In order to support the Service Infrastructure pillar of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS), The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) is partnering with the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment (FMITI) on the development of an e-commerce policy and strategy for the country.
Kashifu Inuwa Agency’s Director General NITDA, represented by Salisu Kaka, Acting Director, Digital Economy Development department (DED), made this known during a roundtable meeting of the National Advisory Council on e-Commerce and Digital Economy (NACEDE) held at the Digital Economy Complex Mbora, Abuja.
The meeting was aimed at assessing the status of the digital economy and e-commerce regulations as well as to discuss extensively the processes required for the effective involvement of stakeholders in the development of a national e-commerce policy and strategy for Nigeria.
The NITDA boss stated that “to facilitate the growth of e-commerce in Nigeria and the overall digital trade, we will continue to work with the NACEDE and other stakeholders to ensure that we position Nigeria as a key e-commerce hub in Africa and globally with coherent regulations that enable digital skills and infrastructure as well as improved logistics and reach for local MSMEs.”
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Inuwa stated that Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) are the bedrock of the Nigerian economy contributing 43.21% of nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP). They account for 96.9% of businesses and 87% of employment. “There are approximately 39.7 million MSMEs as of December 2020 according to the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics,” he noted.
The DG declared that the current e-commerce spending in Nigeria is estimated at 12 billion dollars and is projected to reach 75 billion dollars in revenues per annum by 2025.
He said, “Being the largest country in Africa by GDP in 2021, Nigeria can target the market available under AfCFTA, which is expected to recover from COVID-19 with strong growth until 2025. A wider African e-commerce market is expected to grow much quicker than the West African market, and it’s crucial that Nigeria competes on an African stage.”
In her remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment Dr Mrs Evelyn Ngige represented by Mr Aliyu Abubakar Director of Trade Investment and Development, FMITI, stated that as the result of the growing importance and popularity of e-commerce in the Nigerian trade space has necessitated the need for an appropriate policy and guidelines for e-commerce.
She further stated that, e-commerce has become an integral part of national, regional, and global economy with business-to-business and business-to-consumer e-commerce transactions increasing rapidly.
