More than 1,388 startups competed for just 30 places at the Builders Festival launched by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), as the agency shifts its focus from technology development for its own sake to commercially viable solutions capable of addressing Nigeria’s healthcare, agricultural, financial and business challenges.
Nigeria’s technology ecosystem is facing growing pressure to translate its expanding pool of innovators into commercially viable businesses, as the NITDA moves to connect startups with investors, corporate customers and institutions seeking solutions to real-world problems.
The initiative signals a shift in the agency’s approach to supporting Nigeria’s technology ecosystem, placing greater emphasis on problem-solving, market adoption and commercialisation rather than the development of technology products without clearly defined customers or practical applications.
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Speaking at the inauguration of the festival on the sidelines of the Digital Nigeria International Conference and Exhibition (DNICE) 2026 in Abuja, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, director-general of NITDA, said startups must focus on addressing problems affecting Nigerians rather than becoming overly attached to the technologies they develop.
He argued that Nigeria’s challenges in healthcare, agriculture and access to finance represent significant opportunities for entrepreneurs capable of building solutions that improve productivity and incomes.
“The goal is not to be in love with your technology, but to be in love with the problem you are solving. It’s about how your solutions can help millions of Nigerians improve their productivity and national prosperity,” Abdullahi said.
The agency’s approach reflects a broader challenge confronting Nigeria’s innovation ecosystem: the availability of technical talent and startup ideas does not automatically translate into sustainable businesses, particularly where founders struggle to secure funding, reach customers and establish partnerships with established industries.
Abdullahi said the Builders Festival was created to address the disconnect between organisations that understand their problems and entrepreneurs with the technical capacity to develop solutions.
Rather than beginning with startups showcasing products, the initiative invited companies and institutions to identify specific operational and industry challenges requiring technology-driven interventions. Organisers subsequently identified 21 priority challenges, which were opened to developers, founders and innovators across the country.
More than 1,500 innovators reportedly submitted applications, with 30 finalists eventually emerging to develop prototypes for presentation to investors, industry leaders and judges.
The competition also offered financial incentives, with the overall winner receiving a $50,000 equity-free grant, alongside mentorship and institutional support. Other outstanding participants secured grants ranging from $10,000 to $30,000.
However, beyond the grants, the programme seeks to address the market-access constraints that often prevent Nigerian startups from moving beyond prototypes to commercially sustainable businesses.
The NITDA chief identified healthcare as one area where the gap between demand and actual service delivery presents opportunities for innovation. He disclosed that the agency’s research indicated that 80 per cent of Nigerian adults wanted access to telemedicine, but only 19 per cent had ever used the service.
Agriculture also presents opportunities, particularly through digital platforms that provide farmers with weather forecasts, soil information, planting guidance, fertiliser recommendations and access to markets.
He further highlighted the financing constraints confronting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), arguing that digital solutions capable of improving financial record-keeping and demonstrating business performance could help businesses establish the transparency banks require before extending credit.
These gaps highlight the commercial opportunities available to technology companies, but also the importance of developing solutions that people and businesses can afford, access and consistently use.
The emphasis on commercialisation also featured prominently at DNICE 2026, where stakeholders linked digital innovation to Nigeria’s ambition of building a $1 trillion economy by 2030.
Olusola Obadimu, director-general of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), said achieving the economic target would depend on connecting digital innovation to productivity, industrialisation, exports and job creation.
He argued that the country’s economic transformation would depend largely on productive businesses operating in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, trade and services, rather than technology development or government interventions alone.
Obadimu also identified micro, small and medium-sized enterprises as critical to the country’s growth ambitions, warning that digital policies would have limited economic impact unless they improved the productivity and competitiveness of businesses.
He described the partnership between NACCIMA and NITDA as an effort to bridge the gap between innovation and commercialisation.
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The Builders Festival is designed to strengthen this connection by bringing startups closer to potential customers, investors, corporate organisations and institutions with identifiable technology needs.
For Nigeria’s startup ecosystem, the initiative places the question of market demand at the centre of innovation support. Its longer-term impact will depend on whether participating businesses can convert prototypes, grants and institutional connections into paying customers, sustainable revenue and solutions capable of scaling beyond the programme.
As NITDA seeks to strengthen the country’s digital economy, the agency is increasingly emphasising that the success of technology development should be measured not simply by the number of startups established or products launched, but by the businesses created, productivity gains achieved and problems solved.
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Royal Ibeh is a senior journalist with years of experience reporting on Nigeria’s technology and health sectors. She currently covers the Technology and Health beats for BusinessDay newspaper, where she writes in-depth stories on digital innovation, telecom infrastructure, healthcare systems, and public health policies.
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