The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) says Nigeria must control its critical digital infrastructure to harness the economic value of its digital economy fully.

NITDA’s director-general, Kashifu Inuwa, said this on Thursday at a fireside chat during GITEX AI Nigeria in Lagos.

GITEX AI Nigeria is a four-day event that commenced in Abuja and is described as the largest technology and startup show in West Africa.

Mr Inuwa said digital technology would be critical to achieving Nigeria’s ambition of becoming a trillion-dollar economy by boosting productivity, income generation and prosperity.

He said controlling digital infrastructure was essential because modern businesses depended heavily on data, connectivity and computing power to create and capture economic value.

According to him, Nigeria’s National Cloud-First Policy is designed to encourage businesses and large organisations to prioritise cloud infrastructure while focusing resources on innovation and core operations.

He stressed that the policy was not intended to shut out global technology companies but to encourage them to invest, build infrastructure and operate within Nigeria’s regulatory framework.

“We are saying, come to Nigeria, work with us and build with us,” Mr Inuwa said.

He said the policy would also attract investments from hyperscalers, other global technology firms and local investors into Nigeria’s digital infrastructure ecosystem.

The NITDA boss dismissed concerns that the policy could isolate Nigeria, saying it aimed instead to position the country to control its digital future. He said certain categories of data, including defence, financial transactions, citizens’ and healthcare data, required stronger protection because of their implications for national and economic security.

Mr Inuwa said Nigeria’s strategic position as a major internet transit hub for West and Central Africa also made investment in domestic digital infrastructure important.

He said infrastructure and digital skills developed in Nigeria could support neighbouring landlocked countries, strengthening the country’s role in the regional digital economy.

On subnational participation, Mr Inuwa said NITDA was working with state governments to domesticate relevant national policies and regulations to ensure broader digital development.

He said the federal government’s objective was to promote inclusive prosperity by ensuring that every state had the infrastructure, talent and enabling environment needed to participate in the digital economy.

Mr Inuwa also highlighted opportunities for Nigerian startups beyond fintech, saying government policies were creating opportunities in health-tech, agri-tech and ed-tech.

He cited the establishment of a National Health Technology Office as part of efforts to decentralise healthcare and create opportunities for technology-driven solutions.

According to him, similar interventions in agriculture and education will provide entrepreneurs with opportunities to develop solutions to Nigeria’s pressing challenges.

He urged startups to move beyond traditional business models and leverage technology to create new value propositions and scalable solutions.

“We want to see startups building similar solutions in other parts of the country, not just in fintech, where we already have many unicorns,” he said.

Mr Inuwa said Nigeria’s fintech experience showed how deliberate government policies and enabling infrastructure can stimulate innovation and create new industries.

(NAN)