The newly inaugurated President of the Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON), James Agada, has questioned the reported contribution of Nigeria’s software industry to the national economy, saying the sector’s economic footprint appears inconsistent with its size and level of activity.
Agada said the software industry reportedly employs more than one million people directly and indirectly and has over 100,000 registered companies, yet the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) indicate that the sector contributes less than 0.2% to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
He raised the concern during his inauguration as President of ISPON’s 2026/2028 National Executive Committee, where he outlined his priorities for growing the local software industry and increasing its contribution to the Nigerian economy.
While noting that ISPON currently has about 500 corporate members and 10,000 individual members, Agada said there might have been a miscalculation of the sector’s contribution to the GDP figure.
According to Agada, the significant amount Nigerians spend on foreign software products and services could be one reason the sector’s local economic contribution remains low despite the size of the industry.
Agada attributed part of the challenge to the limited opportunities available to Nigerian software companies, arguing that weak local patronage and inadequate appreciation of domestic capabilities have created a cycle that restricts industry growth.
He said other countries have treated software as a strategic sector by deliberately using government patronage to support local companies, provide testing grounds for their products and give them access to the domain knowledge required to build globally competitive solutions.
Agada also identified stronger business models, organisational structures and access to capital as areas Nigerian software companies need to improve to compete more effectively.
To address the visibility challenge, Agada announced plans to establish a National Software Industry Registry within the next six months.
However, he said many of these achievements and the people behind them had not been adequately recognised or documented.
GDP data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) shows that the Information and Communication sector, which includes telecommunications and information services, broadcasting, motion pictures, sound recording and music production, and publishing, grew by 9.62% year-on-year in real terms in Q2 2026.
The sector contributed 11.74% to Nigeria’s total real GDP, up from 11.18% in Q2 2025 and 11.31% in Q1 2026.
However, telecommunications remains the main driver of the sector’s GDP growth and contribution. The subsector’s contribution to real GDP stood at 9.72%, making it the fourth-largest individual contributor to Nigeria’s real economic output during the quarter.
ISPON’s concerns about lack of patronage for local software come amid an annual increase in software budgets by the government’s ministries, departments, and agencies.
According to the 2026 budget breakdown, NIMC was expected to spend the largest amount on software by any MDAs with N7.58 billion allocated to the item.
