$1tn economy: NACCIMA urges investment in digital, productive businesses
By Alabidun Shuaib AbdulRahman
Nigeria’s ambition of building a $1tn economy by 2030 will remain elusive unless digital innovation is translated into increased productivity, industrial growth, investment and job creation, the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, NACCIMA has said.
The Director-General of NACCIMA, Engr. Olusola Obadimu, stated this while delivering the keynote address at the 2026 Digital Nigeria International Conference and Exhibition held at the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre, Abuja.
Obadimu said Nigeria must move beyond discussions about technological advancement and focus on deploying innovation to improve the performance of businesses and productive sectors of the economy.
He said the country’s economic transformation would depend on the ability to connect technology with agriculture, manufacturing, mining, trade and services.
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“We are no longer debating whether digital technology will transform our economy. It already is. The question is whether Nigeria will merely consume that transformation or deliberately connect it to productivity, industrialisation, jobs, exports and national growth,” he said.
The NACCIMA DG argued that the $1tn economic target could not be achieved through government intervention alone, stressing that businesses creating value and expanding production must drive the process.
“The road to a one-trillion-dollar economy runs through productivity. That economy will not be built in government offices. It will be built on farms, in factories, in laboratories and through businesses that create value every day,” he added.
Obadimu identified micro, small and medium enterprises as critical to the country’s economic transformation, noting that digital policies would have limited impact unless they improved the productivity and competitiveness of small businesses.
He also described the partnership between NACCIMA and the National Information Technology Development Agency, NITDA as a strategic effort to bridge the gap between innovation and commercialisation.
Earlier, the Director-General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, represented by the Director of Special Duties, Dr Aristotle Onumo, called for stronger collaboration among government institutions, industry players, academia, innovators and development partners.
Onumo said Nigeria had the talent, entrepreneurial spirit and innovative capacity to become a leading digital economy but required deliberate investments in skills development, infrastructure and strategic partnerships.
He said the Digital Nigeria conference was designed to promote implementation, collaboration and measurable impact rather than discussions about the country’s technological future.
The conference featured policy discussions, exhibitions, masterclasses and innovation showcases, with stakeholders emphasising the need to connect innovation with investment, industry and employment opportunities.
