Nigeria Sets Sights on Blockchain Innovation Announces Launch of Emerging Technology Research Hubs
The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) in Nigeria is planning to establish research centers dedicated to emerging technologies such as Blockchain. This initiative was announced by the Director-General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuw, during the IoT West Africa Conference in Lagos. Inuw stated that these research centers will focus on key technologies including artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), additive manufacturing, robotics, and blockchain technology. These centers will be deployed across the six geo-political zones of Nigeria.
In addition to setting up these research units, the government will also support Nigerian startups in scaling their product development using these technologies. Innovation sandboxes will be utilized to develop use cases and introduce these products to the market.
Alongside these efforts, the NITDA has been training the nation’s population through its 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) program. By 2027, the government aims to equip three million Nigerians with the necessary skills to strengthen its ongoing initiatives. Inuwa, the Director-General, anticipates that these initiatives will lead to an increase in foreign exchange remittances as individuals trained through these programs leave the country.
Shitij Taneja, the managing director of Vertex Next and organizer of the IoT West Africa conference, referred to Nigeria as “Africa’s next Silicon Valley.” He believes that Nigeria’s large youth population and dynamic startup ecosystem position it as a leading force in the technology sector. The conference aims to attract investors to Nigerian startups.
Nigeria’s growing focus on emerging technologies has been evident in recent months. In May, the NITDA restructured the National Blockchain Policy Steering Committee (NBPSC) to enhance the implementation of its National Blockchain Policy. The country is also exploring potential collaborations with the United States to harness the potential of AI and other emerging technologies, despite recent legal tensions involving a detained executive of the crypto exchange Binance.
The Blockchain Industry Coordinating Committee of Nigeria (BICCoN), a blockchain advocacy group, has warned that these developments could strain relations with global partners.
