FG to boost digital infrastructure investments
President Kashim Shettima
FG to boost digital infrastructure investments
Abdullateef Fowewe
The Federal Government of Nigeria has unveiled a strategy to drive Africa’s digital trade revolution within the framework of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement.
The strategy that is said to be part of the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu’s administration is to harness trade as a spur for economic growth and continental cohesion in line with AfCFTA objectives, was revealed in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communications, Stanley Nkwocha, on Friday.
Vice President, President Kashim Shettima while speaking during a Stakeholders Summit with the theme, ‘Digital Trade in Africa: The Renewed Hope Strategy,’ that was held at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Friday, according to the press release said that Nigeria is in an outstanding position to spearhead the continent’s technological transformation.
In the release, Shettimah said, “We are in a vantage position because we are the continent’s largest ICT hub, and as such, we must lead the way to the future of this peculiar wave of the Industrial Revolution. Our collaboration must prioritise comparisons of our policy initiatives to those of developed economies and fine-tune them to sustain our place and fast-track our growth.
“We also focus on enhancing digital infrastructure investments, promoting disruptive innovation and entrepreneurship, and ensuring the alignment of multiple government agencies to support digital trade initiatives. Our collaboration must prioritize comparisons of our policy initiatives to those of developed economies and fine-tune them to sustain our place and fast-track our growth. For a sector upon which all others rely to survive, digital technologies hold the nation together, and we cannot afford to slow down.
“Our programmes, from the Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (iDICE) to the ongoing intervention to train 3 million technical talents by the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, to the Outsource to Nigeria Initiative, are lifelines in our digital economy. They offer us an avenue to not only maximize our potential but also commit to the adoption of the Digital Trade Protocol within AfCFTA.”
Backing Shettima’s comment, Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijjani, also highlighted in the statement that the Tinubu administration is making significant investments in all aspects of the digital trade protocol; and stressed that the initiative aims to capitalise on opportunities both within Nigeria and across the African continent.
Tijjani according to the statement brought out the importance of technology in facilitating trade across the continent, noting that the vast opportunities available within the single market can only be fully leveraged through strategic partnerships and networking enabled by digital technology.
