The Nigeria Startup Act, introduced in Parliament by the Republic’s Presidency and the country’s inventive tech sector in March, has been signed into law by Nigeria’s president. The new law was adopted by the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on Wednesday, July 20 this year, and then later by the country’s House of Representatives.
The purpose of the Startup Bill is to “provide a favourable environment for a start-formation, up’s growth, and operation in Nigeria. Encourage the growth of talent in the technology sector and establish Nigeria’s startup ecosystem as the continent’s premier digital technology hub, with outstanding innovators with cutting-edge expertise and exportable ability,” the government says.
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Since October 2021, the government has embarked on the establishment of a regulatory framework conducive to the emergence of innovative tech companies. Currently, Nigerian start-ups are the ones attracting the most investment in Africa. They have managed to thrive in a business environment built on long-term battles led by the private sector. Today, given the impact on the economic growth of States that several analysts attribute to start-ups in the digital age, the public sector is determined to provide them with a more favorable framework for expression.
Nigeria has included a number of amenities in its new law on startups that will hasten their maturity. These include a label that will provide businesses that acquire it with tax benefits, money resources via a fund set aside for support. The government also places a high priority on education.
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Once the bill is approved, Nigeria will become one of the few African countries with start-up-specific regulations. Senegal, Tunisia, and Mali are among them.
Download the proposed Nigerian Startup Act here.
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Charles Rapulu Udoh
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer, who has several years of experience working in Africa’s burgeoning tech startup industry. He has closed multi-million dollar deals bordering on venture capital, private equity, intellectual property (trademark, patent or design, etc.), mergers and acquisitions, in countries such as in the Delaware, New York, UK, Singapore, British Virgin Islands, South Africa, Nigeria etc. He’s also a corporate governance and cross-border data privacy and tax expert.
As an award-winning writer and researcher, he is passionate about telling the African startup story, and is one of the continent’s pioneers in this regard. You can book a session and speak with him using the link: https://insightsbyexperts.com/view_expert/charles-rapulu-udoh