A Japan funded innovation hub worth $11.2m, designed to bolster the creative industry is set to take off in Abuja.
The Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa, in Abuja on Friday said that the project, being promoted by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) was in partnership with the Nigerian government, in collaboration with some private sector players.
He said, “ the project, backed by a $11.2 million grant from JICA, is designed to significantly boost Nigeria’s innovation landscape by providing vital infrastructure and support for startups and serving as a centre for creativity, research, and technological development.”
Kashifu noted that to ensure the success of the innovation the partners have signed an agreement for the implementation of the Startup Hub Project.
He explained that the innovation hub project is coming after the Federal Government of Nigeria had entered into a $30 million grant agreement with JICA for the establishment of Startup Hubs in Abuja.
According to him, “ the project consists of two major components: the first, a $9.9 million initiative to be implemented by NITDA, which focuses on the development of a dedicated Startup Hub; the second, valued at $21 million and to be executed by the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA).
“To strengthen this relationship, JICA decided to give us a grant to build an innovation hub, so that after training the startups, they can have access to a makerspace where they can turn their ideas into products and services, JICA is giving us a grant worth of $11.2 million to build this innovation hub.
“ The collaborative efforts aimed at deepening the relationship between the Nigerian and Japanese technology ecosystems. He highlighted the importance of ongoing exchange programmes, which not only foster knowledge sharing and skills transfer but also open new avenues for collaboration between innovators in both countries.
“ These initiatives are instrumental to creating a more enabling environment for Nigerian startups to grow into sustainable, innovation-driven enterprises capable of competing on a global scale.
“It’s about building the entire ecosystem; we are not just training startups, we are also giving them the tools, the environment, and the financing they need to thrive,” he said.
