FG committed to digital economy, as Pantami inaugurates expert review c’ttee on NDEP


The federal government is strategically placing itself in the global digital economic space as the value of digital economy is valued at over $16m, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim (Pantami) has said.
He stated this while inaugurating the Expert Review Committee for the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) in Abuja, Monday.


 He noted that the digital economy has started to dominate the world economy and Nigeria cannot be left behind. “According to World Economic Forum, by 2020, 60% of the world’s economy is going to be digitalized. Countries are coming up with policies and strategies for digital economy.


“It is because of this, based on the wisdom of President Muhammadu Buhari that this idea of Digital Economy Policy and Strategy came about.
“However, because of time constraint, we have been working on the policy and strategy on one hand and implementing it on the other hand.”


He therefore called for the inputs of all critical stakeholders in the industry to have a workable document that will help transform the country digitally.
“We came up with this strategic committee believing that two heads are better than one in order to bridge the gap between public and private sector on one hand and the academia on the other hand. They (committee members) were carefully selected to make sure that all stakeholders are represented, so that when it comes to implementation, it will be much easier.
“When it comes to digital economy, I believe those in the private sector have a role to play more than those in the public sector because they are into running very successful businesses and our perception in government is not same with the private sector, bringing them in will compliment our efforts to implement the policy easily,” he said.


The committee terms of reference is expected to review the draft of National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy for a digital Nigeria 2020-2030, with special focus on deliverables under the policies and strategies.
He urged the committee to come up with effective implementation roadmap; a representative matrix and actionable plan on the things to be executed on the policy and strategy.


However, “you are not restricted to the draft alone; you are free to bring in whatever you feel will be relevant to the policy. The committee is to make Nigeria not just digital but globally competitive.”

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