By David Torough, Abuja

The Presidency on Monday said Nigeria’s Communications and Digital Economy sector attracted $191m in foreign direct investment in Q1 2024, a nine fold increase from $22m in Q1 2023.The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani disclosed this during an interview for an upcoming State House documentary marking President Tinubu’s second anniversary.

Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to the President, Bayo Onanuga, revealed in a statement yesterday titled; “Investment in Digital Economy Grows Ninefold, Rollout Of $2 Bn Fibre Optic Infrastructure Begins Q4: Bosun Tijani. ”Tijani highlighted the sector’s robust workforce development, driven by the three Million Technical Talent programme and revealed plans for a $2bn initiative to deploy 90,000 kilometres of fibre optic infrastructure nationwide, starting in Q4 2025.“These foundational reforms, coupled with advancements in artificial intelligence and the startup ecosystem, have positioned Nigeria as a global leader in the digital economy,” Tijani stated.Comparing FDI inflows, he said, “In Q1 2023, the sector had about $22m; by Q1 2024, with this administration well underway, we reached $191m. The trend continued in Q2, increasing from $25m in 2023 to $114 m in 2024.”According to the minister, the 3MTT programme, launched in October 2023 to create a tech-savvy workforce, has already trained over 117,000 Nigerians in digital skills, surpassing its initial target of 30,000.“By last year, we had already moved that to over 117,000. With an additional 35,000 in training, the programme is nearing 10% of its 3 m goal. And in the rest of the time in office, we hope to reach three million,” he said.Regarding connectivity, Tijani announced that Project Bridge, focused on deploying 90,000 kilometres of fibre optic cable, will commence in the fourth quarter.“We are preparing a $2bn investment to ensure every Nigerian can access affordable, high-quality connectivity regardless of location. Increasing connectivity hubs by just 10 per cent could yield a 2.5 per cent GDP growth,” he said.Tijani celebrated Nigeria’s ranking among the world’s top 60 countries for AI readiness and developing a homegrown large language model.He also highlighted the launch of the AI Collective platform, supported by leading partners including Pierre Omidyar, Google, and Microsoft, to foster collaboration and innovation in artificial intelligence.For the first time in the country, the ministry has funded 55 academic researchers to explore technology applications in agriculture, healthcare, and education. In addition, N300m was invested in 10 startups using AI and blockchain to enhance agricultural productivity.On the Nigeria Startup House in San Francisco, an initiative targeting $5 billion in startup funding, Tijani said, “Our goal is to attract $5 billion in investments for Nigerian startups, supported by the Startup Pact and Trade Desk initiatives, which will connect local tech firms to global opportunities and government procurement.”Tijani revealed that over 500 government technologists have been trained in AI and Digital Public Infrastructure, and the groundbreaking Digital Economy Bill has passed its first reading in the National Assembly.To bridge rural connectivity gaps, the Minister projected that 7,000 telecom towers would be deployed, targeting 98 per cent nationwide coverage, adding that the Federal Executive Council had already approved the project.He described the progress on Right-of-Way issues as a game-changer for the country, revealing that 12 states in the federation have adopted zero-rated Right-of-Way policies.According to him, these efforts will support the National Broadband Plan’s goal of achieving 90% penetration by 2025, up from 48% in 2024.He projected the sector’s GDP contribution to rise from 16 per cent to 22 per cent, stating, “If a sector can increase its contribution by three to four per cent to the GDP, we’re about to see the economic growth we’ve not seen before. Technology allows us to bridge the gap between governments and the people.”Tijani said the government is not chasing quick wins. “The results we want to provide for Nigeria are long-lasting reforms that will transform our economy for generations to come”.