Pantami: Quality Software Will Give Nigeria’s Digital Economy Competitive Advantage
Emma Okonji
The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ibrahim Pantami has said effective software quality assurance in the Nigerian digital economy will greatly impact the economy’s accelerated growth.
Pantami said this while presenting the lead paper at the first-ever Software Testing Conference in Nigeria with the theme: ‘Impact of Software Quality Assurance in the Nigerian Digital Economy’, organised recently by Nigeria Software Testing Qualification Board (NGSTQB), at Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos.
According to Pantami, the importance of software in global development cannot be overemphasised, hence software powers the hardware, and most of the innovations in all sectors and spheres of life.
“If you look at the world’s advancement in the internet economy, transportation, financial services, power, cyber security and many life endeavours, software is the secret to that success. I can categorically say that the world would not have achieved much if there was no invention of software.
“The article by Jeff Lawson in the Harvard Business Review, argued that in the digital economy, your software is your competitive advantage. This same argument applies to any country that wants to succeed in the digital economy era. We have seen the implication of this during the Covid-19 pandemic. The ICT industry, which is powered by software, benefited the most, as the industry’s growth skyrocketed,” Pantami said.
The minister who was represented by the Digital Architect Manager at the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Dr. Falilat Jimoh, said one of the greatest challenges the software industry is facing today is the issue of quality.
While making reference to a recent report by Synopsis Inc in the US, which discovered that many organisations allow software quality to lag behind other objectives, Pantami said: “There is a need to take full advantage of the opportunities the software industry is going to play in the digital economy growth while ensuring that the challenges that could hinder software quality, do not thwart the progress we have collectively achieved in the digital economy sector.”
Pantami therefore said that the theme of the first edition of the Software Testing Conference was apt, adding that effective software quality assurance in the Nigerian Digital Economy will greatly impact the digital economy’s accelerated growth.
According to him, “Web portals and apps are now part of daily routine. The conference provides the platform to discuss and share our ideas on the use and need for Software Quality Assurance and its effect on the Nigerian digital economy.
“In the last two decades, there has been an upsurge in the use of digital technologies all over the world. Nigerians are not left out in the use of digital technologies in services provision, trade, socialising and communication with one another. Consequently, Nigeria has seen tremendous growth in digital services, ranging from e-Commerce to Fintech Services. Therefore, the potential of the digital economy to create economic growth, employment and innovation cannot be underestimated.”
Pantami further said: “Specifically, the ICT sector provided three unprecedented contributions to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country in the last three years, namely 14.07 per cent in Q1 2020, 17.92 per cent in Q2 2021and 18.44 per cent in Q2 2022. At each time, that has been the highest-ever contribution of the ICT sector to the GDP. This is unprecedented in our history and we have shown that the digital economy can greatly support the traditional economy.”
Delegates that attended the conference, called on the federal government to support NGSTQB as a platform to chat the course of software quality assurance in Nigeria, in order to promote the country’s digital economy. They also called for increased synergy among industry players, to enable them effectively push for the adoption of ‘Nigeria software’.
