Nigeria, as Co-Champion of Digital Trade under AfCFTA is committed to building an, inclusive, and globally competitive digital economy under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
On the sidelines of the inaugural AfCFTA Digital Trade Forum, hosted by the AfCFTA Secretariat in Lusaka, Zambia, the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, with technical support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Regional AfCFTA Portfolio, unveiled the results of a first of its kind national Digital Trade Survey and Mapping Exercise.
In early April, Jumoke Oduwole, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment issued a nationwide call for submissions and led active stakeholder engagement to ensure participation in Nigeria’s Digital Trade Survey.
The result is Africa’s first-ever Digital Services Directory—a resource offering detailed insights into Nigeria’s fast-growing digital economy and its potential to scale across the continent.
“I am proud to unveil the findings from Nigeria’s first-of-its-kind digital mapping effort,” Oduwole remarked during the forum.
“This snapshot of 17 dynamic sectors provides deep insights into our digital economy and the bold ambitions of its trailblazers. Through this national survey, we have confirmed Nigeria is not just participating in Africa’s digital revolution—we are helping shape it.”
“We had set out to identify Nigeria’s digital service providers, pinpoint priority African markets, inform national policy, and shape Nigeria’s leadership in implementing the AfCFTA Protocol on Digital Trade”, she said.
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Here are initial key findings…
Youth – Driven Digital Services Sector:
Nigerian innovation is powered by youth, with 41 percent of digital entrepreneurs under 35 years old. Over half of all surveyed digital services firms emerged in just the last three years.
Gender Dynamics in Key Sectors:
While men lead 73 percent of digital firms overall, women are breaking boundaries in high-impact sectors. Women lead 64 percent of healthcare digital businesses and 48 percent of education tech firms.
Sectoral Strengths:
Nigeria commands leadership in many digital sectors, especially Computing & Infrastructure Services, Professional Services (example legal, advisory), and Financial Services, with fintech powered by digital payment platforms.
Strong Local Ownership, Global Reach:
Over 90 percent of surveyed digital services firms are headquartered in Nigeria, underlining strong indigenous innovation and leadership. Yet, strategic foreign partnerships and investments reflect rising global confidence in Nigeria’s digital maturity.
AfCFTA – Focused Expansion:
While Nigerian digital services are scaling across the continent, five countries are of particular interest. The Ghana–Kenya–South Africa corridor dominates, while Rwanda and Egypt are also notable destinations.
Business Formalization Accelerates Appetite and Capacity for Cross – Border Operations:
Registered companies make up 75 percent of surveyed firms and expand more aggressively than sole proprietorships, validating Nigeria’s ongoing push for business formalization.
Nigeria will build on these strategic insights to commence a robust market access and regulatory support programme that will include: support for Nigeria’s digital services firms to expand across the African market through trade diplomacy and market access programmes; and targeted interventions for women to launch and scale digital services firms across all sectors.
At the heart of this effort is the launch of Africa’s first comprehensive Digital Services Directory that offers insights into the innovation, scale and operations of Nigeria’s digital services firms. The World Trade Organisation has noted that trade in digitally delivered services is growing faster than trade in traditional services and trade in goods.
