Mr Mustapha Shehu, immediate past President, Federation of African Engineering Organisation (FAEO), has called on African Governments to initiate policies that would attract more private sector investment in ICT.
Shehu, a candidate for the post of president, World Federation of Engineering Organisation (WFEO), made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja
He said the growth of private investment in ICT depended on the right environment being created by countries, adding that the sector was currently being driven by private investments globally.
Shehu called for a reform in the legal and administrative framework of African countries to attract more investors.
According to him, attracting more investment in the ICT could lead to more employment opportunities for the youths in the continent.
He expressed concern over the gap between Africa and advanced nations in ICT infrastructure and called for urgent steps to bridge the gap.
Shehu attributed the call for environment conducive for private sector investment in ICT, to lack of government potentials required to develop the sector.
“You cannot say a government is doing enough in the ICT sector because there is no country that can beat its chest to say they have done much even the advanced countries.
“There is still a huge gap in ICT infrastructure requirements; we have so many universities, polytechnics and even secondary schools, all these institutions need to have these infrastructure that are working efficiently,” he said.
