Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari signed the Startup Bill into law on Wednesday.
The executive bill which was initiated by the Office of the Chief of Staff and the Office of the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy will provide a legal and strategic framework for the establishment, development and operation of startups in Nigeria.
It will be recalled that in July 2022, the Senate passed the Nigerian startup bill 2022, after a report by its committee on ICT and cyber security.
According to the document “Nigeria Start-Up Act 2022”, startups will be able to access a special seed fund created under the law. The fund will provide labelled startups with finance and also provide relief to technology laboratories, accelerators, incubators and hubs.
The law also requires companies to obtain a certificate known as the ‘startup label’, before they can be regarded as a startup entity.
Similarly, the act provides for the establishment of the National Council for Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship with the Nigerian President as the Chairman of the Council and the Vice President as the Vice Chairman of the Council.
The council will also draw membership from the government and private sectors as well as representatives from academia.
While commenting on the law, the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Prof Isa Pantami noted that while drafting the bill, the ministry sought the input of young innovators from the six geo-political zones of the country.
Investors King understands that several startups in Nigeria have been breaking new boundaries and raising funding for operations. In 2021, Nigerian startups raised more than $1 billion.
Similarly, out of the seven Unicorns in Africa, five are Nigerian-owned. A Unicorn is a privately held startup company valued at over $1 billion. The five unicorns in Nigeria include Flutterwave, Andela, Opay, Interswitch and Jumia.
Meanwhile, Investors King had earlier reported that the Nigerian government has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Microsoft to train 5 million Nigerians on high-demand digital skills.
The MOU which was signed at the recently concluded GITEX Global 2022 in the United Arab Emirates is aimed to make more Nigerians fit into the digital marketplace.
