News
Enabling Environment for Nigeria Content Development in the ICT Sector (3)
All these initiatives of Zinox involves much expenditure of resources, but the most saddening thing is that we are not encouraged by people defaulting after the initial deposit.
Marketing
Credit Policy
Infrastructure
: These have already been highlighted earlier, but permit me to share some experience. Freighting is an essential part of goods distribution and contributes to marketing. : Nigerians are yet to come to terms with credit purchase. The Central Bank of Nigeria is coming up with many policies to encourage the use of credit cards. The unfortunate thing is that even in this early stage many people are already defaulting in meeting their payment obligations. : Pricing of our goods is affected by the volatility of the foreign exchange. So prices cannot be maintained.
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In November 2007, Zinox lost a whole truck conveying goods to Yola through fire. This incident is avoidable where the roads in order.
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e. Purchasing Power
f. Local Content
g. Power
h. Discrimination against Nigerian made Goods
i. Bulk Purchasers
j. Security
: The agencies saddled with security of lives and properties in the country appear helpless to the prevailing state of insecurity in the country. : People saddled with bulk purchase of products for their organisations prefer buying from abroad (even where local and equally good substitutes are available), thereby depleting our foreign currency because of the kick back they get in hard currency. : Nigerian psyche has been steeped in the notion that foreign products are preferable even when there alternative high quality and cheaper local products. Even the government officials for some selfish or pecuniary reason also think this way. : Power generation, transmission and distribution in Nigeria right now are tottering in miserable obscurity or virtually non-existent. There is no need flogging a dying horse. For solution we should look at cost effective form of generation – nuclear energy. : The strangle hold the foreign companies have on the upstream sector of the oil industry and the profit they are scooping out of this country, is not making them develop the downstream sector. And most local investors do not have the capacity to go into the sector. Thus certain products from petrochemical plants that would have impacted the development of local content are still being imported. In the ICT industry, only cardboard cartons are produced locally. : The amount of disposable income available to majority of Nigerians is so low due to wide spread unemployment and poverty. This affects the ownership of this all important ICT tool.
What role can government and other relevant agencies play?
Most of these factors that negatively impact industries are within the purview of government to remedy. Having said that, we believe that Government needs to:
a. Improve policy, legal, and regulatory frameworks;
b. Build institutional capacity across sectors and at various levels;
c. Seek out and respond to industry needs and preferences;
d. Establish and maintain a range of oversight, accountability, and feedback mechanisms; and
e. Mobilize and allocate public resources and investments.
Conclusions and Recommendations
We want to conclude that the ICT industry in its present embryo stage needs government partnership. Partnership between government and the private sector engenders trust. Industries have recently seen a significant increase in various forms of partnering. The intent of these relationships is to improve competitive advantage through collaboration and the best use of talents, working toward a common goal. This commitment forms the foundation for an environment of trust and cooperation that benefits everyone. The Japanese model supervised by the Ministry of International Trade immediately after World War II wrought the economic miracle that catapulted Japan into one of the most industrialised countries in the world today. Government should have a look at how that model can be adapted to suit our environment. We are not asking to be spoon fed, we only want a level playing field to enable us compete.
Based on the foregoing, we would like to see the following recommendations implemented.
1. Policy consistency
2. Pioneer status incentives
3. Investment in infrastructure provision and maintenance
4. Human capital development vis a vis empowering educational institutions to be ambient to current global trends
5. Long term Capital provision at rates that compete with international financial institutions
6. Welfare of citizens including social safety net Legislation against dumping
Concluded
Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) has awarded a total of N13 million in grants to three standout tech startups at the 2025 Techpreneur Summit held in Lagos, reinforcing its commitment to innovation and inclusive growth among Nigeria’s micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
The winners include: BuyScrap, a digital marketplace for recyclable materials – N6 million; Qiqi Farms, which connects local farmers to hospitality and export markets – N4 million; Eco-Cyclers, a youth-led recycling initiative based in Enugu – N3 million
Alongside the grant awards, DBN also launched a new digital data asset, a first-of-its-kind platform aimed at enabling data-driven decisions within the MSME ecosystem.
The platform offers deep insights into business trends, sector-specific challenges, and growth opportunities—supporting smarter policymaking and targeted investments.
In his keynote address in Lagos, Tony Okpanachi, managing director/ CEO, DBN, described the event’s theme, “CTRL + SHIFT: Tech Empowered Movement for Naija,” as a strategic call to reimagine enterprise development in Nigeria.
