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ICT Stakeholders List Ways to Creating Billion Dollar Firms in Nigeria

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In a bid aimed at supporting the government and leaders in technology in their efforts at driving the change needed to be seen in the Nigerian technology industry, various key Stakeholders in the nation’s ICT sector recently met in Abuja and identified interventions required to create billion dollar companies in Nigeria.

At the first Digital Africa Leadership Series, with the theme: “Generating Laws and Policies for Creating Local $Billion Tech Companies – How do we get there?,” which held on the 20th of April, 2017 at the Shehu Musa Yar’adua Centre, Abuja, participants which included the Honourable Minister of Communications Technology, Barrister Adebayo Shittu; the Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency, NITDA, Dr. Isa Ali Pantami; Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, members of the civil society organisations, entrepreneurs, government functionaries and CEOs of top ICT firms came up with far-reaching decisions.

In a communiqué at the end of the one-day event, participants noted that there is an established correlation between the number of $billion tech companies in a country and the size and level of development of their economy. Therefore, there is a need for the country to consciously think of the policies and legal framework needed to build the Nigerian Tech companies that would achieve multi $billion status. This also means that Nigerian companies should always see the whole world as its market.

Stakeholders at the event noted that Nigeria with a population of about 200million people is supposed to play a leading role in Africa, especially in the innovation and diffusion of ICTs. Whereas this is the case, other countries like Kenya and Rwanda seem to be bettering Nigeria’s efforts. It was, therefore, agreed that greater effort should be put in the country to ensure that she meticulously executes her National ICT policies or Road Map.

Participants agreed that the Minister and the leadership of other ICT agencies should inspire and drive a new vision for Nigeria’s ICT industry through their public engagement and use of the social media.

It noted that the country has developed several ICT strategy documents, roadmaps, national ICT blueprints and master-plans, and bemoaned the seeming confusion as to which is the driving document for the country. It therefore, called for a need for harmonisation and/or communication of the right document, as stakeholders desire to know which one of them is the driving plan for the industry.

The stakeholders noted the assurance of the Honourable Minister that the Federal Executive Council will soon approve the National ICT Roadmap document as well as the National e-Governance Masterplan document. Accordingly, they advised that when approved, the same documents should be widely circulated.

Stakeholders noted the existence of Local Content Office under the National Information Technology Development Agency and the Federal Ministry of Communications Technology and advocated for a target percentage of local ICT contracts to be awarded to Nigerian businesses, advising that where no Nigerian company is qualified, such Nigerian company should understudy the expatriate company in order to ensure transfer of knowledge within a specified period.

The Stakeholders further noted the inadequacy of the current intellectual property and copyright protection laws in Nigeria and advocated for the laws to be updated to provide sufficient protection for Nigerian businesses.

It was noted that the quality of ICT education from Primary, Secondary and especially the tertiary levels are weak when compared to what is obtainable from other parts of the world. It is, therefore, important for the government to create the enabling policies, laws and infrastructural environment needed to greatly enhance the quality of ICT education in Nigeria, adding that Government’s direct intervention to hasten the size and variety of capacity in ICT for the country is highly desirable.

Participants at the one-day forum noted that despite the two decades of efforts at enhancing relative ICT infrastructure in the country with regards to electricity, telecommunications network and computer hardware availability, the level, size, number and quality of infrastructure in the country are still insufficient, thereby impinging on the ability of the country to properly participate in the coming 4th Industrial Revolution. They, therefore, advised that the government must take urgent action to provide the country with a befitting infrastructure in readiness for the 4th Industrial Revolution.

The forum also noted that many infrastructural projects in the country are poorly supervised and built with substandard materials. Therefore, Government should ensure that an effective quality system is introduced and that projects are undertaken to specification, cost and agreed timeline.

It further noted that there is a need to ensure that various ICT policies from the different ICT Regulatory Agencies in the country are appropriately communicated to all relevant stakeholders such as trade unions, individuals, organisations and sectoral regulators.

Stakeholders observed and noted that most organisations that are calling themselves Incubators are actually playing the role of Accelerators and that there is a dearth of knowledge in Incubation Hubs Management, and therefore, advised that the Government should create special facilities for training Nigerians on the development and running of Incubation Hubs.

