Omo, you go believe say Naija software developers don dey shine like diamond! For 2025, dem don gather over $1 million from di apps wey dem develop locally. Na wetin our bros and sis for National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP), Dr. Obiageli Amadiobi, talk for interview with di News Agency of Nigeria.
Dis one na major sign say di digital innovation for Naija dey grow like garden wey pawa rain come fall. According to Amadiobi, dem fit achieve dis milestone because of wetin NOTAP dey do to support local developers. Dem dey teach dem how to protect dia intellectual property, and also how to connect with people wey fit buy dia products.
She even yarn say plenty Nigerian innovators dey struggle because dem no sabi how to handle dia ideas well. If you no get good IP protection, your work fit just waka pass another person wey go copy am, repackage am, and start to dey make money from wetin you don sweat for.
“If you wake up one morning with solution wey fit solve real wahala, you go spend months trying am, make e fit work. E no suppose make sense say another person go just take your hard work and claim say na him own,” she reason.
But no be say dem just dey sit down. Amadiobi talk say wetin dey happen be say plenty creatives dey face digital piracy and counterfeiting. Dis matter don dey affect ICT sector well well. You fit create something wey fresh, but within weeks, you go see another person don chop your idea and dey sell am like say na him own.
To solve dis wahala, NOTAP don set up Local Vendor Policy wey dey require foreign tech firms wey wan operate for Naija to work with local companies. Dis one dey help build local capacity and dey promote technology transfer. Na dis arrangement dey help our guys to come up with better ideas wey fit compete globally.
Amadiobi highlight some coded apps wey don show say dem dey do wetin better: like mobile health platform wey dey serve about 750,000 users across six states, agricultural marketplace wey dey connect farmers to buyers, and one educational app wey don enter 200 schools. Dem dey find way to make sure say Naija no just dey copy, but we dey innovate!
The $1 Million wey dem collect come from more than 50 apps wey local developers create. E funny say dem dey earn between $5,000 to $80,000 each, and about 60% of di money come from other African countries. Dem don dey prove say Naija developers fit lead di tech game for Africa.
Amadiobi no wan stop here o! She talk say dem get plans to double dis figure by 2027, as dem go increase support for developers wey dey work on fintech, renewable energy management, and climate adaptation technologies.
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