By Our Correspondent
Information and Communications Technology, ICT, is at the heart of every aspect of modern life, and as a country, Nigeria needs to place greater premium on the development of the Industry, particularly software, which is a veritable vehicle for the growth of economic life.
This disclosure was made by the President of the Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON), Mr. James Emadoye, at a press briefing during the ongoing 2018 Annual General Meeting of the association in Lagos.
According to him, technology is already driving diverse facets of our lives as a people and would continue to take over even more aspects of our daily activities.
Hence the need for us as a people to localise with indigenous technology if we are to achieve our desired growth as an independent nation.
Cautions against penchant for foreign software
Emadoye who is wrapping his tenure as president of ISPON says, “In the last two years of my time at the saddle of ISPON’s leadership, one of the major challenges we have found and consistently tackled is the preference for foreign software by government and private firm, even when indigenous software are available and better suited for our clime and environment.”
Realising the implications for the economy which includes the loss of employment opportunities for the Nigerian youth, loss of potential foreign exchange earnings and ultimately the potential demise of the local IT industry; one of the major thrusts of ISPON’s advocacy has been with the Bank of Industry, to seek the institution of an intervention fund for the software industry.
Emadoye noted that with such fund in place, more start-ups would spring up and thereby enhance enterprise and boost job creation by satisfying the large demand for software users in Nigeria. BOI is however yet to realise the potentials of Software Technology to an economy such as ours.
“It is important also that the sanctity of contracts and intellectual property is respected as a key contributor to the growth of software development in Nigeria, and by extension help to greatly position our software as globally successful products,” Emadoye said.
Celebrate no vilify Remita
“We need to celebrate our successes. For instance, a member of ISPON, SystemSpecs, which is doing so well for Nigeria through its Remita solution that powers the Federal Government’s TSA, is not being celebrated or recognised. For a solution achieving so much by contributing a lot to the progress of this nation, it is sad to hear recently that they have not been paid for almost two years.
“According to recent reports in national dailies, there are plans to frustrate them out of a project they championed, laboured for and innovated in Nigeria. The question is, does the government deal with its current suppliers of foreign software this same way? Or would government risk systems failure by the withdrawal of services by such foreign software vendors?”
ICT Industry needs improved government support
According to him, government should lead in the support of the ICT industry, and particularly by intentionally supporting made-in-Nigeria software and discourage acts capable of undermining the growth and advancement of the sector.
As he prepares to handover the baton of ISPON leadership, Emadoye seized the opportunity to appreciate everyone for the support he received throughout his tenure.
He noted the support of MDAs and bodies such as NITDA, NOTAP, NAICOM, ONC, BPP, Oil Producers Trade Section (OPTS), many others.
He added that ISPON would continue to covet their support and that of other key parastatals and agencies towards the development of software practice and the wider indigenous ICT industry at large.
Source: TechEconomy.ng