“This isn’t just a keyboard shortcut,” he said. “It’s a mindset reset—powered by technology—to build a more inclusive, innovative, and resilient business landscape. From financing to innovation, DBN remains committed to enabling MSMEs to thrive.”
Okpanachi emphasized that the Summit aligns with DBN’s AMPLIFI Strategy, which integrates digital transformation, sustainability, and scalability into its core programs.
He highlighted initiatives such as the Digital Shift Workshops and the Eco-Innovation Challenge as key steps toward embedding innovation in Nigeria’s MSME sector.
Encouraging young innovators, he added: “The future belongs to those bold enough to imagine and build it. DBN is proud to support the ideas that will shape tomorrow.”
A major highlight was the unveiling of the DBN Data Asset—a digital platform designed to provide real-time, evidence-based insights into Nigeria’s MSME landscape.
The platform combines DBN’s proprietary data with external sources like the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) to offer a comprehensive view of MSME performance by region and sector.
Jeremy Dan Okayi, DBN’s Head of Strategy, Policy & Innovation, described the platform as: “A reservoir of insight, potential, and direction—built on two years of collaboration and shared vision. This tool will support informed decision-making across the public and private sectors.”
News
FCCPC Shuts France, Belgium, and Italy Visa Centres in Abuja Over Alleged Consumer Rights Violations
In a bold enforcement action, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), supported by the Nigeria Police Force and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), has sealed off the visa application centres of France, Belgium, and Italy in Abuja over alleged consumer protection breaches and obstruction of regulatory investigations.
The affected centres—located at Mukhtar El-Yakub House in the Central Business District and operated by TLS Contact, a Teleperformance Company—were shut down following reports that they refused to accept formal correspondence from the FCCPC regarding a consumer complaint. The Commission cited further infractions, including obstruction of investigation and alleged assault of its officers during lawful duties.
Speaking to journalists at the scene, Mrs. Boladale Adeyinka, Director of Surveillance and Investigations at the FCCPC, explained: “This is an enforcement operation against TLS. On March 25, 2025, we served them a letter to address a consumer complaint, which they refused to accept. Instead, TLS officers assaulted our team, and in a subsequent visit on June 17, they also allegedly assaulted uniformed police officers.”
Citing Section 33 of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA), Mrs. Adeyinka emphasized that failure to comply with Commission directives constitutes a criminal offense, punishable by imprisonment, fines of up to ₦20 million, or both.
TLS has been ordered to appear before the Commission on June 20, 2025, to provide testimony, submit evidence, and make formal depositions. The company may be held liable for any financial losses suffered by applicants due to the disruption of visa services.
Despite multiple requests for comment, management at TLS Contact declined to respond as of press time.
Adedapo Segun, chief financial officer (CFO), Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), has explained why there is a missing sum of N210 trillion in the company’s audited financial statement spanning from 2017 to 2023.
According to Segun, the missing funds are cash calls requested by joint venture (JV) partners and settlement to the JVs.
He spokeat a session of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts chaired by Aliyu Wadada.
Segun was responding to an alarm raised by the committee over missing N210 trillion in NNPCL’s audited financial statement.
Recall that Wadada issued a one-week ultimatum to NNPCL to account for the missing N210 trillion.
Reacting, Segun said, “The N103 trillion and N107 trillion are made up of joint venture cash calls that have been requested by the JV operators and JV cash call payments made by NNPCL, which are yet to be reconciled because governance procedures were not done at that time.
“That is why you see the description reflecting those two items would be washed out because they are two sides of the same transaction, which is the cash calls by JV partners and the settlement by NNPCL.”
However, Habu Sadeik, a financial analyst, in a post on X on Thursday, said Segun’s response was unsatisfactory.
Saidik faulted NNPCL’s response about the fund discrepancies, noting that something is not right with the audited financial statement.
“Forget about the senators’ lack of knowledge.
“The CFO’s response is not satisfactory. Are you saying that cash calls worth hundreds of trillions are just appearing on your FS only in 2024 without 31 disclosure?
“If it’s a cash call, why hasn’t the disclosure said so?
“Which cash call is over 100 trillion?
“Something is definitely not right, and I hope they retrospectively correct that FS.
“Someone somewhere did a chef’s work,” he wrote on X.
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