Economy
IFC Tasks African Policymakers to Use Population to Grow Digital Economy
By Adedapo Adesanya
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has called on African government and policymakers to utilise demographic competitive advantage for digital economy expansion, with Nigeria positioned as the ground zero base for activity.
The Regional Director for Central Africa and Anglophone West Africa at IFC Nigeria, Ms Dahlia Khalifa, said this on Wednesday in Lagos at the Gulf Information Technology Exhibition (GITEX) Nigeria 2025 conference.
Ms Khalifa noted that across Africa, the digital economy was expanding at remarkable speed powered by internet adoption, mobile penetration, and a generation of young innovators rewriting its future.
She added that the demographic realities in Africa meant that its total population would grow from 1.5 billion to 2.5 billion over the next 25 years, noting that the population increase will bring 600 million youths, possibly entering the job market, charting the future leading to the fastest growth in the world.
“With more than 60 per cent of Africans under the age of 25, and smartphone adoption rising steadily, Africa is home to one of the largest pools of digital natives in the world.
“Over the past decade, Africa’s digital economy has been one of the fastest growing in the world and is quickly becoming a centre of attraction.
“By 2030, it is projected to contribute to about $180 billion to Africa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP),” she said.
The IFC regional director further said that in Africa, Artificial Intelligence (AI) was not just about efficiency but about transformation.
According to her, AI holds extraordinary promise that can enable Africa scale traditional barriers to growth, and accelerate progress across sectors such as health, education, agriculture, finance and business.
Ms Khalifa however, warned that unless Africa invested in infrastructure, including energy, broadband, digital connectivity and skills, the benefits of AI could bypass the continent.
She quoted IFC’s recent report titled Digital Opportunities in African Businesses that stated that the digital transformation could benefit over 600,000 formal businesses and 40 million micro-enterprises.
This development, she said, would boost productivity, raise wages, and create better quality jobs and livelihoods for all.
“This is why the role of the private sector and public-private dialogue is decisive.
“Infrastructure is the foundation, but entrepreneurship is the engine and to seize this opportunity, we need reliable broadband, robust data centres, modern digital infrastructure, and more energy, particularly clean energy that is sustainable.
“We need investment in skills and training programmes that prepare Africa’s youth for the jobs of today and tomorrow.
“We need partnerships between governments, the private sector, and international institutions to create the right policies, foster trust, and mobilise capital at scale,” she said.
She revealed that the IFC was committed to helping to unlock the future of Africa’s digitalisation.
Ms Khalifa noted that over the last decade, IFC had financed over $6 billion in Africa’s digital infrastructure, from data centres to fibre networks to affordable broadband.
“By harnessing AI and digital technology responsibly and building the right partnerships, Africa can shape a digital economy that is inclusive, innovative, and globally competitive,” she said.
On her part, Ms Trixie Lohmirmand, Executive Vice President, Dubai World Trade Center, lauded the zeal and resilience of Lagos startup innovators, saying they thrived in spite of power issues and developing infrastructure.
She described start-ups in the country as the fastest rising, fastest growing emerging stars in the world, beating Mumbai, Sao Paulo, Turkey among other nations.
“Nigeria scales with resilience and there is mega high speed space for technology to thrive in Lagos and Nigeria.
“In Lagos where the unicorns are coming out from, they build new infrastructure and industry all together, nothing ever before and we would not deny Nigeria access to thrive,” she said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange extended its stay in the south territory with a decline of 0.56 per cent on Wednesday, April 2.
This brought down the market capitalisation by N13 billion to N2.417 trillion from N2.430 trillion, and downed the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 22.57 points to 4,062.87 points from the previous session’s 4,062.87 points.
It was observed that the NASD exchange ended with three price gainers and three price losers during the trading day.
MRS Oil Plc depreciated by N19.00 to close at N171.00 per unit compared with the previous price of N190.00 per unit, NASD Plc lost N4.14 to trade at N37.36 per share compared with Wednesday’s N41.50 per share, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gave up N2.00 to sell at N78.00 per unit versus N80.00 per unit.
On the flip side, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc appreciated by 19 Kobo to N93.00 per share from N92.81 per share, Food Concepts Plc expanded by 15 Kobo to N2.87 per unit from N2.72 per unit, and Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc improved by 2 Kobo to 52 Kobo per share from 50 Kobo per share.
