Nigeria’s greatest asset is human capital, not natural resources — NITDA

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) says Nigeria’s greatest asset is no longer its natural resources but the creativity, talent and innovation capacity of its people.

The Director-General, NITDA, Kashifu Abdullahi, stated this on Thursday at the Omniverse Africa Summit 3.0 in Lagos with the theme, “Connected Future, Synergy for Impact.”

Speaking on Nigeria’s position in the global digital economy, Abdullahi said the country was uniquely positioned to drive innovation owing to its youthful population and expanding technology ecosystem.

“As Africa’s largest digital economy and home to one of the world’s youngest populations, we recognise that our greatest asset is no longer what is beneath the ground but the minds of our people,” he said.

He noted that rapid advances in Artificial Intelligence, blockchain, robotics, quantum computing, extended reality and the Internet of Things were transforming economies and redefining competitiveness worldwide.

According to him, the critical question facing Africa is whether the continent will remain a consumer of future technologies or emerge as a creator of innovative solutions.

Highlighting progress across the continent, Abdullahi said young Africans are developing digital tools that promoted financial inclusion, improve healthcare delivery and transform agriculture, education and governance.

“Africa is no longer imagined. Africa is no longer potential. Africa is innovative. Africa is leading,” he said.

The NITDA boss said the agency’s Strategic Roadmap and Action Plan 2.0 was focused on building digital skills, strengthening infrastructure, advancing artificial intelligence and supporting startup growth.

He disclosed that NITDA was working towards achieving 70 per cent digital literacy nationwide by 2027, through partnerships with government institutions, development organisations and private sector stakeholders.

Speaking on ongoing initiatives, Abdullahi noted that digital literacy champions are being deployed across local government areas to help equip millions of Nigerians with relevant digital skills.

He said the agency was collaborating with stakeholders across sectors to train at least 30 million Nigerians and accelerate the country’s transition to a knowledge-driven digital economy.

On efforts to deepen innovation, Abdullahi said NITDA had established programmes supporting startup development, research commercialisation, artificial intelligence adoption and transparent digital governance.

According to him, innovation thrives where governments, businesses, researchers and development organisations work together to solve common challenges and create sustainable value.

“This is why platforms such as Omniverse Africa are important. They create a bridge that connects ideas to opportunity and innovation to impact,” he said.

Abdullahi urged stakeholders across government, industry, academia and civil society to deepen collaboration and jointly develop solutions capable of addressing local challenges with global relevance.

“The future belongs to nations and populations that can learn, adapt, innovate and collaborate faster than change. Let us move beyond discussing the future and work together to build it,” he said.

He reaffirmed NITDA’s commitment to partnering with stakeholders to build a digitally-enabled Nigeria and contribute to a more innovative, inclusive and prosperous Africa.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the Omniverse Africa Summit 3.0 is a four-day cross-sector innovation gathering of investors, policymakers, creatives and ICT experts