ENUGU, NIGERIA — The long-anticipated 2026 Summer ICT Boot Camp at the Catholic Institute for Development, Justice and Peace (CIDJAP), Enugu, is officially here. Organized by If I Were XYZ, Inc., a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit, in partnership with CIDJAP, the program is an intensive digital skills development training designed to equip young people with relevant Information and Communication Technology (ICT) competencies for academic excellence, entrepreneurship, and future career opportunities.
Who's Taking Part
Participants were drawn from the Ifiwerexyz Peace Clubs in nine selected schools across Enugu State. The five-week program runs from August 11 to September 18, 2026, and admits a total of twenty-one (21) participants, comprising:
- Four (4) student representatives selected from four different schools during the launch of the One Youth, One Mentor programme held at Anglican Girls' Grammar School, Enugu
- Executive members of the Ifiwerexyz Peace Clubs, drawn from participating schools
- Other qualified participants who met the admission requirements
What Students Will Learn
The boot camp provides practical, hands-on training in three core areas:
- Basic Computer Application — foundational digital literacy for academic and professional use
- Graphic Design — creative and technical skills for visual communication
- Web Development — the building blocks of coding and website creation
Participants coming from outside Enugu are camping at King's Kids Comprehensive Secondary School, which, as a program partner, provided accommodation facilities at a subsidized rate — an in-kind contribution that has already helped make the five-week residential component possible.
Beyond the Five Weeks
At the close of the program, participants will be issued certificates as evidence of their training. But the commitment doesn't end there: organizers will monitor participants afterward to ensure they take practical steps in sustaining what they've learned — turning a five-week camp into a lasting foundation for their futures.
Why This Matters
Digital literacy is no longer optional — it is a baseline requirement for academic success, employability, and entrepreneurship in the 21st century. For many students in Enugu State, access to structured, hands-on ICT training remains limited. This boot camp closes that gap directly, giving 21 young people concentrated, practical instruction from experienced facilitators, alongside room and board for those traveling from outside the city.
This initiative builds directly on the momentum of the One Youth One Mentor campaign launched earlier this year in Enugu, where over 300 students registered for global mentorship. Several of today's ICT Boot Camp participants were selected from among that very cohort — proof that one program is feeding directly into the next, compounding opportunity for the same young people.
How You Can Help
Programs like this run on partnership. King's Kids Comprehensive Secondary School's subsidized accommodation is a powerful example of what in-kind support makes possible — and more is needed to sustain and expand this work.
Ways to Support the ICT Boot Camp
- Cash donations — fund facilitator stipends, training materials, feeding, and transportation for participants
- In-kind donations — laptops, computer accessories, internet data bundles, or design/development software licenses
- Facility or logistics partnerships — accommodation, training space, or transportation support for future cohorts
- Volunteer facilitators — professionals in IT, design, or web development willing to guest-teach or mentor
Every contribution — large or small, cash or in-kind — directly equips a young Nigerian with skills that open doors to academic and career opportunity.
Looking Ahead: From One Cohort to a Continental Model
Even as this inaugural cohort settles into training, Executive Director Engr. Cornelius Ani has laid out plans to grow the program well beyond a single summer. The goal is to expand the boot camp's scope — admitting more students on a quarterly or annual basis as funding permits — turning a one-time launch into a recurring pipeline of digital skills training for Enugu State youth.
The ambition doesn't stop in Nigeria. A plan to replicate the ICT Boot Camp model in Kenya is already underway, extending the same hands-on approach — Computer Applications, Graphic Design, and Web Development — to a new cohort of African youth. It's the same pattern the organization has followed with One Youth One Mentor: prove the model in Enugu, then carry it across borders.
That growth trajectory is exactly why donor support matters now. Every gift toward this first cohort isn't just funding 21 students — it's helping build the case, and the capacity, for many more cohorts to come.
About If I Were XYZ, Inc.
If I Were XYZ, Inc. is a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting peace, understanding, and cooperation among individuals, communities, and nations through innovative initiatives, dialogue, and education. In Enugu State, the organization's work is led by Country Representative Charity Ani, who coordinates the Ifiwerexyz Peace Clubs and youth programming across partner schools, under the leadership of Executive Director Engr. Cornelius Ani.
Get Involved
To donate cash or in-kind items, volunteer as a facilitator, or partner with the ICT Boot Camp:
If I Were XYZ, Inc.
Email: info@ifiwerexyz.com
Phone: (229) 235-4606
Donate: donate.stripe.com/cNi8wI2jj3Q8b8V1so5Rm0a
Website: ifiwerexyzorg.netlify.app