By Henry Uche, Lagos
The difference between one nation and another is the level of technological advancement, which is a function of the nation’s quality leadership. Countries that adopt technology are progressive because every sector of such economies is powered and facilitated by Internet & Communication Technology (ICT). Therefore, the place of technology in the global business environment cannot be ignored.
As world economies are striving to provide ICT infrastructure for their citizens to thrive in their respective endeavours, Nigerian government has been advised to invest more in the ICT and create a conducive environment for young people to maximise the enormous opportunities inherent in the 21st-century space. Good policies, programs, incentives and other support packages are expected from the government across the three levels of governance.
In this interview with an ICT expert, Oladipupo Bolaji, he explained how Nigerians can leverage ICT to maximize productivity across sectors.
First, What will you say about the level of growth of ICT in Nigeria, are we there, what are the impediments, and how can they be removed?
The growth is impressive. We have produced talents and companies that compete globally. Our institutions are digitised and carry out more transactions electronically than at any time in the history of the country. Electricity is still a main challenge that we face, also the cost of internet connection and the high cost of foreign exchange are impediments. So the government really need to handle the high exchange rate before we can truly unleash our potentialities.
Is Fintech really gaining momentum in the country as supposed?
Yes, Nigeria is witnessing the FinTech revolution. Thanks to the banking reforms and infrastructure put together by the CBN and bankers committee. Now we have faster payments, credit and wealth products being developed by startups leveraging the national payment rails. Nigeria’s FinTech companies are contributing to the economy; first through innovation, then employment and image building. We have FinTech companies that are now unicorns and expanding beyond the shores of Africa. Our product managers are solving problems that are local to us like ‘pay with an account’, ‘buy now pay later’, ‘payday loans and merchant acquiring’
What is your advice to young people in this ICT era?
This is the best time for young ones to thrive. They have access to the internet and people that are willing to mentor them. They should be patient and learn. And share their learnings online. Young ones should have up-to-date ‘Git accounts’, and social media accounts to showcase their learnings and build portfolios.
What will you say about AI, artificial intelligence, coding, robotics, others and Nigeria’s economic development?
We are in the era of intelligent computing. Artificial Intelligence, AI, is mainstream and we all can see the power of conversational AI like Bing, ChatGPT etc. We need to ride the wave and apply the technologies to our local problems. We need to create more interest in coding, especially in public schools, and develop affordable learning materials and centres where young people can experience these technologies. If we scale this across the country, in five years we will produce amazing work giving the creativity of our talent.
How do you think unemployment can be reduced by ICT?
Jobs in tech are global, which means the opportunity space is very big. This is Post pandemic, and we have heard that more companies now hiring remote employees. This is an opportunity we can leverage to reduce unemployment. We should train people in these highly demanding skills, coding, product management, product design, technical writing, social media marketing e.t.c and they will always have jobs. Businesses in the country also need talent to replace people who are relocating, training people to pick these jobs will reduce the pressure on the economy.
If you are given the opportunity to come up with a digital solution to any of our national problems, be it in education, health, finance, or banking, what would you come up with?
I am passionate about leveraging technology in education. I think we should have a national e-learning portal accessible both online and offline where Nigerian lectures teach courses in our curriculum. I should be able to log in and view CSC 107 or MTH 321 etc, for more context irrespective of my institution. Learners can subscribe to view online or request for courses to be delivered through other mediums say flash for offline viewing.
Second, we have opportunities to develop business automation solutions for our enterprise locally. Systems of record in particular. Building a SaaS product that is secure, flexible and robust with Naira-denominated pricing is something I am rooting for.
Do u have any particular digital solution to want to offer the federal government in any sector? How?
I also will like the federal ministry of trade to continue with the SME Portal project. I represented my company during the bid and I loved the concept of enterprise-grade software for SMEs that manages their life cycle for orders and payments.
What are those Microsoft Products you developed, and how useful are they to Nigeria’s economic growth?
I love solving customers’ problems with technology. While implementing school portal management solutions for the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), I observed that the TMA Portal provided by another vendor was failing. It could not cope with the traffic brought about by our efficiency. I built a new TMA as a proof of concept, using C#.net, Messaging queue and LaTeX. I also replaced the question authoring with a simple excel template. After pitching it to my manager and later the school management we launched the product. It’s a game changer and not only did it give us access to automate the exam and displace another foreign software, but it also forms the basis of our competing for and winning the first JAMB CBT project. Microsoft solutions are built to solve large-scale problems and I have had success using Microsoft solutions in different industry verticals, payment, insurance, pension, government.
You founded ‘Value Digital Tech’ tell us about it, What solution/s are you bringing to the tech industry?
Value Digital Tech is a registered technology solutions provider with a mission to help businesses maximise their IT investment. Value digital tech support companies in their journey to be product-led.
At this phase of life, Nigeria still battles with an epileptic network, we experience it in the banking sector, education, health etc, where are we not getting it right?
We need more long-term investment in infrastructure at a rate lower than 2%. Also we need our universities and research centres to help with innovation that works with our known constraints.