Yesterday, the volume of securities dipped by 91.8 per cent to 260.2 million units from 3.2 billion units, the value of securities went down by 98.1 per cent to N154.2 million from N8.3 billion, while the number of deals soared by 53.3 per cent to 46 deals from 30 deals.
GNI Plc was the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 56.9 million units valued at N3.9 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.5 million units traded for N1.8 billion.
The most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis was also GNI Plc with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.2 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units exchanged for N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units transacted for N1.2 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira dropped N2.09 or 0.15 per cent against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Thursday, April 2, to trade at N1,380.79/$1 compared with Wednesday’s rate of N1,378.70/$1.
However, it appreciated against the Pound Sterling in the official market by N2.77 to quote at N1,824.86/£1 versus the N1,836.57/£1 it was traded at midweek, and improved its value against the Euro by N10.54 to N1,591.92/€1 from N1,602.46/€1.
Yesterday was the last trading session of the week for the local currency in the spot market, as the market will be closed on Friday and Monday for the Easter Holiday.
At the black market, the Nigerian Naira maintained stability against the greenback yesterday at N1,405/$1, but gained N8 at the GTBank FX counter to settle at N1,388/$1, in contrast to the previous session’s N1,396/$1.
Pressure eased on the domestic currency as strong policy indicators have helped calm the majority of worries within the financial systems. Particularly in the remittance segment, the apex bank has directed all International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs) to route remittance transactions through designated Naira settlement accounts in banks, a move aimed at boosting transparency and channelling more foreign exchange into the formal market.
This helps take off pressure from the foreign reserves, which have fallen below the $50 billion mark as they are gradually decreasing rather than falling sharply.
Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market was bullish on Thursday, as macro sentiment shifted against recent optimism after reports that Iran is drafting a protocol with Oman to manage traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, easing concerns about disruptions to a key global oil route.
The remarks came after U.S. President Trump on Wednesday night vowed to hit Iran “extremely hard” in the coming weeks and that the Strait of Hormuz would “open naturally” once the war ends.
Cardano (ADA) chalked up 1.9 per cent to trade at $0.2435, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 1.2 per cent to $0.0912, Ethereum (ETH) appreciated by 0.8 per cent to $2,066.37, Bitcoin (BTC) added 0.5 per cent to sell at $67,080.53, Solana (SOL) increased by 0.5 per cent to $79.91, and Ripple (XRP) jumped 0.2 per cent to $1.31.
Conversely, Binance Coin (BNB) dipped 0.7 per cent to $586.90, and TRON (TRX) depreciated by 0.3 per cent to $0.3147, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
By Dipo Olowookere
The local stock market was relatively flat on Friday, as the bears and the bulls shared the spoils of war, though investor sentiment turned bullish compared with the preceding session’s bearish posture.
Data from the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited showed that the All-Share Index (ASI) was marginally down by 4.66 points as it ended at 201,698.89 points versus Wednesday’s 201,703.55 points, and the market capitalisation slightly contracted by N3 billion to N129.806 trillion from N129.809 trillion.
Customs Street was shut on Friday because of the public holidays declared by the federal government today and next Monday.
Business Post reports that John Holt declined by 9.91 per cent to N15.45, Abbey Mortgage Bank shed 9.60 per cent to trade at N8.95, International Energy Insurance slipped by 6.48 per cent to N3.32, Chams shrank by 5.30 per cent to N3.75, and Tantalizers depreciated by 5.18 per cent to N4.03.
On the flip side, Unilever Nigeria improved by 10.00 per cent to N103.40, Fortis Global Insurance gained 9.82 per cent to trade at N1.23, Multiverse appreciated 9.81 per cent to N20.15, Legend Internet advanced by 9.38 per cent to N6.30, and Zichis grew by 9.02 per cent to N14.14.
The market breadth index was positive during the trading session, as there were 35 appreciating stocks and 24 depreciating stocks.
Yesterday, investors traded 560.0 million equities valued at N19.3 billion in 49,676 deals, in contrast to the 815.5 million equities worth N33.3 billion transacted in 52,641 deals in the preceding day, representing a drop in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 31.33 per cent, 42.04 per cent, and 5.63 per cent, respectively.
Secure Electronic Technology dominated the activity log with 59.7 million shares valued at N61.1 million, Wema Bank exchanged 52.0 million equities worth N1.4 billion, VFD Group transacted 36.0 million stocks for N410.5 million, Access Holdings sold 35.3 million shares valued at N914.8 million, and Chams traded 31.0 million equities worth N115.0 million.
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