By Festus Obot
As part of efforts to ensure that small businesses in Nigeria thrive in a globally competitive business environment, the Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology, Google, and HP have reiterated their resolve and readiness to support the federal government’s commitment to the growth and development of small and medium businesses in Nigeria.
The Honourable Minister for Innovation, Science and Technology, Chief Uche Geoffrey Nnaji made this known while declaring open the Google Hustle Academy organized by the FMIST, Google and HP at the headquarters of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Abuja on Tuesday, February 18, 2025.
According to the Honourable Minister, the collaboration aims to “equip Nigeria’s small and medium businesses with required skills to survive and thrive in today’s digital and dynamic business environment”. Chief Uche Nnaji further stated that “the Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology through its agencies like the Raw Materials Research and Development Council has remained committed to fostering innovations in Nigeria’s business ecosystem through market-driven research, policy support, and innovative partnerships focused on providing businesses with required skills to expand and contribute meaningfully to President Bola Tinubu’s national economic agenda”.
Earlier, the Director General, RMRDC, Prof Nnanyelugo M. Ike-Muonso, while welcoming participants at the event, stated that the partnership between the government and the private sector holds huge promise to address some of the identified challenges in raw material processing. He informed participants that RMRDC was already pushing for legislation to mandate at least 30% value addition to Nigeria’s local raw materials by industries before export, stating that the legislation has reached an advanced stage with the public hearing on the proposed amendment Bill slated for March 5, 2025, at the National assembly Complex, Abuja.
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Prof Ike-Muonso further informed participants that for the first time, Nigeria now has a raw materials information management portal established by the Council and was recently launched by the Honourable Minister.
In his opening remark, the Country Director of HP West Africa, Dr Emmanuel Eze commended the FMIST, RMRDC, and other stakeholders for their commitment to building the capacity of Nigeria’s businesses with modern skills that will position them to compete favorably in a changing global business environment. He emphasized that such skills are a necessity in today’s global business ecosystem, and emphasized that small and medium businesses will find technology adoption extremely useful as they strive to make an impact and contribute to national economic development.
