Agenda For Technology Ecosystem & Creative Industry

As an innovation policy consultant, JFK has worked with several government institutions including the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy on policies relating to the technology ecosystem – from policy formulation to implementation. JFK believes that more than the engagements that technology companies and startups have now formalised with government agencies, the ecosystem needs a voice in power to speak for it, to educate, nudge, oversee and correct anomalies when it comes to technology policy. The stakes are too high to be left to chance and reactionary responses.

Broad Goals:

Make Nigeria the technology startup capital of Africa over the next 10-years by incentivising over 10,000 local and foreign innovators to setup their startup/technology companies’ core operations in Nigeria through the grant of Pioneer Status to breakthrough software or hardware technologies and social innovation models – with special focus on the local ones with smaller QCE which currently excludes them from the subsisting Pioneer Status regime.

Exercise better oversight function over 17 key agencies in the ministry of Science & Technology to ensure they are delivering on the targets they were set up to accomplish especially the Sheda Science and Technology Complex (SHESTCO), National Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM), and the National Board for Technology Incubation (NBTI) which sadly has had over 25+ Technology Incubation centers across Nigeria since 1993 consistently performing sub-optimally.

Aggregate between N500bn and 5trillion for technology and innovation development/ commercialisation by incentivising the private sector to invest in Research & Development yearly

Exercise better oversight function over the approximately N14bn annually allocated to research & development by government agencies and create legislative frameworks that ensures government-funded research are carried out with better collaboration with the academic sector. This will promote uptake of research outputs from Nigeria’s academic institutions for societal and commercial good.

Ensure transparent, accountable and competitive access for all cadres of researchers (undergraduate, postgraduate & faculty researchers) to approximately N140bn research grants allocated annually by the federal government.

In a four-year tenure as a member of the House of Representatives, JFK will ensure the following:

• Establishment of a dedicated committee on digital economy
• Passage of a national startup act
• Passage of the national research and innovation fund bill
• National science foundation act
• Amendment of the patents act, 1976
• Passage of the electronic transactions bill
• Amendment of the company income tax act to incentivise companies to redirect investment to research & development of new technologies, innovation & inventions
• Review of the National Film and Censors Board Act to better open up the film industry and remove absolute discretionary powers.

On oversight functions, JFK’s committee membership will focus on overseeing ministries and departments with mandates related to ICT, digital economy, research and innovation. This committee work will involve:

• Review of suddenly announced top-bottom policies that hurt ecosystem players
• Oversight of designed programs and initiatives that do not meet their objectives and impact
• Monitoring and evaluation of policies put in place for years that have caused even more problems and solved none
• Review of proposed laws that may hurt the technology ecosystem
• Detailed explanation and education for lawmakers on expected benefits from proposed laws to the country
• Lobbying other lawmakers for support on initiatives that will benefit the ecosystem i.e amendments, repeals and introduction of laws.
• Lobby the Nigerian governors’ forum on an innovation diffusion program to create incentives for technology startups at state level