Digital Skills as Economic Growth Enablement in Nigeria

Abstract

Digital skills as aspect of smart education, contribute to productivity and general economic growth. Most scholars believe that in countries where the population is highly digitally skilled, its economy benefits from the innovative digital skills by way of job creation and it translates to sustainable economic development. The objective of this study is about the contribution of digital skills which is a part of smart education to the economic growth in Nigeria. The research also found out that expanded digital skill sets help crucially in the education of citizens; individuals can comfortably acquire digital skill through online learning platforms. The study employed primary methods of data collection, namely use of questionnaire and oral interview over a sample of 100 respondents covering a two-month period. The findings revealed that while a total of 91.31% agreed that digital skills in smart education affects Nigeria’s Economic growth, about 8% disagreed with this view. The research concludes that digital skills significantly affect Nigeria’s economic growth and recommends amongst others that government should focus on developing digital skills acquisition training and redesigning the curricula of tertiary institutions in Nigeria.