Digital economy contributed to Nigeria’s exit from recession – Pantami

The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, has said the sector played a pivotal role in lifting the Nigerian economy out of recession in 2020.

He stated this at the weekend during the launch of a book ‘Technology and Development: An African Perspective’, authored by Dr. Everest Amaefule.

The minister, who was represented by his spokesperson, Mrs. Uwa Suleiman, while delivering the keynote address at the public presentation of the book, said the ICT sector recorded the highest growth rate of 14.70% in the 4th quarter of 2020, as reported by the National Bureau of Statistics.

“This growth rate was the only double-digit growth rate and it exceeded the aggregate growth rate of the 2nd to 7th fastest growing sectors of the economy,” he said.

The minister said the author, through years of experience in the field, gained insight into the issues that matter most, especially those relating to technology in developing countries.

The chairman/founder, Unubiko Foundation, James Ume, said the book came at a time that Nigeria, and indeed Africa, needed to examine the nexus between technology and development and how it could leverage on the former to achieve the latter especially in the face of global shutdowns owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Amaefule said the book challenges leaders on how best to use technology for development.

“We’ve got technology that we can build on, that we can build with, instead of the natural resources we have been relying on; even though we are rich in natural resources, we have not made the best of it,” he said.