Nigeria’s technology sector cannot reach its full potential without a stable and reliable power supply, the Acting Director-General of the Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce (NACC), Ms. Wofai Samuel, has said.
Speaking in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday, Samuel emphasized the critical link between power availability and technological advancement. “Without power, how do we even drive technology? Power is correlated to technology, and technology is correlated to power,” she said.
Samuel highlighted the importance of technology as a key driver for economic diversification in West Africa, especially amid global trade challenges such as tariffs and uncertainties around the African Growth and Opportunities Act (AGOA). She urged Nigeria to leverage its tech sector to reduce dependence on traditional exports.
The NACC chief pointed to the rapid growth of Nigeria’s banking and fintech sectors, which are transforming financial services through innovations like online and mobile banking. She referenced a World Bank projection that these sectors will be among the fastest-growing in 2025.
Samuel also called for greater collaboration and policy support, citing the recent $600 billion investment by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince in the U.S. tech industry as an example of international cooperation to advance technology. She encouraged Nigerian tech platforms to engage more in global tech conferences and urged government officials to actively participate in shaping policies that support sustainable tech development.
Nigeria’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector contributed about 17.68% to the country’s real GDP in 2024, up from 17.34% in 2023. Telecommunications remains the dominant sub-sector, accounting for approximately 14.40% of GDP in the last quarter of 2024, ranking it as the third-largest contributor after crop production and trade.
Earlier this year, Nigeria’s Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, projected that the digital economy would contribute 21% to Nigeria’s GDP, supported by infrastructure projects such as the rollout of 90,000 kilometers of fiber optic cables to improve internet access nationwide.
