By RICHARD UDOFIA

Minister of Information communication technology, Dr. Omobola Johnson, has inaugurated a 7 man committee responsible for developing local content delivery in ICT sector.

*Communications Technology Minister, Omobola Johnson

Johnson inaugurated the committe in Lagos, at a program organized by the Office of the National Content Development in ICT.

She said local content seeks to achieve the development of local skills, technology transfer, use of local manpower and local manufacturing. She further described it as an incremental value created in Nigeria through the utilization of Nigerian human and material resources for the provision of goods and services in the ICT industry within acceptable quality standards in order to stimulate the development of indigenous capacities.

She said Nigeria ICT sector remains the fastest growing sector in the economy with 12.5% annual growth rate contributing an average of 8% to the country’s GDP. She also noted that Gap recession in local content delivery sets the economy backward in the production of devices, hardwares and equipments when compared to countries like Egypt, South Africa, Kenya among others.

While urging local content developers to come up with viable contents in manufacturing department that will put the sector as one viable sector , she called for public-private partnership in assisting local entrepreneurs come up with achievable plans on how resources can be made available for starters.

The minister said: “Government is fully in support of any indigenous company that comes up with local content driven policy as viable and functional framework are in place to support the success of those content.

She contended that the IT sector is a skill driven market, therefore partnership with IBM, Worldbank and other international firms have been reached so that productivity, efficiency and quality of product will be attained.

“Between 2002 to 2012, the ICT sector created about 2.5million jobs, at the moment, an average of 12million jobs is created in Nigeria, and we intend creating more jobs so that its impact can be felt even in the less developed areas, she said.

While pleading for morecapital to be invested in the sector, she maintained that manufacturing of products in Nigeria remains a mirage as far as the Nigerian economy is concerned.

To promote and encourage an environment within Nigeria that is welcoming to foreign investments in  information and communication technology, as well as the export of indigenous made ICT goods and services, there will be need to stimulate increase production, sales and consumption of high quality technology products and services developed by indigenous companies.

Johnson said that with the growing rate of globalization, every government as well as captains of industry are charged with the burden of finding ways to ensure that their regions stay competitive and capable of fulfilling local demand, given the wide availability of information technology created to serve markets worldwide.