Kwara State has emerged as the only state in Nigeria currently domesticating and utilising the federal "Project 774 Connectivity" framework to structurally train and empower its Local Government (LG) staff, in a major move to bridge the digital divide in local administration.

The Special Assistant to the Kwara State Governor on Digital Innovation, Hon. Kayode Ishola, disclosed this while conducting an assessment tour of the ongoing Project 774: Digital Capacity Training across the Ilorin East and Ifelodun Local Government Areas.

Speaking during the assessment visits, Ishola expressed satisfaction with the curriculum's execution and commended the facilitators.

"The government has already built the foundational digital infrastructure across these secretariats, and what we are doing now is leveraging that layout to inject technology seamlessly into local governance," Ishola stated.

He explained that Kwara State was selected as a primary beneficiary of the national rollout due to the sustained, tech-driven investments championed by the Executive Governor, Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.

Unlike traditional training programmes that focus heavily on theory, Ishola stressed that Kwara's pilot phase is explicitly designed around hands-on, practical modules intended to close the operational gap between grassroots administrations and international development standards.

To ensure the programme delivers long-term economic value, the Special Assistant announced a paradigm shift toward problem-solving outcomes rather than mere certificate issuance.

"We don't want this to be a standard training where participants simply sit through classes and collect certificates at the end. It must be strictly problem-solving based. Each Local Government is now mandated to look inward, identify its peculiar administrative or community issues, and come up with an executable tech project that solves those specific problems," he said.

To facilitate this, facilitators in each LGA have been directed to guide trainees in selecting two to three tailored projects. These local solutions will eventually be showcased at a state-wide exhibition.

Furthermore, this model directly complements President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's Renewed Hope Agenda, particularly concerning Local Government Autonomy and modernising local workforce capabilities.

The assessment tour concluded with interactive sessions where local government staff expressed enthusiasm for the new project-driven approach.

As the pilot phase progresses across Ilorin East and Ifelodun, Kwara State's proactive domestication of Project 774 is expected to set a scalable benchmark for subnational digital transformation across Nigeria, ultimately transforming public service delivery at the core grassroots.