The Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Professor Cleopas Angaye, will next week in Lagos, commission the first Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC) Centre in Nigeria.

TOEIC is "an English language test designed specifically to measure the everyday English skills of people working in an international environment and has become an effective language tool in the Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) arena.

The new TOEIC Centre is the collaborative effort of Data Sciences Nigeria Limited (DSNL), DRS Data Services Limited of UK, and Educational Testing Service (ETS), a non-profit organisation focusing on advance quality and equity in education for people worldwide by creating assessments based on rigorous research. The TOEIC test was developed in 1979 by ETS to expand the window of opportunities for non-native users of the English Language seeking to pursue careers in the international job markets.

In Nigeria, Data Sciences new window is targeting call centre operators whether in the banking or telecom sector, or those operated by multinationals; people who work in areas of international engagements including local and international airports; broadcast companies and people with careers as public announcers among others. Data Sciences Limited and its partners will be offering the TOEIC Listening and Reading certification, a common standard for measuring and comparing language skills of non-native speakers in the workplace. The test content reflects real-world tasks and provides information that enables:

A consultant of Data Sciences Limited, Ladi Ogunneye, said the new TOEIC tests centre in Lagos would help businesses build a more effective workforce, give job seekers and employees a competitive edge, enable universities to better prepare students for the international workplace, and help organisations and job seekers in Nigeria to help get them ahead of the competition.

According to Angaye, "As part of its mandate, the NITDA will support any initiative that enhances the capacity of Nigerians to meet the rising expectations of the global IT market and the new challenges posed by global outsourcing. A robust call centre operation is needed to serve emerging national local businesses and this will in turn enhance the nation's chances of being a hub for international Call Centre outsourcing. NITDA is pleased to be involved in the TOEIC centre commissioning because in addition to other benefits, TOEIC certification is a major requirement for would-be call centre operators."