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The economic potentials of ICT as a viable economic alternative to oil have been posited at the BusinessDay Technology Conference as a means of reinvigorating Nigeria’s economy at a time of slowed growth and continued oil price volatility.
“The ICT sector can and indeed should be a stronger pillar of economic support for the development of our country,” says Frank Aigbogun, Publisher/CEO of BusinessDay.
An effective policy intervention aimed at addressing the challenges of the telecoms sector would surely lead to vast improvements which will increase jobs and government tax revenues. A failure of this however, Aigbogun observes could cost Nigeria a cumulative N400 billion in unrealised direct and indirect contribution to GDP over the next four years.
Okechukwu Enelemah, Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment observes that help beyond oil has emerged in recent years as a catch phrase of some sort, not just in Nigeria, but around the world.
The major trends driving it include drop in prices of mineral resources as well as the new found emphasis on economic diversification.
On using ICT as a driver of growth in the Nigerian economy, Enelemah, reiterated that “the primary agent of growth in all the sectors will be the private sector. The government’s role is to provide an enabling environment and spell out clear and consistent policies; and create the space for funding and investment.”
Aigbogun also expressed the view that “Nigeria can see another wave of targeted and ground breaking investment coming to the ICT sector if the country can get all stakeholders to agree on a way forward and actually committed to making it happen. “We have done it before and it can be done again,” he said.
