Industry Leaders Calls for Enabling Environment for Technology, Innovation: Calls for Adoption of Startup Act

The federal government has been urged to take decisive steps in creating a conducive environment for startups to thrive, particularly in Nigeria’s South-South and South-East regions.

Speaking at the 9th edition of Startup South conference, a 2-day event which took place in Port Harcourt, Rivers State on October 3rd to 4th, 2024, Uche Aniche, the convener emphasized the importance of implementing the National Startup Act, which has seen slow adoption across states.

“It’s a fantastic law that came from the ecosystem and was adopted by the public sector. However, states need to domesticate it to enable startups to benefit from its provisions, such as tax waivers for investors,” Aniche said.

Aniche also highlighted issues like multiple taxation and the need for a gradual approach to resolving challenges, beginning with the law’s adoption. He stressed that innovation would drive economic development, urging the government to be part of the movement or risk becoming obsolete.

Additionally, several tech leaders, including representatives from MainOne, Zoho, and Xend Finance, echoed similar sentiments, calling for better infrastructure, data residency policies, and government collaboration to ensure the country’s tech ecosystem grows at par with global standards.

Representing MainOne, an Equinix company and partner of the event, Abayomi Adebanjo echoed the call for policy alignment. He highlighted the transformative impact of digital infrastructure, particularly the arrival of the 2Africa submarine cable in the South-South region, which creates new business opportunities. “We’re enabling a new digital gateway that will deepen broadband penetration in these regions, but it requires continuous support from policymakers,” Adebanjo added.

Onyekachi Opara from, Zoho emphasized the role of technology in scaling businesses, noting that many startups in the region could benefit from software solutions that streamline operations. “We partnered with Startup South to help startups scale their businesses using SaaS technology,” he said.

Ugochukwu Aronu of Xend Finance underscored the importance of support structures for young innovators. “We’ve already provided grants and investments to several startups, but the real value comes from creating an ecosystem where these startups can thrive globally,” Aronu said, promising ongoing support through mentorship and marketing initiatives.

Throughout the event, participants emphasized the need for regional collaboration to unlock the full potential of Nigeria’s startup ecosystem. “It’s not just about technology; it’s about policy alignment and collaboration,” concluded Aniche, urging state governments to act quickly.

The event included various panel discussions, pitching sessions, and Hackathon competitions featuring new innovators. Among the top three Hackathon winners were Johnson Alfred, whose business solution, “Eden Finance,” was awarded $1,000. James Somto’s “Safe Launch,” a platform for secure token trading, received $750, and Ifeanyi Uti’s digital product “Floww,” a platform for monetizing and tokenizing digital content, won $500.

Ten participants were selected, with the three emerging as winners. However, Ugochukwu Aronu of Xend Finance assured that all participants would receive ongoing support.

“For this hackathon, what we have done is just the beginning. Giving them this grant money is a way to encourage them to keep building. We are putting them through something called a developer program. That program is like an incubation, where we work with them weekly and monthly to ensure their products are market-ready.

“And we are going to be helping them with marketing because we have a much larger network. So we’ll be helping them with global marketing, not just Nigerian or African, but global marketing. And apart from global marketing, we’re also going to be introducing them to investors who can fund their projects. We’re going to help them with customer or user acquisition to grow their platforms.

“Now, someone might ask, how is this valuable to us? It’s valuable to us because all these platforms are being built on our infrastructure, which is Asset Chain, right? So as these projects succeed, we also succeed. The key is offering them support to help them grow and keep building.”

Other partners, including Ssean and Rabel Seed Capital, contributed to the event’s success, with many young innovators from Port Harcourt in attendance.