Nigerian President, Dr.Goodluck Jonathan
The Nigerian Federal Government in giving appraisals to the Information Communication Technology (ICT) of the economy said that the sector is as much important as the power sector to the nation’s development.
The Vice President, Arc. Mohammed Namadi Sambo, stated this in Abuja the nation’s capital, during the flagging off ceremony of the third Ordinary Session of the African Union’s Communication and Information Technologies Ministerial Conference which took place at the Transcorp Hilton hotel.
Conference an Opportunity to Brainstorm
Vice President who represented the President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, described the conference as an opportunity to brainstorm and come up with a holistic approach to the rapid development of ICT in the country stressing that ICT has become the life wire of both business and governance and as such, Africa cannot be left behind.
He noted that the benefits of the appreciable progress already made in ICT advancement in the country includes the massive inflow of investment in the sector from USD50 million in the year 2000 to the present USD12 billion.
Arc. Sambo said the investment has generated employment for millions of Nigerians as well as promoted business and services, and also improved efficiency and productivity.
“Our next focus must be on the development and application of broadband and improvement in internet services to accelerate development in areas of national security, e-governance, tele-medicine, public safety and education, amongst others,” he stated.
In her welcome address, the Minister of Information and Communication, Prof Dora Akunyili, said that in order for Africa to harness ICT for sound economic and social policies, continental and national ICT strategies must be integrated into broader policy agendas and coordinated with different policy agenda such as Poverty Alleviation Programs.
ICT Crucial to National Development
She added that the conference, as the highest ICT policy making entity has set up policies that will make ICT affordable to the people as well as exploring the best ways to promote the development of the ICT sector in the continent.
The Minister stated: “The ICT’s role in national development is crucial for the overall process of development. South Africa is slated to host the Extraordinary Session of this conference from November 2nd - 5th, 2010.”
It would be noted that the conference is a follow up to the first and second editions which was hosted by Egypt and it signifies a collective vision for ICT as a fundamental premise for establishing an economy based on knowledge and innovation.
The conference was attended by African Ministers of Information and Communication, heads of Telecom Agencies, stakeholders in the industry and delegates from other African countries.
Federal Appointments
In a related development the Government has made some appointment into the Federal Executive Council (FEC) following the appointment by the President, Dr. Jonathan of the Chief Economic Adviser and Special Adviser on Policy.
The new Chief Economic Adviser is Professor (Mrs.) Precious Kassey Garba and until her appointment, she had served as Professor of Economics and Dean, Faculty of The Social Sciences at the University of Ibadan. She was also Vice President of the Nigerian Economic Society between 2003 and 2007.
She is also a recipient of several prizes in academic research and author of many research works on Economics.
Also appointed is Professor Dan Adebiyi as the Special Adviser on Policy Monitoring and Performance Evaluation the President.
Professor Adebiyi is a seasoned policy analyst who has served government in various capacities and at present a member of the Presidential Advisory Council. He has his degrees in Political Science, International Relations, and Government and Strategic Studies from the University of Ibadan and the Harvard University, USA.
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