Nigeria Set To Become Africa’s ICT Hub
“We have a vision to be the ICT hub for Africa– to make Nigeria the ‘go to’ place for innovation, skills, research and development, tech companies etc. The journey to this vision is as challenging as it is exciting and I hope that I have been able to ignite your interest to join us and support us in this endeavour.”
— Those were the words of Omobola Johnson, the Minister of Communication Technology, who said that deliberate efforts are underway to raise local content in the Nigerian ICT sector where over 70 per cent is controlled by foreigners.
According to the Minister, international companies control 70 per cent of Nigeria’s PC market and 100 per cent of the mobile phone market, while more than 70 per cent of the mobile network operators are owned by foreign companies. Omobola Johnson, Minister of Communication Technology
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The Minister made the observation at the just-concluded Nigeria Summit organised by The Economist, the latest growth in the Nigerian ICT sector is equally sustainable. She said the growth could be combined and leveraged to deliver on the transformational opportunities in Nigeria while noting that “with the exception of a couple of sub-sectors, the 26 sub-sectors that make up the ICT sector are positioned for high to medium growth and in turn have high to medium capacity to create jobs and wealth.” She said that there are four laid-down priorities being pursued by government: Connect Nigeria, Connect Nigerians, Local Content and ICT in governance.
“Focusing on these four priorities will enable us deliver a digital revolution that will be broader, deeper and much more impactful than the telecoms revolution that we are ever so proud of,” the CommTech Minister adds.
“Focusing on these four priorities will enable us deliver a digital revolution that will be broader, deeper and much more impactful than the telecoms revolution that we are ever so proud of,” the CommTech Minister adds.
She further clarified the issue of misinterpretaion by the public “Now please don’t get me wrong, the presence of international companies is necessary and it is a good thing especially in a sector as global and advanced as the ICT sector but when it gets to a point where companies owned by Nigerians are playing at the fringes of a very lucrative and fast growing market, then government has to intervene and we have done this is a very purposeful and deliberate manner”, Johnson said.
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