Nigeria has unveiled an ambitious roadmap to increase the role and impact of ICT contributions on the country's gross domestic product (GDP) by 2015.
Omobola Johnson, minister of communication technology, presented the lofty strategy to stakeholders at a roundtable on the creation of a digital economy and information society, in Lagos, last week.
Johnson said the roadmap was aimed at increasing broadband penetration by 12%, ICT contribution to Nigeria's GDP by 5%, Internet penetration by 34%, mobile penetration by 80%, and growing Internet users by 70 million by 2015.
Other components of the roadmap, according to the minister, include strategies to rollout broadband infrastructure, articulate e-government requirements, and create ICT cadres in all ministries.
Johnson added that government would harmonise all relevant ICT policies, increase the online presence of Nigerian businesses, and refocus government agencies within the Communication Technology Ministry to ensure optimal performance.
She said that currently, the ICT sector was contributing 3.5% to Nigeria's GDP, and broadband penetration 6.1%, while the number of registered ICT companies in the country numbered only 350.
“Internet penetration per 100 people is currently at 22.1%, mobile phone penetration per 100 people is 58.50%, while fixed-line penetration per 100 people is 0.70%. PC penetration per 100 people is 4.7%, and about 500 000 computers are assembled in the country,” she added.
She said government's strategy would ensure the current situation was revamped.
“The Nigerian ICT industry is a predominantly service-based industry that is characterised by a highly fragmented market, exemplified by proliferation of small players with low-value offerings,” she said.
She added that the manufacturing and assembly of ICT hardware in the country had exhibited very low growth due to a lack of essential support infrastructure, with limited opportunities and raised entry barriers.
Reacting to the roadmap, Ope Odusan, COO of the Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NIRA), said the goals and targets contained in the roadmap would only be achieved if government and stakeholders collaborate to promote the Nigerian domain name platform (.ng).
“We cannot talk of increasing Internet penetration without popularising the country's domain name. Each time a Nigerian registers on the .com platform, needed resources are leaving our economy,” he said.
He stressed that strategies aimed at achieving the roadmap should include incentives and other encouragements that would spur indigenous software developers, Web designers, and content managers.
Lanre Ajayi, immediate past president of the Nigeria Internet Group, said the roadmap was laudable and attainable, considering the existence of various ICT platforms in the country.
“What is needed is for government to put in place necessary strategies to harness the potentials that abound in the sector. Currently, we have more than 70 million mobile phone users, so increasing Internet penetration means getting them to access the Internet via their phones,” he said.
Ajayi, who is a member of the Generic Names Supporting Organisation (GNSO) council of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, said government needs to work more with stakeholders in the sector.
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