The Executive Vice Chairman of Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, has said that the Federal Government was determined to reform and bring new innovations into the Information Communication Technology (ICT) sector to boost the country’s economy.
Speaking on Friday, 1st of November 2019 in Yola at the NCC Emerging Technologies Research and ICT Innovation Forum, Danbatta said that finding local solutions to the challenges of the industry was a key policy of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration. He said that the ICT Innovation Forum has become necessary to promote local content with emphasis on the tech ecosystem, identifying unmet needs and facilitating Public Private Partnership (PPP).
Danbatta pointed out that given the availability of information technology to serve markets globally, it was imperative that the right frameworks are developed to enhance the ability of the indigenous companies to maximally explore and exploit local opportunities and also remain globally competitive.
Also speaking, Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, challenged the management of the NCC to take ICT to the next level as part of measures to move the country forward. The Governor who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Bashiru Ahmad, asked the NCC to complete the abandoned ICT centre in Yola to boost economic opportunities in the Northeast region.
The keynote speaker at the forum, Prof. Sahalu Junaidu, stated that for Nigeria to develop, it must increase its yearly budget for education, which he described as the bedrock of ICT development. He noted that ICT if properly harnessed could be used to control climate change and other unfriendly environmental factors.
https://guardian.ng/news/nigeria/national/nigeria-determined-to-reform-ict-sector-says-ncc/
