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Nigeria places 90th of 115 countries in IT ratings
Lagos' bustling Silicon Valley, the Ikeja Computer Village, is the biggest showpiece of what has been variously described as the Nigerian Information and Communications Technologies success story. There, on a daily basis, millions of naira worth of computer hard and software are sold and then distributed across homes and offices in the country and the West African sub-region. But, as trade in ICTs soars all over the world, experts are beginning to ask if this growing trade in developed and developing countries is resulting in a concomitant growth in development and innovation in the latter?
In the last five years, experts at the World Economic Forum, have been working on finding answers to this poser. The result of their toil, this year, is The Global Information Technology Report 2005-2006, which ranks countries on the basis of "Networked Readiness". The network readiness index is a ratio that represents the readiness or ability of the three important stakeholders in the ICT process (the individual, the government and the private sector) to leverage the advantages offered by ICT growth for development and increased competitiveness. It is also used to rank countries in the area of ICT innovation. "The Networked Readiness Index (NRI) has become a globally accepted benchmark of an economy's participation in the networked economy. The NRI provides a useful indicator to decision leaders from the private and public sectors about the role of technology in driving the competitiveness and productivity of nations," the authors say.
In this year's report, 115 countries were evaluated and the United States of America topped the rankings. It was followed by Singapore, Denmark, Iceland, Finland, Canada, Taiwan, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, in that order. Nigeria placed 90th while Chad (114th) and Ethiopia (115th) finished bottom. On a roughly-hewn African sub-list prepared by our correspondent, Nigeria also scored low as she placed 13th out of the 22 African countries considered. The top place in the continent went to Tunisia, which placed 36th on the global rankings. South Africa followed Tunisia in Africa, but placed 39th on the world rankings. Interestingly, Nigeria, which prides itself as the giant of Africa, was bettered by such continental minnows as Ghana (fifth in Africa and 61st in the world), Mauritiius (third in Africa and 45th in the world) and Gambia (12th and 88th in the world).
Of what use is this index? The WEF says nations that are benchmarked against others could use the findings to learn from those who did better. "Korea has been able to dramatically transform its economy since its financial crisis in 1997 into a highly competitive one, using the consolidation of the ICT and IT industry as a key economic growth engine, while Mexico still lags far behind, and its policies have proved to be insufficient for increasing competitiveness and connectivity. They challenge policy makers to carefully analyse the Korean experience for the lessons to be learned," WEF says.
Nigeria, especially, could learn from the US which won because of its sustained ability to harness ICT technologies to boost the efficiency of its economy and its many markets. "The long pipeline of scientific and technological innovations is a remarkable source of strength for the US economy which, large macroeconomic imbalances notwithstanding, remains a choice destination for foreign capital," Augusto Lopez-Claros, Director of the Global Competitiveness Network at the World Economic Forum says. The authors also defend the choice of the US as the number one ICT country, saying that 17 of the 36 World Economic Forum Technology Pioneers 2006 are from the US.
The authors note that in today's knowledge-based world, ICTs play an increasingly central role in boosting productivity and prosperity. This is one piece of advice that will not only help Nigeria move up the rankings if heeded but can also facilitate the progress that her citizens are yearning for.
THE PUNCH, Friday, April 21, 2006
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