Nigeria’s active internet
users currently stands at over 48 million, Dr Peter Jack, the Director-General
of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), has said.
A statement issued by
NITDA’s Head of Public Affairs, Mrs Hadiza Umar in Abuja on Tuesday, stated
that Jack made the assertion in a speech at the global media meet in Dubai.
The meeting was preparatory
to the Global Information Technology Exhibition (GITEX) Week 2014.
“In Nigeria, with over 48
million regular internet users, various activities are being carried out
online.
“We are currently measuring
the impact of the plan and implementation level in preparation for review next
year.
“ICT contributes over 8
per cent to the Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and is now growing
at 7 per cent annually.
“Our target is to grow the
ICT industry to a point where it contributes up to 15 per cent to the GDP
within the next three to five years,” he said.
The director-general
explained that NITDA had developed a national Information and Communication
Technology (ICT) Strategic Plan with a timeline of 2010-2015.
According to him, the
implementation of the plan is ongoing in sectors, such as education,
agriculture, health, governance and the judiciary.
Other areas are human
capital development and national security, among others, which have propelled
the level of development in the ICT sector, he said.
“Specifically, we have embarked
on some smart initiatives which include national e-government master plan and
strategy.
“The others are the Tinapa
Knowledge City, with a full-fledged IT Park and Software Development Centre and
we also plan to site a Reverse Engineering Centre in the facility.
“The Lekki Smart City
Initiative, Lagos Innovation City and the Lekki Software Development Academy,
which is planned to house a software incubator and accelerator, are among the
initiatives.
“There is the iDEA Hub,
which is our pilot programme in software incubation and innovation and Software
Development and Testing Centre,” he said.
The director-general
explained that the Abuja Technology Village was already housing the “inspire
technology incubation hub”.
According to him, the
Village will also house part of NITDA’s innovation facility in Abuja.
(NAN)
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