Uwaje predicts $10b growth in IT industry

IMMEDIATE past president of the Information Technology (Industry) Association of Nigeria (ITAN), Mr. Chris Uwaje, has predicted that the new vision of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), under Prof. Cleopas Angaye, is capable of growing the IT industry into a $10 billion global enterprise in the next eight years.

Mr. Uwaje, who also is the chairman, Connect Technologies Limited, made this prediction while reacting to the recent pronouncement of the newly appointed Director General (DG) of NITDA, Prof. Angaye, entitled “My Vision of NITDA” in Abuja, the nation’s capital.

He projected that for this vision to be achieved, NITDA needs about $6 billion over the next eight years “to grow the IT industry into a $10 billion global enterprise”.

Mr. Uwaje explained that in order to actualize the new NITDA’s IT vision, anticipated to rake in about $4 billion annually, the agency needs estimated $6b over a period of eight years to lay the appropriate “formidable IT foundation”.

He described Prof. Angaye’s presentation as a summary on how IT could be conceptualized, designed, deployed and applied as a fundamental, innovative and creative instrument in all aspects of human endeavour.

Lauding the presentation, he noted that this was the first time a public officer has defined his vision on assumption of office, which he said, was professionally presented.

This, he said, is an indication of personal vision and professional understanding of the national IT policy for development.

He defined Prof. Angaye’s vision as knowledge (software) development centric, based on his believe to hinge it on an interdependent tripod of “Inter-Corporate capacity building, catalyst for national development and a continental, international and global IT player”.

Nigeria today, Mr. Uwaje said represents a huge, rich and enviable but pathetically unorganized system, which currently suffers from imperfect information system.

Lamenting that in Nigeria, each cluster of information operate almost independently without recourse to any interfacing electronic standards, linkages and feedback system.

Pointing out that this negates the fundamental principle of informatics, which is based on structured and interactive dependency of data and information.

He maintained that the aforementioned must co-exist, networked, integrated and seamlessly interact at various micro levels.
“As an inevitable data-transformation process, for generating meaningful knowledge, governed by carefully defined and organized national database standard”, he said.

According to him, this is the first time “a visible, quantifiable, transparent and multi-dimensional NITDA operational structure is packaged through strategic inclusive consultation with major stakeholders.

“Indeed, this is the first time NITDA is presenting a well-articulated and time-propelled executable programme, driven by international best practice standards,” he declared.

He, therefore, expressed optimism, that if the vision, is supported by all relevant stakeholders, the nation would be better for it.