The Nigerian Senate on Wednesday, July 20, 2022, passed the Nigeria Startup Bill (NSB) 2022 which seeks to provide an enabling environment for the establishment, development, and operations of startups in Nigeria.
The passage of the bill followed a report by the Senate Committee on ICT and Cybersecurity. While presenting its report, the Chairman of the Committee, Senator Yakubu Oseni, noted that the bill would create the National Council for Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
According to him, the council upon its establishment would create and develop an enabling environment for technology-enabled start-ups in Nigeria.
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Although the bill is still pending in the House of Representatives, with its passage by the Senate, Nigeria moves closer to having a law that will accelerate the growth being witnessed in the tech ecosystem in the country.
Objectives of the Bill
The NSB is a joint initiative by Nigeria’s tech startup ecosystem and the Presidency to harness the potential of Nigeria’s digital economy through co-created regulations. One of its objectives is to bridge the engagement gap between startups and regulators.
- The bill also seeks to provide for the establishment, development, and operation of startups in the country via incentives like tax breaks, government loans, and credit guarantee schemes.
- In addition to that, the NSB makes provisions to promote local content and provide the proper infrastructure needed for the growth of startups, all in an effort to position Nigeria as a leader in the technology space.
Timeline of the Bill
June 2021
Harmonisation of existing laws/regulations with inputs fed to the legal framework from key ecosystem leaders (MDAs, States, Networks).
July 2021
First draft of the Bill: The ecosystem leaders and representatives review the first draft as well as the Presidential Working Group composed of MDA decision-makers critical to implementing components of the bill.
August 2021
Presidential Announcement and Town Hall meetings take place for public consultation and validation of the second draft of the bill with ecosystem stakeholders at state level in all geopolitical zones.
September 2021
Final Draft Produced: Drafting teams take all the inputs and revisions are made to feed into the final bill.
October 2021
Bill submitted to the President who then submits Executive Bill to the National Assembly.
July 2022
Nigerian Senate approved the bill and passed it to the House of Representatives.
What you should know
- According to the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Digital Transformation, Mr. Oswald Osaretin Guobadia, the implementation and state adoption of the bill would require that the government continues to engage and collaborate on execution.
- He added that its success is dependent on the participation of all stakeholders of the ecosystem which includes lawmakers, policymakers and practitioners.
- Meanwhile, Lagos State Government had recently declared its readiness to domesticate the bill once passed into law at the federal level. Other states of the federation would be expected to do the same for the bill to have a nationwide impact.
