The Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, has called on innovators and entrepreneurs to rethink traditional models of economic success, urging a shift towards innovation-driven growth suited to the realities of the 21st century.
Abdullahi made the call while delivering a keynote address at the Kano Startup Weekend, where he highlighted Kano State’s historic role as the commercial nerve centre of Northern Nigeria and the wider Sahel region. He noted that while Kano’s past economic strength was built on trade, strategic geography and human capital, modern economies are now driven largely by innovation.
According to the NITDA Director General, innovation goes beyond invention, stressing that real value lies in taking ideas from conception to impact through commercialisation. He explained that sustainable economic growth is achieved when ideas are transformed into solutions that address real societal and market needs.
Abdullahi emphasised that innovation cannot thrive in isolation and underscored the importance of a strong and interconnected ecosystem linking academia, industry, startups, entrepreneurs and government. He observed that despite Kano’s numerous tertiary institutions and vast market potential, weak collaboration between research institutions and industry has continued to limit growth, scalability and competitiveness.
He further highlighted NITDA’s commitment to strengthening Nigeria’s innovation capacity through key national initiatives such as the Digital Literacy for All (DL4ALL) programme, which aims to equip Nigerians with essential digital skills, and the 3 Million Technical Talents (3MTT) initiative, designed to develop a pipeline of globally competitive technical professionals. Abdullahi noted that these programmes align with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which prioritises digital skills development, innovation and inclusive economic growth.
The NITDA boss challenged startups in Kano and across the country to move beyond the conventional small and medium enterprise mindset and focus on building innovation-driven enterprises capable of scaling from local markets to the global stage. He expressed confidence that with the right skills, effective collaboration and strategic use of technology, Kano can reclaim its leadership position and compete with leading innovation hubs within Nigeria and beyond.