The trio of ubiquitous data, unlimited connectivity and massive processing power have been identified as the three available capabilities that tech innovators need to leverage and disrupt anything they can think of.
This is the submission of Mal. Kashifu Inuwa, the Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), when he delivered a keynote speech at the 19th edition of ICTEL Expo organised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry with the theme “Tech Disruption: Transforming Industries with Innovation.”
While charging tech innovators to employ the use of technology as a source of inspiration in their quest to disrupt businesses, the NITDA DG explained that the distinction between innovation and invention is a process from ideation to impact, stressing that invention is all about research that which may not necessarily be commercialised.
“The combination of ubiquitous data, unlimited connectivity and the massive processing power could give tech innovators the leverage to disrupt anything they can think of,” he said.
He added that as start-ups, there is a need to be able to pitch products for a new company; for people to use it to solve problems. “That’s why we have you, the startups; we have you with ideas. You need to come and disrupt. You need to use technology as a source of inspiration to disrupt businesses,” he reiterated.
He cited the success story of Flutterwave, a FinTech company that now has a bigger capital base than some commercial banks. Inuwa disclosed that the startups could leverage on the several initiatives of the government to attain greater heights in their exploits.
“We have so many initiatives that can help you to achieve that. When the government formulated the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy, (NDEPS) at NITDA, we crafted our Strategic Roadmap Action Plan, (SRAP) with seven strategic pillars that could spur technological innovation development in Nigeria.
He advised the participants to get ready for the future of work as there is going to be talent deficits because of the aging population the Western world is witnessing which Nigeria can fill because of the abundant talent and youthful population the country is blessed with, adding that “we have abundant talent; it’s just for us to harness that talent.“
According to Inuwa, the Federal Government through NITDA is embarking on several initiatives to bridge the skill gap in the country noting that the government has conducted a skill gap analysis to determine the kind of competencies required to build the country. It is also working on the Digital Literacy Framework which would soon be signed, and Talent Hunt Strategy.
The event is attended by the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Williams Allo, The Managing Director, Galaxy Backbone, Prof. Muhammed Abubakar, some members of the National Communications Commission management board and the executive of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, (LCCI),