only cemented the goals and mandate of the GIZ but it has also encouraged continuous up-skilling of more Nigerians in technology related fields such as Data Science and Artificial Intelligence.
While taking an address from the Team Lead, Programme Migration for Development GIZNigeria, Mrs. Sandra Alonge admonished the participants by stating that their growthand success through the program would serve as a pilot to the GIZ future projects, the quality of their result would determine the future of such programs.
Mrs. Alonge said “Seeing the resultsthese set of 100 beneficiaries have gotten, we can say that they have done well in being a good encourager to make this project continually supported by the Germancooperation”.
The training of the 100 youths, and the mandatory job placements of all participants is one step further in Coven Works mission to ensure that Nigerians are better educated to fill the skills gap and ultimately positively impact the African economic market to technological skills education and training .
GIZ-NIGERIA GIZ’s activities in Nigeria are commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Federal Foreign Office (AA).
Other partners include the European Union in the fields of peace and security and energy and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in the field of agricultural value chains.
The activities focus on the following: Economic Development and Employment, Environment & Climate Change, Rural Development, Security, Reconstruction and Peace, Governance and Democracy.
GIZ has worked in Nigeria since 1974 with a maintained country office in the capital city Abuja since 2004.
The need for Nigeria to think outside the box in its need to drive towards global relevance with innovations and scientific developments will be on the front burner at the NITRA Innovative & Scientific Conference scheduled to hold on Thursday July 23, 2026 in Ikeja, Lagos.
NITRA
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) will lead other delegates to discuss and take far-reaching decisions at the event, which has its theme as “Bridging Nigeria’s Digital Divide With Scientific Innovation”.
Other companies that have indicated interest in partnering with NITRA include mobile communications company, Tecno; Africa’s premier end-to-end AI solutions company, Hyperspace; and telecommunications data infrastructure company, Digital Realty.
Speaking on the proposed event, the Chairman, Nigeria Information Technology Reporters Association (NITRA), Chike Onwuegbuchi noted that the event will seek to create a platform for government and private organisations to deliberate on policies around scientific innovations in Nigeria, challenges, place of indigenous and foreign collaboration, roles of each stakeholder, and grassroots development in that regard, among others.
According to him: “The Federal government, with series of programmes and partnerships, has established the urgent need to create an ecosystem that thrives on scientific innovation, breeding institutions and individuals with a target of placing the country at the fore-front of Next-Gen development.
It is a known fact that digital and scientific innovations are crucial, not only to the survivability of a nation, but also to the sustainability of its growth and development, with significant effect on economic strength, global image, defense and security, government capabilities to function, and public health and safety, communication and digital footprint, among others.
The federal government is actively driving scientific innovation to foster economic diversification and build a $1 trillion economy by 2030. Efforts are heavily focused on commercializing research, establishing massive research funds, and funding strategic infrastructure, particularly in technology, biotechnology, and healthcare. Core government initiatives and policies include the newly instituted National Research and Innovation Development Fund (NRIDF), which aims to mobilize about $500 million annually to support research and the commercialization of scientific outputs; and the Nigeria Genomic City, a multi-ministerial initiative aimed at transforming Nigeria into a leading hub for genomics, precision medicine, and biotechnology. It is designed to protect indigenous data, stimulate artificial intelligence in health, and develop a highly skilled scientific workforce.
According to the General Secretary of NITRA, Mr. Chidiebere Nwankwo, the forum will also be a vehicle to propagating the views of decision makers to the public, thereby furthering the cause of public awareness and information dissemination on the topic.
The focus, he said will be on how Nigeria can sustain digital innovative growth and scientific development in Nigeria
The board of global payments company, PayPal, says a 53 billion dollars takeover offer from financial technology firm, Stripe, and private equity company, Advent International, does not adequately reflect the company’s long-term value.
PayPal
According to reports, the proposed acquisition, valued at 60.50 dollars per share, remains under consideration, with the board yet to formally respond to the offer.
