Mr Yusuf Kazaure, the Managing Director, Galaxy Backbone Ltd., says President Muhammadu Buhari’s Executive Order on local content will help to create employment opportunities for the Nigerian ICT youngsters.
Kazaure made the remark at a News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja.
Buhari signed the Executive Order 5 to improve local content in public procurement with science, engineering and technology components.
The order is expected to promote the application of science, technology and innovation towards achieving the nation’s development goals across all sectors of the economy.
Kazaure was optimistic that the executive order would help provide the enabling environment for entrepreneurs and manufacturers in the ICT sector to flourish in their areas of business.
‘’I think those executive orders are very necessary at this point and especially the one that focuses on utilisation of local content in the ICT.
‘’ICT has two layers. There is a layer that is focused on infrastructure. And then there is a layer that is focused on human ability; the brain, innovation, intellectual capacity.
‘’In Nigeria, we may be a little behind in terms of manufacturing the hardware.
“Even though there are several organisations or companies that are manufacturing hardware but on a global scale, we are still yet to compete.
‘’If we set our minds as a country, we can compete favourably in the software areas of the ICT,” he said.
Kazaure said Nigerians had always demonstrated intellectual prowess wherever they found themselves across the world.
‘’Why do I say so? You can go to any university, go to any place across the world, you find out there is one Nigerian or another making a difference.
‘’So if there is focus on that which this executive order is trying to create, then one youngster, all he has to do is to be able to develop a simple software application,” Kazaure said.
‘’The executive order will ensure that attention is given to him so that he is able to market it. And I think that is the key magic that it will do.”
He said it would help a lot to create employment opportunities for youngsters.
“So, for organisations, the order is trying to say look, don’t take the easy way out of just buying or importing.
‘’Work with local entrepreneurs and manufacturers and help them to move up the scale to meet this standard that we expect. And for me, I think that is really what it is.”
Galaxy Backbone Ltd., is a government-owned company set up to consolidate all its ICT services and infrastructure into one platform by providing internet services to all government ministries, departments and agencies.