With regards to investment in all sectors of ICT, it was noted that if the enabling environment is there as well as the right kind of incentives, not just local investors but even international investors and capital will move in. Similarly, it was noted that in order to enhance capacity for the industry, Government should encourage organisations that train people for various ICT skills with incentives such as Tax Breaks. This according to the forum, will encourage numerous organisations to train graduates bearing in mind that they will only be able to keep a few while the rest will go into the industry to enhance capacity.

The Communiqué commended the Minister on the plan for the proposed transformation of NIPOST to amongst other things, provide electronic banking services, e-commerce services, banking and finance services, transportation and logistics services, property development services, etc. It noted with excitement that the NIPOST reform package will soon be launched and therefore, encouraged the Minister to see to the successful and timely implementation of same.

The forum noted that in order for the Government to catalyse the Nigerian ICT industry, and because of the general recession in the country, government should in addition to setting up the necessary enabling environment, provide funding for startup businesses, and provide the needed funding for entrepreneurs under an appropriate arrangement without having to be in business itself.

The stakeholders acknowledged with commendation, the fact that the Federal Government has decided to build a National ICT Park. They suggested that in addition to this, a minimum of 30 Techshops should be built across the country. The Techshops will provide implements or building materials, i.e. both process and product technologies with which to fabricate whatever innovative ideas Nigerians may have using all possible fabrication materials like iron, steel, wood, plastics, etc. In other words, the Techshops will provide centres with all the necessary building tools for the trialling and fabrication of different innovative ideas.


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Detained Binance executive drags EFCC, NSA to court

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Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan has has dragged the National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu and the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to court alleging violations of his fundamental rights.

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In a filing dated March 18 and presented by his lawyer Olujoke Aliyu from Aluko and Oyebode Law Firm, Gambaryan sought redress before Justice Inyang Ekwo, requesting five reliefs. Similarly, Nadeem Anjarwalla, Binance’s Africa regional manager who escaped custody on March 22, initiated a separate suit before Justice Ekwo.

Gambaryan and Anjarwalla, in the suits marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/356/24 and FHC/ABJ/CS/355/24, had sued the Office of NSA (ONSA) and EFCC as 1st and 2nd respondents.

Gambaryan, a US citizen overseeing financial crime compliance at the crypto exchange platform, alleged that his detention and the confiscation of his international travel passport violated Section 35 (1) and (4) of the 1999 Constitution, constituting a breach of his fundamental right to personal liberty. He further requested the court to order his immediate release and the return of his passport. Additionally, he sought an injunction preventing further detention related to any Binance investigations and demanded a public apology from the respondents, along with costs incurred.

Gambaryan stated that he visited Nigeria on February 26 alongside Nadeem Anjarwalla, representing Binance, in response to invitations from ONSA and EFCC. Despite attending the meeting as requested, both were detained afterward without formal charges.

During the court proceedings, T.J. Krukrubo, SAN, representing Anjarwalla and Gambaryan, informed the court of the respondents’ absence despite being served. Krukrubo also mentioned their notice of withdrawal of legal representation for Anjarwalla, filed on March 26.

Justice Ekwo noted the withdrawal of legal representation and adjourned the matter to April 8 to allow the applicants to seek new representation and give the respondents an opportunity to appear.

In Gambaryan’s case, Krukrubo stated that although the processes were served on ONSA and EFCC, they still had time to respond. He requested an adjournment, indicating that the respondents’ deadline to file their applications would expire the following week.

Consequently, Justice Ekwo scheduled the next hearing for April 8 to continue proceedings.


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AXA Mansard Empowers Female SMEs with Financial, Digital Skills

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AXA Mansard, a member of AXA has empowered 200 female Small and Medium Enterprises with financial literacy and digital business skills.

In collaboration with SME 100 Africa, the two-day training, which was held in Lagos, is part of AXA’s lined-up programmes to commemorate this year’s International Women’s Day.

