*The National Information Technology Development Agency advocates a unified, cross-sector push to translate the framework of the Nigerian Startup Act into practical benefits for local entrepreneurs and investors across the West African country
Gbenga Kayode | ConsumerConnect
In a move to drive innovation and digital transformation in the country, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) is advocating a unified, cross-sector push to translate the framework of the Nigerian Startup Act (NSA) into practical benefits for local entrepreneurs and investors.
ConsumerConnect reports Malam Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, Director-General of NITDA, noted this while speaking at the NSA Incentives Activation Co-Creation Session, which the agency’s subsidiary, the Office for Nigerian Digital Innovation (ONDI), organised in Abuja, FCT.
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Inuwa emphasised that as enacting the legislation was a historic milestone, its ultimate success would be measured by its tangible impact on everyday tech ventures.
Delivering remarks on behalf of the Director-General of NITDA, Victoria Fabunmi, ONDI National Coordinator, asserted that Nigeria then, must transition from policy design to operational delivery.
Inuwa noted that while early structural achievements, such as setting up the Startup Consultative Forum and launching the digital startup portal have established vital channels for dialogue, the true test of the law lies in whether founders could easily access the relief and resources promised to them.
On sustainable stakeholder engagement
The Chief Executive of NITDA also said the establishment of the Startup Consultative Forum, and its governance structures had created an important platform for sustained engagement among stakeholders.
He, however, stressed that the real test of the legislation would be its impact on businesses operating within the innovation ecosystem.
The Nigerian Government agencies, private-sector actors and other ecosystem stakeholders must work collectively to remove institutional bottlenecks and ensure that startups can access the opportunities created by the Act, Inuwa stated.
According to him, the participating institutions possessed different mandates, resources and policy instruments that, if properly coordinated, could significantly improve the operating environment for Nigerian startups.
Inuwa declared: “We want to go to the next level. We want to be able to say that the actors in our ecosystem have been able to benefit significantly from the legislation that has been passed, and it wouldn’t happen without everyone sitting in this room.”
Key success factors, by Inuwa
The Director-General of the country’s IT sector regulatory agency urged stakeholders to shift attention from the mere existence of the legislation to its practical implementation, particularly the activation of incentives designed to promote investment, innovation and enterprise growth.
The implementation of the NSA, he said, involved institutions across several sectors of the economy, including trade, finance, communications, innovation, digital economy, science and technology.
He also observed that bringing these institutions together was necessary to identify gaps, clarify responsibilities, and develop workable mechanisms for delivering the incentives to intended beneficiaries.
Inuwa further urged stakeholders to embrace continuous engagement and feedback mechanism.
The success of the Act would depend largely on the ability of implementing institutions to work together and respond to the evolving needs of the startup ecosystem, stated he.
The NITDA Chief as well said recommendations from the session would contribute to ongoing efforts at strengthening the implementation framework and create an environment where Nigerian startups could scale, attract investment and compete effectively in global markets.
Insight into incentive provisions of Nigerian Startup Act
In a context-setting presentation titled: “Operationalising the Incentive Provisions of the Nigerian Startup Ac”, Ms. Elma Andah, Acting Lead, Strategy, Research and Analytics at ONDI, said the Act provides over 31 incentives distributed across six major categories.
Ms. Andah identified the categories as tax and fiscal incentives, regulatory support, funding access, exports and trade, ecosystem enablers, and training and capacity building.
She also explained that implementing the incentives would require the participation of over 15 government institutions, making inter-agency coordination central to the success of the legislation.
The Acting Lead, Strategy, Research and Analytics at ONDI explained that the Nigerian Startup Act, signed into law on October 19, 2022, was designed to promote innovation, improve access to funding, strengthen collaboration and position Nigeria as a leading technology and innovation-driven economy in Africa.
Nigeria’s startup ecosystem, she stated, has continued to demonstrate significant potential, with more than 3,000 startups and several globally recognised technology companies.
Andah disclosed that Nigerian startups attracted about $410 million in funding 2024, despite the challenging economic environment in the West African country.
She further highlighted several areas of progress under the Act, including engagements with states on adoption, the operational startup support engagement portal, improved startup labelling timelines, the Startup Consultative governance framework, the Startup Investment Seed Fund framework, as well as ongoing efforts at operationalising the regulatory sandbox framework.
The top official of ONDI, however, stressed that the interconnected nature of the incentives meant that no single institution could deliver them independently.
“No single institution can deliver all these incentives alone. Implementation requires coordination across more than 15 MDAs,” she said.
Using practical examples, Ms. Andah explained that a startup seeking funding could simultaneously require tax incentives, while an enterprise seeking to export its products might need regulatory approvals.
Investors seeking tax credits could also depend on access to the startup labelling system, she noted.
The Acting Lead, Strategy, Research and Analytics subsequently, challenged participating institutions to clearly establish ownership of the incentives assigned to them, strengthen coordination, simplify access procedures and introduce effective monitoring and accountability mechanisms.
NITDA affirmed the session provided stakeholders with an opportunity to identify implementation gaps, and develop practical approaches for ensuring that the incentives contained in the Startup Act are accessible to startups, investors, innovation hubs, and other beneficiaries in the digital ecosystem.
The agency said the stakeholders noted the outcome is expected to support a more coordinated implementation of the NSA, and strengthen its contribution to Nigeria’s innovation, investment and economic development objectives.