….Courses includes cybersecurity, software engineering, data science, agile product management, IT product solution sales, Linux, Devops, elevator installation and maintenance and others
Ingryd academy in partnership with Lagos state employment trust fund (LSETF), has announced its fully-funded July cohort of advanced tech skills training, with local and foreign job placements.
The partnership is a strategic public sector alignment that is scalable, results-oriented approach to tackling youth unemployment and positioning Nigeria’s workforce for the global digital economy.
The July cohort will involve training in cybersecurity, software engineering, data science, agile product management, IT product solution sales, Linux, Devops, Python for AI/ML, even elevator installation and maintenance, and others.
Often dubbed as an academy utilising a business process outsourcing (BPO) and GDP-focused model to drive youth employment, Ingryd academy, is boosting the state’s ambition of becoming a digital innovation hub. The academy is setting a new benchmark for tech talent development in Nigeria with strategic public sector alignment.
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Since 2022, the academy has trained over 4000 persons, with a 30 percent job placement rate of jobs locally and internationally.
The academy’s business model is investment in training, with a return on investment at the point of job placement. Its business process outsourcing model ties financial sustainability to job placement rather than just training, making workforce integration a core priority.
At the core of this public-private collaboration is Ingryd’s distinctive approach: Developing talent based on real-time demand from companies.
The founder, Khadijat Abdulkadir, a Masters degree holder in business engineering and managerial economics, built Ingryd after a successful career in Accenture, Microsoft and other blue-chip companies in the United States (US) and Europe. She was later appointed chief technology officer (CTO) at Africa Prudential under the Heirs Holdings group in Lagos.
Abdulkadir described her motivation as deeply rooted in youth development. “When I moved to Nigeria, the most depressing thing was hearing young people say they just want any job. We’re working to change that. What if we could democratise access to good jobs?”
Ingryd’s model goes beyond training to offer real employment outcomes through job placements and internships. “If I take two years to build someone, it will take a while, but it’s worth it,” she said. “All our graduates are capable of starting businesses or entering the workforce at a high level.”
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About the academy’s distinct business model
The academy works closely with federal initiatives such as 3MTT (3 Million Technical Talent) to ensure alignment between government strategy and industry needs. “We support the government to do the first leg of the work. Then we step in with more advanced training,” said Abdulkadir.
“This is not your regular IT training academy,” she noted. “We built Ingryd like a professional services firm. We’re not a startup; we’re seasoned professionals solving for GDP impact.”
Ingryd operates not just to train, but to place young people in employment, using its strong partnerships with private investor organisations, like FPG technologies and Venture Garden Group (VGG) to create structured pipelines into the workforce.
“We always say to people that we are a GDP-moving business. Our business is also supported by our ecosystem of other businesses that combine industry-driven training, high-quality certifications, and government-backed accessibility, setting it apart from conventional IT training institutions.
“We’ve designed our model such that we are now obligated to place people. That’s where our money is. The investment is in our training. The return is at the point of placement”, she notes.
The academy is not just in partnership with LSETF, but institutional investors who are mainly United States (US)-based organisations that are sustainable, structured, fast, and quick to scale, ensuring that graduates transition directly into employment.
Read also: 3MTT, DSN partner with WESOnline to boost digital workforce development in Nigeria
Creating an ecosystem through a market-linked talent pipeline
Abdulkadir noted that the federal government’s 3MTT programme is a pipeline that feeds Ingryd, and then Ingryd is a pipeline to the market.
“Our job at Ingryd is ensuring every single day that we are actually hearing the market and making sure the courses we’re offering are what the market is demanding, not just whatever we think is based on literacy.”
“We have gone beyond digital literacy training here. We teach innovation, machine learning, technical support, even product sales, how to sell technology, agile development, cybersecurity, including risk management, network administration, and network management. We zoom in and teach so that when you come out, you’re hireable.”
“We’ve designed our model such that we are now obligated to place people. That’s where our money is. The investment is in our training. The return is at the point of placement.”
“Even for us, there is a liability because we’re spending on training. It allows us to ensure we can meet our obligation. It’s like a student loan: We give you a student loan, and then we get it back from the organisation that takes them from us; which means we do the investment, and then we put the students out there.”
“We really need exceptional talent here because of the hiring”, Abdulkadir notes.
As an ecosystem builder, the company utlises instructors within its group, who are senior IT talent working full-time in established companies, who then teach students at Ingryd on a part-time basis while receiving compensation.
Some students even intern in their instructors’ companies and eventually get retained.
A strategic shift in workforce development
In 2018, Lagos Innovates was launched to support local tech hubs through workspace vouchers, giving innovators access to vital infrastructure like internet connectivity, electricity, and mentorship. This laid the foundation for Lagos to scale up job readiness in digital sectors such as data analytics, cybersecurity, and software development.
Recognising the expansion of the tech ecosystem in Lagos, frequently referred to as the “Silicon Valley of Africa,” Oyin Egbeyemi, director of programmes at LSETF, acknowledged the need for the state to channel this growth into employment opportunities.
“We realised that the tech ecosystem was rapidly expanding here, yet initially, tech wasn’t part of the employment conversation,” Egbeyemi explained. “Young people are already developing solutions to problems through technology, and this partnership ensures they receive the right training and support.”
Certifications, standards, and government partnership
Unlike conventional academies, Ingryd only admits students who pass a rigorous entry test and commits them to 200 hours of instructor-led training.
“No one leaves with an Ingryd certification who hasn’t undergone our full training,” Abdulkadir said. “Even our virtual classes are fully instructor-led from start to finish.”
Courses range from cybersecurity to cloud computing, and students receive globally recognised certifications such as Check point, ISACA, ComptIA A+ and others, typically costing up to €1,000 and sometimes more, but reduced to just N350,000 to N500,000, subsidised by Ingryd.
To improve retention and commitment, LSETF introduced a N50,000 commitment fee, refundable upon completion, encouraging students to stay on the course. “Artisan-level programmes had up to 70 percent dropout rates when online. We’re now refining programme structures to better align with learners’ realities,” Egbeyemi noted.
Digitising the public sector
In highlighting the importance of leading by example in public institutions, Egbeyemi noted, “Our goal is to move the needle. We want to create thousands of jobs”.
“We need to digitise from within. Imagine if the average civil servant was tech-savvy, it would transform our systems. Stronger public sector capability brings a better foundation for systemic change.”
Having built credibility in Lagos, Ingryd is now scaling its model to other states, including Kano.
“We’re going state by state, until all 36 states are covered,” Khadijat affirmed. “We’re working with governments who are ready to push the mutual agenda of employment.”
With strategic investment from Europe and local partners, Ingryd is increasing its participant numbers and refining its curriculum to address employer demands more precisely.
Application for the July cohort can be made here.
