Rivers Govt: We’re Ready to Harness Digital Economy for Economic Growth

Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt

The Rivers State Government has stated its preparedness to tap into the opportunities provided by the National Digital Economy and E-Governance Bill to grow the state’s internally generated revenue (IGR).
This was disclosed yesterday, during stakeholders engagement organised by the Federal Ministry of Communication, Innovation and Digital Economy in Port Harcourt, the state capital.

Special Assistant to the Rivers State Governor on Information and Communication Technology, Fubara Fenibo, who presented the state’s position on the proposed bill at the event, said the bill when passed into law would bring about ease of doing business.

He stressed that the bill when passed into law and fully implemented would also make for financial inclusion, as creatives in the state can earn from it providing services across the globe from the comforts of the homes.
Fenibo highlighted that Rivers State was already ahead in e-governance with the full digitalisation of the Rivers State Judiciary and the Internal Revenue Board.

He also said when the bill becomes operational, the risk involved with physical contacts while transacting businesses would be reduced, urging the people to brace up to key into the enormous opportunities that will come with the passage of the bill.

The Rivers State government representative further said the new bill would enable the government make data-driven decisions because of the enormous data that will be available at its disposal through implementation of the bill.

“Rivers State is very much prepared to tap into those opportunities that the bill will bring. One of the opportunities this bill will bring is, it is going to bring ease of doing business because there won’t be any blockage in terms of you haven to bring things physically, or you have to come physically for jobs, physical paper, everything goes digital, so the ease of doing business in Rivers State and across other states in the country would increase.

“Another thing it would bring to Rivers State is financial inclusion. Creatives in the state that have talent, that know how to give value from the comfort of their home, will now be empowered to be able to tap into foreign clients, foreign currencies and draw down those things to Rivers State, so there’ll be a whole lot of financial inclusion,” he said.

Giving an overview of the bill, Christopher Nwuya, a legal practitioner and consultant to the Federal Ministry of Communication, Innovation and Digital Economy on the National Digital Economy and E-Governance Bill 2024, said the essence of the engagement is to gather valuable inputs from all relevant stakeholders since the bill  affects every person, adding that the bill seeks to transform the national digital economy.

Nwuya added: “This bill benefits everybody, it benefits the startups, it benefits individuals, it benefits government agencies and since it benefits us, we all have responsibilities to play in driving the change that this bill seeks to bring.”

Outlining benefits of the bill, Nwuya said it will enhance free press, public trust and accountability because there’s going to be some regulations.

He assured participants that all opinions generated at the stakeholders would be taken into account while fine-tuning the bill.