By Adedapo Adesanya
The Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) and the Continental Project Affairs Associates Ltd (CPAA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Digital Economy Policy on Thursday in Abuja.
This was disclosed in a press statement signed by the Media Officer of ACCI, Mr Olayemi John-Mensah, who noted that the partnership was built on deepening private sector participation in the making of digital economy policies and programmes to benefit maximally from the booming sector.
Speaking at the occasion, President of ACCI, Mr Al-Mujtaba Abubakar said governmental drive within the ICT sector is “a recognition of the digital shift within the economy as ICT contribution to the GDP is growing every quarter and the potential of the sector as a job creator is well documented.”
“We note the giant strides the ICT sector has taken under the present administration. We particularly commend the Honourable Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Dr Ibrahim Pantanmi on the various initiatives so far introduced. With a troubled oil sector and global drive against fossil fuel, digital economy holds the key especially for a country with a youth dominated demography,” he added.
According to the ACCI chief, “the government’s efforts cannot fully yield the desired effect unless the private sector is effectively integrated into the making and implementation of the digital economy policy.
“Worldwide, the private sector is put on the driver seat to speed up innovation and cost-efficient operations of the ever-widening sector. Designing a digital economy policy without the strong input of the private sector is, therefore, a serious error. To develop the sector effectively, engagement with the private sector is key.
“Policies emerging from such consultation will integrate the aspirations of the operators and assist the regulators to emerge as facilitators. That is why the ACCI as a leading chamber in Nigeria decides to institute a Digital Economy Policy Series.
The series will regularly dwell on ICT Policy issues and produce policy contributions.”
On his part, the Executive Chairman of CPAA, Mr Olusegun Olugbile, said his group wants a viable relationship in which the business sector will be able to coordinate itself and engage the government appropriately in the ongoing task of designing and implementing a robust national digital economy policy, assuring that the strategic plan is designed to harness and articulate private sector perspectives for digital policy dialogue.
“The idea is to first enable policy dialogue between the business community and later within a public-private dialogue framework. This will assist the government in the formulation of regulations and overall national policy.
“We see ACCI as a strong platform to drive this initiative,” Mr Olugbile stated.
The Vice President, ICT Mr Osi Imomoh at the signing of the MoU said ICT is now a critical sub-sector of the national economy, assuring that “ACCI is committed to deploying ICT to drive business, create wealth and support government in the making and implementation of digital economy policy.”
Earlier, the Executive Director of ACCI Policy Centre, Mr Olawale Rasheed explained that the partnership was the beginning of series of similar MOUs designed to institutionalize the policy advocacy process within the chamber and deepen the business side of policy work.
“Through the instrumentality of unpaid policy fellows, we have developed a huge pool of policy volunteers.
“This has put the PAC in strong stead to discharge its mandate in policy work. It also places us on a strong pedestal for our new role as a national policy centre for the national chamber movement in Nigeria,” Mr Rasheed noted.
Modupe Gbadeyanka