Stakeholders Advocate Strategic Investment In Tech Talent Ecosystem

While Nigeria has become a breeding ground for digital innovation, driven by a youthful population, increasing internet penetration, and a surge of ambitious startups, there are concerns about the sustainability of Nigeria’s tech workforce; hence, experts are advocating strategic investment and systemic reforms.

They said that without strategic investment and systemic reforms, the country risks losing its edge and becoming a talent exporter without building a robust local ecosystem.

For his part, data visualisation expert and co-founder of a financial technology company, Aniekpong Effiong, remarked, ‘We’ve proven we can produce world-class talent. However, sustainability in tech talent is not only about numbers. It’s about quality, adaptability, and global competitiveness.’

While illustrating his career as a former consultant at ExxonMobil Nigeria, he said, he developed automated systems that cut reporting time in half and improved decision-making across offshore operations. ‘These weren’t just technical wins. He noted that they demonstrated that Nigerian expertise could deliver results in complex, global environments.

Beyond his corporate achievements, Effiong used data storytelling to promote civic engagement with his widely shared visualisations of World Bank data on presidential performance from 1999 to 2021, sparking national conversations about governance and accountability.  ‘When citizens can see trends clearly, they can better hold leaders accountable. That, too, is sustainability rooted in civic life rather than just commercial success,’ he said.

Effiong also points to international recognition, including winning the 2023 Sjvisualizer Data Visualisation Competition, as evidence that Nigerian tech professionals are not just surviving but thriving on the global stage, adding that, ‘we need continuous skills development, access to relevant problems, and platforms to showcase our work. Otherwise, our progress will stall.’

While the challenges go beyond individual stories of success, Omowunmi Makinde, an experienced IT professional and industry analyst, pointed out that Nigeria is at a ‘critical crossroads.’

The government’s ambitious 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) programme drew 1.7 million applicants in its first phase—proof of an enormous hunger for tech skills and a decisive demographic advantage. However, Makinde emphasised that this enthusiasm masks deeper systemic issues, noting that, ‘the paradox is that while we have an abundance of young talent, we also face an accelerating brain drain.’

The expert explained that millions of Nigerians left the country between 2022 and 2023, as remote work makes it easier for top talent to serve foreign employers without investing their energy back into the local ecosystem.

She warned that this is no longer a marginal concern, but a real and growing threat. ‘The ‘Japa’ wave is not just a buzzword but a defining pressure point. It’s a drain large enough to offset the gains from even the most aggressive training pipelines,’ she said.

According to Makinde, “The factors driving this exodus include poor infrastructure, high internet costs, and unstable electricity. Even where training exists, the transition from classroom to career remains weak. An early placement rate of just above 11 per cent in the 3MTT programme highlights this gap.  When newly trained developers can’t find meaningful local roles, they look elsewhere. That’s an economic decision as much as a personal one.”

She advocates for a comprehensive retention strategy, one that includes tax incentives for companies hiring locally, structured mentorship and apprenticeships, and competitive salaries pegged to international benchmarks.

On her part, a seasoned technologist who has led innovation across digital health, finance, and cybersecurity, Cynthia Duru, reinforced the message that while Nigeria has made significant strides, sustainability is still not guaranteed.  “Our tech ecosystem has grown impressively, producing a young and vibrant pool of developers, designers, and engineers. But the foundation is under threat,” she asserted.

She, however, identified three key challenges: brain drain, a mismatch between academic curricula and industry needs, and persistent infrastructure deficits.  She noted that, “Universities are producing graduates, but many of them aren’t job-ready. Without modernised curricula and practical training, we’re widening the gap”

She canvases for greater alignment between education and market demand, which includes promoting local startups through friendly tax policies, increasing broadband availability, and investing in digital infrastructure.

If we want to be Africa’s leading digital service exporter, we need to create an environment where tech talent thrives, not just trains and leaves, Duru said. Similarly, Duru stressed that, the ecosystem’s success should not be measured only by the number of trained individuals, but by the depth of integration of tech into Nigeria’s economic engine.  “We need to create more investable startups, more scale-ups, and more digital public infrastructure that relies on local engineering. That’s how we build capacity and sustainability,” she said.