As Senate urges agency to fast track digitalization process in the country
By Henry Umoru – Abuja
The Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency ( NITDA), Mallam Kashifu Inuwa has declared that Nigeria is lagging behind in the $11trillion Digital Economy in the world despite its huge population and potentials.
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The NITDA boss who noted that Data and not oil, is driving the economy of leading countries of the world today, said that digital economy and not the mono-product one being run in the country is what Nigeria must key into and which the agency with the support of its supervising ministry, is facilitating for the country through required innovations and technology.
Inuwa spoke yesterday in Abuja on Nigeria’s unimpressive position in the digital cum data-driven economy and the need for its repositioning in that direction when the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Ajibola Basiru paid a courtesy visit on NITDA DG.
Meanwhile, the Senate has urged the agency to fast-track the process of making the country an innovative one.
Speaking further, NITDA DG disclosed that a Centre for Robotics and Artificial Intelligence has been created by the agency in that direction just as 20,000 young Nigerians across the states, are being targeted for capacity building in the area of technology.
He “Economy in the world is going or has gone digital, which is presently valued at $11trillion.
“But out of 616 digital cum data-driven firms running the digital economy, while 256 are based in the United States of America, 204 in China , 26 in the United Kingdom, 21 in India, 12 in Germany, etc, only two each, are in South Africa and Nigeria.
“This to NITDA, is not good, going by population and potentials the country is blessed with.”
Inuwa who noted the agency is ever ready to promote usage of IT or digital devices by Nigerians in all their economic activities, particularly in the agricultural…
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