The directors are said to be evaluating not only the financial value of the proposal but also the structure of the financing, the timeline for completing the transaction and the likelihood of obtaining regulatory approvals.
They are also considering the possibility of competing bids emerging.
Although the offer represents a premium of about 28 per cent above PayPal’s recent share price, the board believes the company could deliver greater value to shareholders if its ongoing turnaround strategy succeeds.
Following reports of the bid, PayPal shares gained about two per cent to close at 56.73 dollars.
Sources familiar with the discussions said Stripe and Advent have secured approximately 50 billion dollars in debt financing from JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley, while both firms would jointly contribute 17 billion dollars in equity.
Under the proposal, the two companies would jointly own PayPal instead of dividing its operations.
PayPal, Stripe, Advent International, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley have all declined to comment on the proposed transaction.
The discussions come as PayPal seeks to strengthen its business after years of increasing competition from rivals including Apple Pay, Google Pay and emerging financial technology firms.
The company, which was valued at about 360 billion dollars in 2021, now has a market capitalisation of approximately 36 billion dollars.
Since assuming office as Chief Executive Officer in March 2026, Enrique Lores has embarked on a restructuring programme aimed at improving operational efficiency and restoring growth.
The restructuring includes the creation of three business divisions comprising Checkout, Venmo and Consumer Financial Services, and Payments and Crypto.
The company is also targeting 1.5 billion dollars in cost savings through the deployment of artificial intelligence technologies.
PayPal’s latest financial results indicated signs of recovery, with first-quarter revenue rising seven per cent year-on-year to 8.35 billion dollars, while total payment volume increased by eight per cent to 464 billion dollars.
If approved, the transaction would combine two of the world’s largest digital payments companies.
The combined business would process an estimated 3.7 trillion dollars in annual payment volume, significantly strengthening its position in the global online payments market.
However, analysts expect the proposed acquisition to face intense regulatory scrutiny because of the companies’ combined market share in merchant payment services.
To address possible antitrust concerns, the bidders have reportedly considered options, including separating PayPal’s Braintree business or other assets if required by regulators.
Sources said Stripe and Advent remain interested in pursuing the acquisition despite the board’s reservations, although negotiations are expected to continue.
Market observers are also awaiting PayPal’s earnings report scheduled for July 28 for further indications of the company’s financial recovery and future growth prospects.
Concerns over network reliability and its impact on Nigeria’s growing creator economy took centre stage at MTN Nigeria’s Data on Trial event, where content creator and streamer, Jarvis, challenged telecommunications operators to improve connectivity for digital creators.
Speaking during the event, Jarvis asked whether there were locations in Nigeria where uninterrupted internet connectivity could support real-life (IRL) streaming without network disruptions.
“Are there places where there is no breakage when streaming IRL?” she asked.
Her question highlighted the challenges faced by content creators who depend on stable internet services for live streaming, content uploads and real-time engagement with audiences.
Responding, MTN Nigeria’s Chief Technical Officer, Mr Yahaya Ibrahim, said network performance depends on several factors, including location, network coverage, device capability and the number of users connected to a particular base station.
He noted that operators continue to invest in expanding network capacity to meet the growing demand for data services.
Earlier, MTN’s General Manager, Network Performance and Quality Assurance, Mr Michael Ndukwe, explained the evolution of mobile network technology in Nigeria, from first-generation (1G) services to the current fifth-generation (5G) technology.
According to him, each phase of technological advancement has significantly increased network capacity and enabled new digital services.
Ndukwe cited Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) data showing that Nigerians consumed about 13.2 million terabytes of data in 2025.
He added that data usage reached approximately 4.06 million terabytes in the first quarter of 2026, reflecting the country’s increasing reliance on digital platforms and online services.
According to him, the growth is being driven by wider adoption of 4G and 5G networks, increased smartphone penetration, the proliferation of smart devices and expanding use of social media platforms.
Participants at the event noted that as more Nigerians build businesses and careers around digital content, access to reliable and high-speed internet has become critical to sustaining the country’s digital economy and creator ecosystem.
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