Galaxy backbone partners Microsoft on youth employment

By Prince Osuagwu

Galaxy Backbone last week  joined forces with software giants, Microsoft Nigeria to create employment opportunities for young Nigerians through the Employable Skills Development Internship Program (ESDIP) .

The project is on the Microsoft platform, the Government Wide Messaging and Collaboration (GWMC).

The ESDIP Initiative is a project targeted at providing capability development programs and training in the federal public sector for the already deployed GWMC platform, while also enhancing adoption and usage of the platform.

Galaxy backbone is a government agency charged with the responsibility of providing a common information and communications technology platform for Federal Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies.

It claimed that by the joint partnership with Microsoft, it will enhance modernization in government via the increased adoption of the already deployed government wide messaging platform, elevate the security stature of government data, by ensuring all sensitive government communications move from public mail infrastructure to the secured and  1-gov.net  platform.

CEO, Galaxy backbone, Gerald Ilukwe, said, that    “the Government Wide Messaging and Collaboration platform is about efficiency, cost-savings, increased productivity and the effective delivery of public services to the citizenry by modernizing the way public officials communicate within government. For Galaxy, there is a linkage with the employable skills development internship program.

The essence is to empower public officials and the interns to be more effective and efficient in their endeavors”.

In view of the strategic nature of the project, Microsoft will lend its support in certain key areas including “Change Management” – with a view to building capacity, drive benefits management and encourage early and rapid adoption of the solution by end users.

The organization will also partner with the Integral Assets Limited    on recruitment of Interns, delivery of train the trainer sessions for Interns , on-site activation of devices and training of government officials, amongst others.

Speaking on the partnership, Olayinka Oni, Chief Technology Officer, Microsoft Nigeria explained that “the objective of the program is to train interns to develop transferable and employable skills that will facilitate their placement in organizations. At the same time, leverage the interns to support the GWMC program through the distribution of devices and training of recipients in the use of the devices.”