The survival of many innovation hubs across Nigeria is under threat from persistent power outages, poor internet connectivity and weak funding, according to a new assessment report unveiled in Abuja on Thursday.
The Chairman of the Innovation Support Network, Hanson Johnson, who presented the findings of the Nigerian Innovation Hub Assessment Report, said innovation hubs remained vital vehicles for driving entrepreneurship, skills development and job creation across the country but required stronger policy support and enabling regulations to maximise their impact.
Johnson said while the Federal Government had taken an important step with the enactment of the Nigeria Startup Act, many states were yet to domesticate the legislation, limiting opportunities for innovators and startups at the sub-national level.
“The Federal Government has done well by making sure that the Startup Act is in place, but that’s at the national level. Some states have been smarter, some have failed to domesticate it at their own state level so that innovators at the sub-national level will be able to ride on that vehicle to connect to what is at the national level,” he said while ddressing journalists at a press conference for the report in Abuja.