Speaking, Olusesan Ogunyooye, Head of Marketing AXA Mansard, said the training was aimed to empower female SME owners with skills to improve business output and position them for the increasing economic opportunities available in an increasingly digital marketplace.

Ogunyooye noted that the move was in line with AXA Mansard’s sustainability agenda, explaining that the company was convinced that support for women through its inclusive protection programmes was pivotal to its purpose of acting for human progress by protecting what matters and its mission of moving from being a payer to a partner.

He further said that focusing on digital skills was important because the company realised the importance of digital skills to the growth of the SME sector in Nigeria and wants to ensure that women were empowered enough to be a consequential part of that growth.

“It’s almost trite to say that SMEs are the engine for economic growth, especially in developing countries like Nigeria, where over 45 million adults are business owners. What needs to be continually discussed is how Nigeria is going to unlock that potential for economic development and how much of that potential will be unlocked by women and for women.”

“For us at AXA Mansard, we are aware that digital will play a major role in unlocking these current opportunities and Nigeria’s economic future. So, to ensure that women are equally represented in unlocking these future potentials, that’s why we have collaborated with SME 100 Africa to support them in developing the required skills”.

“Our choice of digital and financial literacy skills is deliberate. We understand the power of the duo. We understand that helping these SMEs with the skills to attract more customers will be a faster means to empower them.

“We see that they have amazing products and services, but they need to understand how to attract value for themselves by attracting the right customers, and you will agree with me that virtually all customer segments are online in one way or another today.

“So, if we can empower them with digital business skills, we would have helped them with the heavy lifting of trying to find and attract customers”. Ogunyooye explained.

According to him, AXA Mansard believes that for the world to experience progress truly, there must be an equitable distribution of creation and access to opportunities for men and women. This quest for balance informed the SHE for Shield initiative, a women-centred inclusive protection programme of AXA Mansard.

SHE for Shield is a group of initiatives designed for the Nigerian woman. The goal is to see them grow, add value, and help them mitigate risks at every step.

According to the company, research has found that access to health care is one of the most important things to Nigerian women, regardless of their economic segment. They desire to be financially independent, secure, and respected in the community.

 


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IFC Invests in New 4DX Ventures Fund to Support Tech Startups in Africa

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IFC is investing $10.5 million in a new fund by 4DX Ventures, a New York-based venture capital firm focused on supporting early-stage African technology companies across a broad set of sectors, including fintech, e-commerce, edtech, climate tech, and health tech.

IFC’s investment in 4DX Ventures Fund III will come from IFC’s $225 million venture capital platform, which was launched last year to strengthen emerging VC ecosystems and invest in early-stage companies in Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and Pakistan.

Africa is among the regions least served by venture capital, receiving just 2% of global venture deal volume in the third quarter of 2023. Access to capital on the continent has been further exacerbated by a slowdown in global venture capital investment.

Tech ecosystems are nascent, or even nonexistent, outside of more established markets such as Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, and South Africa.

“IFC and 4DX Ventures share the commitment to supporting tech entrepreneurs with innovations that will help Africa leapfrog in critical areas such as climate, health care, fintech, e-commerce, and education,” said Walter Baddoo, Co-Founder and General Partner of 4DX Ventures.

“We look forward to partnering with IFC to help promising tech startups build transformative businesses and realize sustainable development impact on the continent.”

4DX’s new fund will invest in companies with tech solutions that can improve productivity, efficiency and competitiveness across Africa. The firm’s first two funds invested in companies such as Egypt-based e-commerce platform MaxAB, an IFC portfolio company; Ghana-based health tech firm mPharma; and Kenya-based B2B e-commerce platform Wasoko, formerly known as Sokowatch.

“By supporting the development of tech ecosystems in emerging markets, IFC’s venture capital platform aims to improve access to key services, boost business competitiveness, and promote job creation through digital transformation,” said Mohamed Gouled, Vice President of Industries at IFC.

“Our investment in venture funds such as 4DX Ventures will help African entrepreneurs access more financing and resources they need to scale tech innovations and bolster sustainable growth across the continent.

In addition to providing capital, IFC will work with 4DX Ventures to implement their environmental and social management system.


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