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- Osinbanjo- Federal Govt reserves $618m for youths in Tech, Creative sectors
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Yemi Osinbajo, the Vice Prsident of Nigeria yesterday launched a $618 million programme for youths in the technology and creative sectors.
He encouraged private businesses and governments all over Africa to do more to support the expansion of innovation on the continent.
At the State House Banquet Hall in Abuja, Osinbajo delivered a speech at the presidential launch of the Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (i-DICE) initiative.
The African Development Bank (AfDB), the Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD), and the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) are supporting i-DICE, an initiative of the Federal Government of Nigeria to encourage entrepreneurship and innovation in the digital technology and creative industries to create jobs, especially for young people. The Bank of Industry (BoI) has been designated as the initiative's executing agency.
According to a statement made yesterday in Abuja by Mr. Laolu Akande, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity in the Office of the Vice President, the program will aid young Nigerians between the ages of 15 and 35 who are starting up businesses that are innovative, creative, and technologically enabled.
In his keynote address, Osinbajo stated, "I think it is now imperative to begin a coordinated approach towards innovation on the continent, bringing together all stakeholders to coordinate efforts at scaling up investments and building programmes that provide the right enabling environment and produce talent pipelines that support the growth of innovation on the continent.
The limitations of start-ups' capacity and access to capital would be successfully addressed by i-DICE.
But the Vice President stated that more work needs to be done before such programs can be scaled up.
He said: “The government must provide more support for startups and small businesses, and investors must provide more funding. The Investment in Digital and Creative Businesses Program is crucial for this reason.
Funding for i-DICE comes from the Agence Française de Développement ($116 million), the Islamic Development Bank ($70 million), and the African Development Bank ($170 million).
The BoI financing for qualified start-ups also include a $45 million counterpart contribution from the Federal Government of Nigeria.
On behalf of the Nigerian government, Osinbajo thanked the development partners for their cooperation.
The Vice President praised the work of the development partners and stated that the design of the program "supports innovation across very critical pillars, including policy, infrastructure, access to funding, and talent. The expansion and maintenance of invention on the continent have been determined to depend heavily on these pillars.
The AfDB contributes $170 million, the Agence Francaise de Development $116 million, and the Islamic Development Bank will co-finance $70 million of the $618 million total fund, he stated.
According to him, the private sector and institutional financiers are anticipated to contribute another $271 million.
Additionally, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, President of the Africa Development Bank (AfDB) Group, stated that it is time to develop youth-based wealth to promote a more inclusive Nigerian economy.
Adesina gave a speech at the Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (i-DICE) program's presidency inauguration yesterday in Abuja.
The plan, according to the head of the AfDB, would create the ecosystems needed to support more competitive entrepreneurs using digital technologies. It was described as timely, strategic, and transformative.
"Yes, we meet to inaugurate the initiative, but what we are really inaugurating is more than it. We are launching a new era of youth optimism.
"We are launching platforms that will improve the youth of Nigeria's ability and capability to thrive. We are starting the process of creating millions of employment.
“We are retooling Nigeria to compete more in an increasingly digital world. We are creating hope for a new Nigeria, driven by the power of the youth,” he said.
The president of the AfDB noted that Nigeria's destiny would depend on what it did with its young population.
“It is time to create youth-based wealth for Nigeria. Youth-based wealth will rapidly expand the creation of jobs, expand the fiscal space with new sources of taxes, and support a more inclusive Nigerian economy, now and well into the future.
“That is why, shortly after I was elected AfDB president, we inaugurated the Jobs for Youth in Africa strategy.
“We expect that the programme will create 25 million new jobs by 2026, focusing on practical and high-impact solutions,” he said.
According to Adesina, everything in living has been transformed by digital technology.
He advised thinking globally when thinking digitally.
The AfDB president said based on estimates, the digital global health size of Africa would increase from $217 billion in 2022 to more than $1 trillion by 2031, an incredible growth.
"By 2050, the digital economy in Africa will be worth $712 billion, up from $115 billion currently.
“And most of this growth is already driven by four countries: Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, and Egypt,” he added.
According to Adesina, a number of reasons, including the quick increase in the number of young people, fueled the growth of the digital economy.
The president of the AfDB said, these digital trends have the potential to significantly contribute to employment growth.
“For example, estimates by Endeavor (2022) show that expanding digital infrastructure by 10 per cent will lead to a 2.5 per cent annual growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Africa.
“Furthermore, expanding access to the internet in Africa, from the current 33 per cent to 75 per cent, can help create 44 million jobs, including 3 million jobs in online services by 2025,” he said.
The continental bank’s boss said Nigeria was already witnessing the power of digital technologies, tools, and platforms.
According to him, Nigeria currently has five out of the 11 digital companies that have reached the status of unicorn with market valuation of one billion dollars.
He listed the companies to include Jumia, Interswitch, Opay, Flutterwave and Andela, mainly in fintech.
Adesina said Nigeria’s poor and fragmented cargo transport system was gradually transforming, thanks to Kobo 360, a digital logistics platform.
He noted that despite its growth, the country had not fully tapped into and unleashed the power of its creative industry.
“The i-DICE programme will help to fill some of these critical gaps. By supporting enterprise and skills development, access to demand-driven digital and creative skills, entrepreneurship skills, ICT enabled infrastructure and expanding access to finance,” Adesina said.
The AfDB boss said the bank was pleased to partner the Federal Government of Nigeria on the $618 million i-DICE programme.
According to him, AfDB is providing $170 million in financing to the programme.
“I am delighted that we have been able to mobilise additional co-financing of $217 million towards the programme.
“I wish to thank our partners, the Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD), which is providing $100 million, and the Islamic Development Bank, which is providing $70 million.
“I also thank the Bank of Industry and the Federal Government of Nigeria for providing $45 million in counterpart funding.
“Through the independent fund managers for i-DICE, the programme will raise an additional capital of between 131 million dollars and 262 million dollars,” he said.
Reiterating some of the bank’s initiatives, Adesina said it would soon roll out Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Banks.
Pristine Network
- 2023-03-15 08:51:13
