Nigeria's Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Wednesday approved the National Policy on blockchain drafted by the Federal Ministry of Communications & Digital Economy, paving the way for the formal adoption of the technology blockchain in this country. Relevant agencies will also work to develop appropriate regulatory frameworks.
Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Mr. Isah Pantami said the national blockchain policy will impact all sectors of the economy, including the election process by managing data ensure.
“With the approval of the new policy, we can safely say that blockchain technology and related components have been institutionalized in the country,” Mr. Pantami emphasized.
Mr. Isah Pantami, Nigerian Minister of Communications and Digital Economy
The Nigerian government also established a steering committee headed by the National Information and Technology Development Agency (NITDA) to oversee policy implementation. Previously, they set a goal of accounting for about 10 billion USD of global blockhain market share by 2025.
Although details of the policy have not been announced, the blockchain adoption strategy in Nigeria is built on six initiatives, including:
Establishment of the Nigerian Blockchain Association.
Strengthen the legal and regulatory framework.
Focus on developing national digital identifiers.
Promote education and awareness of blockchain technology.
Issue policies to encourage business related to blockchain.
Establish a national pilot program to demonstrate potential and pilot implementation.
The new move puts Nigeria among a handful of countries such as the United Kingdom, Denmark, Switzerland, Estonia, Georgia, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates that have approved blockchain policies.
Nigerians have welcomed the event, while also questioning whether the new policy will legalize the use of cryptocurrencies in the country, as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had previously banned institutions Financial institutions that provide cryptocurrency-related services.
The CBN is yet to clarify its stance on the digital assets sector, however that does not prevent their adoption in the country. Blockchain analytics firm, Chainalysis has ranked Nigeria among the top 20 countries in the 2022 Global Cryptocurrency Adoption Index.
Blockchain is growing in Nigeria
Minister Pantami noted that African countries missed out on previous industrial revolutions. Therefore, Nigeria will be proactive and not miss the opportunity of the fourth industrial revolution, when the gap with developed countries is not too far.
Last year, NITDA collaborated with Domineum Blockchain Solutions to launch the Blockchain Scholarship program, aiming to provide technology training to develop career skills for 30,000 people. At the same time, the Nigerian Export Processing Zone Authority (NEPZA) also discussed with cryptocurrency exchange Binance about establishing a free digital economic zone similar to Dubai, to attract financial companies. digital assets and improve international business operations.
Earlier this week, the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission revealed it is planning to support asset tokenization applications for digital asset companies and exchanges.
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