The Nigerian Communications Commission has called for greater investment in locally developed technologies to reduce Nigeria’s reliance on foreign software and bolster the country’s digital sovereignty.
The Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Dr Aminu Maida, made this call on Thursday at the closing ceremony of the fourth NCC Hackathon Live Show in Abuja, where innovators presented technology solutions aimed at persons with disabilities and other digitally excluded Nigerians.
Maida, who was represented by the Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Management, Rimini Makama, said Nigeria needed to shift from being largely dependent on imported software to building technologies suited to local needs.
“Through this hackathon, we are transforming Nigeria from a passive importer of foreign software into a creator of locally engineered assistive technology that serves the ability of all its citizens,” he said.
He noted that the solutions developed at the hackathon ranging from AI-powered speech-to-text tools to voice-enabled public platforms, accessible USSD solutions and inclusive mobile applications represented the building blocks for technological self-reliance.
“By investing in a homegrown, universally accessible codebase, we guarantee Nigeria’s digital economy remains operational, secure, affordable, and responsive to Nigeria’s realities, immune to external shocks,” Maida said.
The NCC boss also called on venture capitalists, telecommunications operators and state governments to provide the investment and partnerships needed to move the innovations beyond the prototype stage.
“We ask you not to view these innovators as contestants, but as future founders, future partners, and future vendors,” he said. “We encourage you to step forward, invest in these accessible prototypes, and help us remove digital exclusion.”
According to Maida, the need for locally relevant technologies has grown more pressing as millions of Nigerians risk being left behind with economic and social activities increasingly shifting online.
Citing World Bank estimates, he said about 25 million Nigerians live with at least one form of disability, while roughly 3.6 million face significant functional difficulties.
He added that persons with disabilities risk exclusion not just from connectivity, but also from education, employment, financial services, healthcare and broader participation in society if digital products are not designed with accessibility in mind.
Representing MTN Nigeria, the Senior Manager, Strategy and Innovation, Chinyelu Chikwendu, pledged the telecom operator’s backing for the innovators, saying the company was ready to provide infrastructure and explore partnerships with startups whose technologies aligned with its operations.
“We are happy to support your growth. We are happy to support these beautiful ideas that you are all working on, and we are here to help you with the various infrastructures that we have,” she said.
Chikwendu noted that MTN had infrastructure and platforms including cloud services, its data centre and API marketplace that startups could tap into to scale their products.
She also invited the 20 innovators who took part in the hackathon to apply for the company’s next Cloud Accelerator Programme, which offers startups mentorship, funding and infrastructure support.
Also speaking at the event, Amadi Kenneth of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Consumer Protection and Financial Inclusion Department said the apex bank saw potential in deploying some of the innovations to advance financial inclusion.
“We want to see that the excluded Nigerians are brought into the financial system,” he said, naming women, youths, persons with disabilities and residents of remote communities as priority groups.
Kenneth said the CBN would work with the NCC and could invite some participants to join its Digital Channel Working Group to explore how their applications could support financial inclusion.
The NCC’s Director of Digital Economy, Helen Obi, said the commission hoped the partnerships arising from the event would help innovators scale their technologies beyond the competition.
She also urged financial institutions to consider setting aside dedicated funding for young innovators, saying, “Youths need to be encouraged. Let’s begin to have a huge fund projected for this sector of the economy.”
At the end of the competition, Sora emerged the winner, taking home N3m, while ClearSignal placed second with N2m and Ikor came third, earning N1m. The three were picked from a pool of five finalists that also included Aditus and Axol.
