NITDA Urges Stakeholders to Unlock Startup Act Incentives for Nigerian Entrepreneurs
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NITDA Urges Stakeholders to Unlock Startup Act Incentives for Nigerian Entrepreneurs
By Alabidun Shuaib AbdulRahman
The National Information Technology Development Agency, NITDA has called for stronger collaboration among government agencies, private-sector players and other stakeholders to translate the Nigerian Startup Act into tangible benefits for entrepreneurs and investors.
The agency made the call at the Nigerian Startup Act Incentives Activation Co-Creation Session organised in Abuja by its subsidiary, the Office for Nigerian Digital Innovation.
Representing the NITDA Director-General, Kashifu Inuwa, at the session, ONDI National Coordinator, Victoria Fabunmi, said the passage of the Act was only the beginning, stressing that its success would ultimately be measured by its impact on businesses within Nigeria’s innovation ecosystem.
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Inuwa said the government and stakeholders must now move beyond policy formulation to practical implementation, particularly the activation of incentives designed to promote investment, innovation and enterprise growth.
He noted that the establishment of the Startup Consultative Forum and the launch of the digital startup portal had created important channels for engagement, but added that the real test of the legislation was whether founders could easily access the reliefs, funding opportunities and other resources provided under the Act.
“We want to go to the next level. We want to be able to say that the actors in our ecosystem have been able to benefit significantly from the legislation that has been passed, and it wouldn’t happen without everyone sitting in this room,” Inuwa said.
The NITDA boss urged participating institutions to work together to eliminate institutional bottlenecks, clarify responsibilities and develop practical mechanisms for delivering the incentives to eligible beneficiaries.
He said the implementation of the Act cuts across several sectors, including trade, finance, communications, innovation, the digital economy, science and technology, making inter-agency collaboration critical to its success.
Inuwa also called for continuous engagement and feedback among stakeholders, noting that the startup ecosystem was constantly evolving and required implementing institutions to remain responsive to emerging needs.
Earlier, Acting Lead, Strategy, Research and Analytics at ONDI, Elma Andah, disclosed that the Nigerian Startup Act provides more than 31 incentives across six broad categories.
She listed the categories as tax and fiscal incentives, regulatory support, funding access, exports and trade, ecosystem enablers, and training and capacity building.
Andah said the implementation of the incentives involved more than 15 government institutions, stressing that no single agency could deliver all the provisions of the Act independently.
“No single institution can deliver all these incentives alone. Implementation requires coordination across more than 15 MDAs,” she said.
According to her, the Nigerian Startup Act, which was signed into law on October 19, 2022, was designed to promote innovation, improve access to funding, strengthen collaboration and position Nigeria as a leading technology and innovation-driven economy in Africa.
She said Nigeria’s startup ecosystem had continued to demonstrate significant potential, with more than 3,000 startups and several globally recognised technology companies.
Andah added that Nigerian startups attracted approximately $410m in funding in 2024 despite the difficult economic environment.
She identified some progress recorded under the Act to include engagements with states on adoption, the operational startup support engagement portal, improved startup labelling timelines, the Startup Consultative governance framework, the Startup Investment Seed Fund framework and ongoing efforts to operationalise the regulatory sandbox framework.
However, she stressed that the interconnected nature of the incentives made effective coordination among implementing institutions essential.
Using practical examples, Andah explained that a startup seeking funding could also require tax incentives, while a business seeking to export its products might need regulatory approvals, as investors seeking tax credits could depend on access to the startup labelling system.
She therefore challenged participating institutions to establish clear ownership of the incentives assigned to them, simplify access procedures, strengthen inter-agency coordination and introduce effective monitoring and accountability mechanisms.
