At a time, it was widely believed that Nigeria finds it hard to keep up with the rest of the world in terms of innovation and technology. But not anymore. A good number of technology startups have emerged and continue to grow stronger in at least the last half-decade, up to 2023. Here below is a glimpse into Nigeria’s emerging tech scene.
The Nairametrics site reports that an estimated 1.3 Billion US Dollars in funding was collectively raised by Nigerian tech startups in 2022. Additionally, the ICT sector alone (according to the National Bureau of Statics) contributed 20.32 percent to Nigeria’s GDP in Quarter 3 of 2022. This is the highest contribution so far in the past 5 years.
These tech startups have also consolidated efforts to comply with industry regulations. These cover areas relating to social media and internet platform regulations, data protection and privacy, as well as digital advertising.
It is our collective hope that Nigeria’s emerging tech scene will advance significantly in 2024. Thankfully, the tech sector continues to attract keen interest from investors who are following closely on new technological trends.
Trends to Note in Nigeria’s Emerging Tech Scene
The advancing telecommunications and internet revolution in Nigeria have greatly transformed the technology landscape in the country. These two ICT sectors have propelled technological innovations in Nigeria at an impressive pace for over a decade now. Indeed, Nigeria’s emerging tech scene owes a lot to both of these ICT sectors in terms of providing critical software and infrastructure.
The National Telecommunications Commission (NCC) declared a total revenue of 2 Trillion Naira in 2020 from both internet service providers and telecommunications companies. E-commerce and software companies are gradually climbing on their shoulders to rise up to the challenge. That is, with the assurance that investment in the telecommunications and internet infrastructure will continue.
It is also noteworthy that most of the tech startups in the last decade of Nigeria’s emerging tech scene are e-commerce and software companies. We can openly attest to the success of Nigerian e-commerce giants namely Konga, Jumia and Jiji. The fintech companies have also been particularly active. Notable fintech entities such as Opay, Palmpay, Quickteller, Chipper Cash, and Fairmoney have featured prominently in the Nigerian online banking marketplace.
We are glad also to observe that the Nigerian government is now more willing to support the growth of the tech industry. The setting up of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) shows such commitment. These agencies have been working to ensure that more Nigerians are technologically and financially empowered to contribute to the the growth of the ICT sector. And that Nigeria’s emerging tech scene will no longer be poorly supplied with creatives and problem-solvers. This was the case before now, due to lack of funding and needed infrastructural support for individuals and tech business start-ups.
Key Innovations Shaping the Future of Nigeria’s Tech Scene
Fintechs
Online banks or fintechs have been rigorously serving the huge number of Nigerians out there, who have limited or no access to physical banking services. We have seen how efficient the likes of Flutterwave, Opay, Piggyvest, and several others have become. These fintechs now lead the pack in providing efficient online banking to the masses.
Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning
Artificial intelligence and machine learning are now eager tools in the hands of tech companies. They are being used to create solutions in agriculture, healthcare, finance, and education sectors (to mention a few needy sectors of the economy).
Mobile Technology
An ever-increasing number of mobile apps and mobile payment channels continue to flood the market. This is in direct response to the increased numbers of mobile phones users in Nigeria. Well over 173 million mobile phones users are in Nigeria as we speak.
So there is a ready market for the proliferation and use of mobile apps to solve every imaginable problem. From payment processing to learning, video editing, graphic design, healthcare, content management and more, the market for mobile apps in Nigeria is booming. It may not slow down anytime soon.
Renewable Energy
The drive to invest in more renewable energy to complement the national grid is enormous. One of the biggest problems ever to besiege the private sector is sporadic or too little electricity supply. Leading renewable energy tech startups like Arnegy and Rensource (amongst others) are now on the forefront of providing trusted solar energy solutions to homes and businesses more than ever.
Upcoming Trends in Nigeria’s Emerging Tech Scene
It would be rather short-sighted to limit the developments in Nigeria’s emerging tech scene to merely the four categories above. There are other notable tech startups servicing other key sectors of the economy. Education, e-commerce, and healthcare sectors are amongst them.
In education for instance, remote learning, learning management, and information database and systems, are getting more attention from tech startups. But there is still plenty of opportunity for further development of e-learning platforms and databases. Yet again Nigerian e-commerce platforms (though there are a good number of them) are still not abundant enough. And the existing ones sometimes do not have all the critical tools needed to ensure the best customer experience.
Finally, the healthcare industry is gradually employing modern technology to advance their work with the help of tech startups. For instance, speech recognition and artificial intelligence for diagnosing ailments is at its infancy in Nigeria. But they are very much needed by doctors. That would reduce the long hours and effort involved in attending to patients in person.
