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Poor Infrastructure is Nigeria’s Greatest Development Challenge after Corruption
Dike Onwuamaeze
The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has identified poor infrastructure as Nigeria’s greatest challenge to socio-economic development after corruption.
This was disclosed yesterday by the President of the LCCI, Dr. Michael Olawale-Cole, during the 2022 ICTEL EXPO in Lagos with the theme, “Ensuring Efficient Digital Infrastructure in Nigeria,” where he emphasised the need to give deserved focus to digital infrastructure.
Olawale-Cole said: “Over the decades, next to corruption, poor infrastructure is Nigeria’s greatest socio-economic development challenge.
“The ones commonly focused on are power, roads, water. But we dare say, however, that as critical as the listed ones and indeed others not listed are, if Nigeria gets digital infrastructure right, the benefits to the nation’s ICT and telecommunication sectors and on government’s digital economy agenda would be enormous.
“Indeed, the multiplier effects of an effective and efficient digital infrastructure in our country on national development cannot be overemphasised.”
He said that virtually everything is now done electronically, thereby making issues like access, Internet of Things, right of way, broadband penetration, policies, regulation, cyber security e.t.c. matters of great concern.
He stated that now is the time for Nigerians to ask: “Where are we in digital infrastructure? What are the challenges and the way forward? And who does what, and when?” adding that “the 2022 ICTEL EXPO is providing a great opportunity to influence national discourse on digital infrastructure in Nigeria.
“As an advocacy group and a lead promoter of Small and Medium Enterprises, we appreciate the significance of this to business growth and sustainability and we are ready to lend necessary support to the actualisation of this.” Olawale-Cole expressed confidence that “the 2022 ICTEL EXPO will have significant impact on policy initiatives and advocacy, especially in the ICT and Telecommunication space.”
