Business

Expert charges tech businesses to leverage Startup Act for growth

Published

2 years ago

December 6, 2022

By Rukayat Moisemhe

Mr Ayodele Kusamotu, Chairman, Kusamotu and Kusamotu, on Tuesday charged technology startup businesses to take advantage of the newly unveiled Startup Act for growth and sustainability.

Kusamotu said this at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Group and Professional Practice Group seminar with the theme, “Insights into the Nigeria Start-up Act, 2022,” in Lagos.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Start Up Act was signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari on Oct. 19 to harness the potential of the country’s digital economy through co-created regulations.

Kusamotu said some of the incentives under the Act included assistance for startups within the pioneer scheme industries to apply for tax relief.

Others, he said, were the five per cent withholding tax on non resident companies providing technical services to a labelled startup and full deduction on research and development expenses in Nigeria.

Kusamotu added that the startups were also exempted from Industrial Trust Fund contributions where it provided in-house training to its employees for the period it was designated as start-up.

“Also, export incentives, access to loans, credit guarantee scheme, investment tax credit equivalent to 30 per cent of the investment in the labelled startup provided, shall be applied on any gains on investment which are subject to tax.

“Additional, capital gains tax shall not be charged on gains that accrue from the disposal of assets by an angel investor, venture capitalist, private equity fund, accelerators or incubators with respect to a labelled startup, provided the assets have been held in Nigeria for a minimum of 24 months.

“So, this is a commendable effort at empowering the community and fostering innovation and it is critical that startups take advantage of this,” he said.

Kusamotu, however, stressed the need for governance structure for the startup consultative forum in the council.

He added that directive on amount of seed fund to be invested in research and development must be spelt out, and called for rules to back up the law to support the implementation of the Act.

Earlier, LCCI president, Dr Michael Olawale-Cole, said the theme of the seminar was apt considering the fact that the Act supported entrepreneurship, sound regulation, and an efficient tax system for a digital economy.

He added that it also provided support for innovation management in the tech-start-up ecosystem in Nigeria, seeing that the Nigerian ICT sector was one of the fastest growing sectors in the economy.

He noted that the ICT sector remained the only sector with consistent positive growth before and after the coronavirus pandemic, with a growth of 10.53 per cent in the third quarter and a 15.4 per cent contribution to Gross Domestic Product.

He added that Nigeria recorded over 3,300 start-ups in 2020, the highest in Africa compared to South Africa (660 start-ups) and Kenya (600 start-ups).

Olawale-Cole attributed the strong growth recorded by the sector to the innovative activities of ICT operators and policies introduced by government including the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (2020-2030), E-Government Masterplan and others.

“The technology startup ecosystem has recorded exponential development, innovation and sophistication.

“No doubt, the Nigerian technology startups seem to be leading in the emergence of startups in Africa despite macroeconomic challenges and numerous regulatory hurdles.

“In order to further harness the potential of the sector, President Muhammadu Buhari signed the Startup bill into law, putting Nigeria on the list of African countries with Startup laws.

“The Nigeria Startup Act project is a collaboration between the executive and stakeholders in the tech startup ecosystem to harness the potential of Nigeria’s digital economy through legislative backing and framework.

“The Act is expected to support the building of a more structured and self-regulated tech ecosystem in Nigeria,” he said. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Business

FG to benefit from World Bank’s $500m loan

Published

14 hours ago

December 11, 2024

Seyi Babalola

Federal Government is to benefit from a $500 million loan facility from the World Bank for the Human Capital Opportunities for Prosperity and Equity (HOPE) project in the country.

Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, made this known during a courtesy visit on him by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Mission Chief for Nigeria, Mr. Axel Schimmelpfennig

The loan facility, according to the minister, will increase the availability and effectiveness for financing for basic education and primary health care in the various states of the federation.

The fund, he said, will enhance transparency and accountability for basic education and primary health care in addition to improving recruitments, deployments and better performance management of teachers.

While appreciating the support of the World Bank, Bagudu elucidated that the Nigerian Constitution is the legal framework that provides the rules and procedures that guides the budget process in addition to empowering the federal and state governments to make expenditures in the preceding year for the purpose of meeting expenditure necessary to carry on the services of the government.

“This expenditure can continue for a period not exceeding six months or until the coming into operation of the law as can be seen on Chapter 5, Part 2 Section 122 of the Nigerian Constitution” he said

Bagudu explained further that the reforms embarked on by the Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration were aimed at developing and implementing economic and tax reforms that will guarantee more functional Public Financial Management (PFM) systems in the country.

“The economic reforms are necessary decisions to put the Nigerian economy on the right track”he explained

He assured the IMF Team that though Nigeria is experiencing a number of challenges such as hardship of citizens as a result of removal of fuel subsidy, floating of foreign exchange, electricity reforms that distributed citizens into bands, Nigeria is on course to economic recovery.

In a statement, the minister appreciated the willingness of the IMF to support Nigeria but however called for more support in the area of resource mobilisation from multinational partners in order for government to provide developments in all sectors of the economy.

Earlier, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Mission Chief for Nigeria, Mr. Axel Schimmelpfennig said he was in the country to have interactions with the minister on the workings of the Nigerian budgeting process with particular emphasis on the simultaneous implementation of the 2023/2024 budgets and supplementary budgets in the same year in preparation for the publication of the 2025 annual report of the World Bank.

Schimmelpfennig welcomed the tax reforms of the federal government as increased revenue generation will ensure more developments for Nigerian citizens and thus promised the country of more IMF support for Nigeria’s developmental needs.

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Dr. Vitalis Emeka Obi, briefed the team on the ministry’s role in co-ordinating Nigeria’s development planning and budgeting processes. The Permanent Secretary emphasised that 2025 promises to be a year of more rapid investments.

DailySun

Business

FG invests $450m on CNG value chain

Published

3 days ago

December 9, 2024

Seyi Babalola

The Nigerian government said that it has invested over $450 million in the development of the country’s compressed natural gas value chain.

According to NAN, the Project Director of the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative, PCNGi, Michael Oluwagbemi, disclosed this on Monday at the 9th Edition of the Nigeria Energy Forum, NEF 2024, in Lagos.

Oluwagbemi, who was represented by Tosin Coker, the Head of Commercial at PCNGi, emphasised that the investment spans critical areas of the CNG infrastructure, including the establishment of mother stations, daughter stations, refuelling stations, and conversion centres across the country.

“The Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (PCNGi) on Monday said that it had invested more than 450 million U.S. dollars in the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) value chain.

Business

Port Harcourt refinery over 90% completed – NNPCL (VIDEO)

Published

3 days ago

December 9, 2024

Seyi Babalola

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, says the new Port Harcourt refinery is over 90 per cent completed.

The Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPCL, Mele Kyari, stated this on Monday when labour leaders from the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and the Trade Union Congress, TUC, visited the facility in Rivers State.

Gatekeeper recalls that After a long delay involving at least seven missed deadlines, NNPC finally activated the 60,000 barrels per day (bpd) phase one of the Port Harcourt oil refinery.

The rehabilitation process for the total 210,000 bpd refinery began in 2021 after the federal government secured a $1.5 billion contract to fix the facility, which had been left decrepit for years.

NNPC had initially failed to make public the litres of petrol, diesel, jet fuel, and naphtha the refinery will roll out, in negation of global best practices.

However, citing public criticism, the national oil company later said it was refining 1.4 million litres of petrol per day, an extremely low figure by all estimations.

Watch the video below:

https://twitter.com/i/status/1866126343626502510