United Arab Emirates Set to Partner Nigerian Government to Boost Tech Ecosystem

Chief Executive of the Dubai Future Foundation, Khalfan Belhoul, of the United Arab Emirates said it is willing to collaborate with the Nigerian government to boost the development of its tech startup ecosystem.

This was revealed by Belhoul on Sunday at the world’s largest startup and investment show, GITEX Global, which is now taking place in Dubai.

The UAE firmly believes that the Nigerian startup ecosystem has a lot of promise, but that more work has to be done by the government of the continent’s largest economy to fully realise those benefits.

Leading the UAE’s smart city strategy across five key business areas, Belhoul emphasised the significance of partnering and promoting innovation to propel growth in the digital economy.

Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya, and Nigeria constitute one of Africa’s “big four” startup ecosystems, with at least 481 active firms as of August 2022.

According to estimates, Nigeria has more than 3,360 startups as of 2022—more than any other country in Africa. Subsequently, in the same year, Kenya and South Africa reported over 1,000 and over 660 companies, respectively.

Other important African markets for startups were Rwanda, Ghana, Morocco, and Tunisia.

“There are a lot of inventions in Nigeria, and more can be done. We are very much open to collaborations in terms of technology development, but it’s about having the right conversations,” said Belhoul.

In line with his administration’s objective of establishing Nigeria as a major player in the global technology scene, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu authorised earlier this year the transformation of an existing Federal Government property in San Francisco, USA, into a Nigerian Digital Technology Exchange Program Hub (Nigeria Startup House).

We earlier reported that Rise, a fintech company based in Nigeria that provides its clients with access to specific international assets, has completed the acquisition of Hisa, a startup in Kenya.