This completes the report we started before.
In the 2011 Nigerian Information Technology Exhibition (NITEX), it was very obvious that Nigeria has talents and businessmen and women that can execute at any level.
NITEX is the premier event for software developers, software architects, solution providers, OEMs, IT vendors etc. NITEX-2011 will serve as an excellent opportunity to promote latest technologies as they relate to organizations, ranging from SME’s, large enterprise and multinationals.
NITEX offered a window on what the challenges are in the nation. The PC industry in the nation has grown as more people continue to buy. Analysts have reported that the developing world will sustain the global PC growth despite the erosion of the market coming from tablets. In East Africa, the PC market is expected to grow by 75% largely due to Kenya.
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In this midst, it looks very good because the industry is expanding. However, the local players in Nigeria are not smiling. Increasingly, the PC industry in Nigeria has turned to be a dumping ground. There are many international brands as we open our doors to electronics. And many people are going for cheaper products which in most cases seem affordable than even the local ones.
The government has written the policy to help the locally made products but enforcing it is different from making it. It is not just computers, but software. Tekedia thinks that the only people that will save the industry is simply the government. The local OEMs have lost the public and it is going to be tough to get it back. They have to innovate in price and service to have a chance. Of course their scales are too small to compete with the behemoths like HP, Dell and Lenovo in the PC industry.
Tekedia thinks we must give credit to the local players for pushing and competing in a challenging environment like Nigeria. It is commendable that Zinox and Omatek have done well as they did. What they have to do now is to lobby government better to enforce the “Buy Nigeria” directive made in 2006 by the government in the software and hardware industry. SystemSpec the software company seems to be doing well as it is monopolizing many software contracts from the government.
A small history of the industry shows that though many started this business, only Zinox and Omatek are left behind. There are others, but their share is too small. We recall the era of NEAT Computers in Port Harcourt, Brian Systems, Balogtek, among others. Right now, Zinox and Omatek with some other little brands are riding the waves. And they are having tough times.
Our data shows that if the government does not help the local OEM vendors in Nigeria, they will exit the stage for the foreign ones by 2017. Together, they are losing market share in the range of 5-7% annually. Zinox used to dominate up to 70% of the educational PC sector, that has come down to less than 50%. Obasanjo helped these companies as he promoted them, showed up in photos and we hope they will get help from the present admin which also has shown genuine interest in supporting local vendors in other areas. A good example is the Innoson Motors which the administration has visited and commended in many ways. Anything short, we will all be buying foreign.
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