The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has moved to strengthen and decentralise Nigeria’s innovation ecosystem with a proposed National Innovation Hub Standards Framework targeting more than 339 innovation hubs identified across the country.
The initiative is designed to provide innovation hubs with a structured pathway to assess their capabilities, identify operational gaps and improve their capacity to support entrepreneurs, innovators and technology-driven businesses.
NITDA Director-General, Kashifu Inuwa, disclosed this in Abuja at the National Innovation Hub Standards Framework Validation Workshop, stressing that a strong network of innovation hubs was critical to unlocking Nigeria’s vast pool of young talent and accelerating digital economic growth.
Inuwa said the framework was not intended to impose rigid requirements on hub operators but to provide practical standards that would help them evaluate their capabilities and progress towards greater maturity.
“Innovation does not happen in isolation; it happens in an ecosystem. And that ecosystem does not happen by accident; it happens by design,” he said.
According to the NITDA boss, innovation hubs have become important platforms for connecting innovators, students, entrepreneurs, investors, businesses, academia and government, enabling them to exchange ideas, develop solutions and transform concepts into commercially viable enterprises.
He noted that although Nigeria had a large population of talented and entrepreneurial young people, many still lacked access to funding, mentorship, infrastructure, networks and other support systems needed to turn their ideas into sustainable businesses.
Inuwa identified talent, risk capital, large corporate organisations and government as key pillars required to build a functional innovation ecosystem, calling for stronger collaboration among stakeholders to ensure sustainable growth of the digital economy.
He disclosed that NITDA’s research had identified more than 339 innovation hubs across Nigeria, although a significant proportion were concentrated in Lagos, Abuja and about 10 other states.
The concentration, he said, underscored the need to expand innovation ecosystems to other parts of the country where significant talent and economic potential remained untapped.
According to him, some hubs outside the country’s major innovation centres were still operating largely as training centres and required additional support to evolve into full-fledged innovation, incubation and entrepreneurship centres.
He said the proposed framework contained seven key dimensions and about 35 assessment categories through which hubs could determine their level of development, identify weaknesses and establish areas requiring improvement.
Inuwa stressed that the framework would allow innovation hubs to develop according to the unique strengths, challenges and economic opportunities of their respective communities rather than attempting to replicate a single model across Nigeria.
He said the objective was to create an environment where young Nigerians could develop and test ideas, access relevant facilities, connect with businesses and investors, understand government policies and obtain the support required to build sustainable enterprises.
The NITDA DG also emphasised the need for increased private-sector participation in providing risk capital, noting that government alone could not sustainably finance startups and emerging businesses.
He equally called for stronger collaboration between universities and industry, urging higher institutions to play a more active role in research, entrepreneurship, digital skills development and partnerships with industry.
Inuwa disclosed that NITDA was already collaborating with the Federal Ministry of Education to integrate digital skills into formal education to equip graduates with competencies required to participate effectively in the digital economy.
The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, who spoke at the workshop, also stressed the importance of investing in innovation hubs and ecosystem builders as part of efforts to diversify Nigeria’s economy.
Tijani said while successful technology startups often attracted public attention, the hubs and grassroots innovation communities that helped nurture such businesses deserved greater investment and recognition.
He said government’s investments in fibre-optic connectivity, telecommunications infrastructure, satellite technology, digital identity and cloud infrastructure must be matched by investments in people and institutions capable of transforming digital infrastructure into economic opportunities.
“Imagine if we had all the hubs in Nigeria at the same level of quality as the best hubs in the country. There would be more technology businesses, more innovation and better opportunities across the country,” Tijani said.
The Minister said a stronger network of innovation hubs would provide young Nigerians with the environment to develop local solutions to societal challenges while creating employment and expanding economic opportunities.
He also advocated the documentation and transfer of knowledge from successful innovation ecosystems around the world to Nigerian hub managers, saying lessons from global best practices could strengthen local innovation communities.
NITDA described the standards framework as a draft and called on hub founders, investors, development partners, government institutions, academia and other stakeholders to contribute to its refinement.
The agency said a robust and decentralised network of innovation hubs would enable communities across Nigeria to harness local talent, develop solutions to local challenges and contribute more meaningfully to national economic growth.
The initiative is also expected to reduce the pressure on young innovators to relocate to major cities before gaining access to the ecosystem, networks and resources required to develop and scale technology-driven businesses.
