By Tahir Ahmad,

Northern Nigeria is often overlooked in conversations about technological innovation, but a new wave of ICT inventors from the region is challenging that narrative.

These individuals are not just building apps or running startups—they are redefining what is possible in communities historically underrepresented in Nigeria’s tech evolution.

Here are five standout inventors from Northern Nigeria whose work is reshaping the region’s ICT landscape:

1. Mohammed Ibrahim Jega – The Startup Mobilizer

Mohammed Jega, founder of StartUp Arewa, is a pioneer in northern tech development. Since 2016, his initiative has mentored and supported ICT talents across 19 northern states.

Jega has championed the creation of innovation hubs in places like Gombe, Yobe, and Katsina—transforming them into mini tech ecosystems. His work focuses on using digital tools to solve local problems, from agriculture to financial inclusion.

2. Maryam Lawan Gwadabe – The Hub Builder

At just 24, Maryam founded Blue Sapphire Hub in Kano—arguably the city’s first tech-preneurship centre. Since 2017, the hub has incubated dozens of startups, hosted coding bootcamps, and provided digital skills training for youth and women.

Her Young Minds Ideation programme introduced entrepreneurship and tech innovation to hundreds of secondary school students.

3. Mustapha Gajibo – The Electric Vehicle Innovator

Based in Borno State, Mustapha Gajibo is making global headlines with Phoenix Renewables, where he engineers solar-powered electric vehicles.

His EVs—built completely from scratch in Nigeria—can cover up to 200 kilometers on a single charge. Gajibo also converts old petrol buses to electric, a feat unmatched in Sub-Saharan Africa.

His innovation addresses both transport challenges and climate concerns.

4. Amal Hassan – The Outsourcing Powerhouse

Amal is the founder of Outsource Global, a leading ICT firm providing services like call center operations, software development, and cloud services. Her company has trained and employed thousands—many of them women—in Northern Nigeria.

Amal is also mentoring the next generation of female ICT professionals, breaking barriers in a male-dominated sector.

5. Sanusi Ismaila – The Ecosystem Engineer

As founder of CoLab in Kaduna and co-founder of Aduna Capital, Sanusi has built infrastructure for innovation in Northern Nigeria.

CoLab is Kaduna’s first innovation hub, supporting developers and digital creatives. Through Aduna Capital, Sanusi now funds startups—especially those led by women—in healthtech, edtech, and agritech sectors.

These five innovators are not just building businesses—they are laying down the digital foundations of a new North.

Their efforts have not gone unnoticed. At platforms like the Arewa Tech Fest, a regional innovation summit backed by public and private stakeholders, their work is being celebrated, scaled, and supported.

From coding labs to clean energy vehicles, the tech revolution in Northern Nigeria is being engineered by its own people—bold thinkers with local roots and global visions.

The post SPOTLIGHT: 5 Northern ICT Wizkids Transforming Nigeria’s Tech Space appeared first on Tech Digest News.

The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Mr. Khalil Halilu, has charged the management staff of the Agency to put forward ideas on how NASENI can effectively support the priorities of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu such as large-scale switching of petrol and diesel-powered vehicles to alternative fuels to reduce the cost of living for Nigerians.

He stated this as he began receiving briefings from the Managing Directors of the Agency’s ten (10) Development Institutes, situated in Enugu, Minna, Awka, Okene, Nnewi, Kano, Jalingo, Akure, Ilesha and Nasarawa.

According to Halilu, “Our Institutes are the engines of NASENI’s innovation and these briefings by each Institute are critical as we work together to craft the future of NASENI, as it relates to delivering on the President’s socio-economic agenda.”

In addition to the Managing Directors, Team Leads of various NASENI projects, as well as the Agency’s Research Directors, also made presentations to the EVC on their various projects and efforts.

The briefings, which commenced on Monday September 18, 2023, are taking place ahead of the EVC’s planned tour of NASENI facilities across the institutes scheduled to commence in October.

Also on Tuesday, September 19, the EVC/CEO inaugurated a Committee to look into staff welfare, as part of steps to fulfil his pledge, upon assuming office, to ensure that NASENI becomes “a public sector employer of choice in Nigeria.”

The EVC tasked the Committee—made up exclusively of middle-level and junior staff of NASENI—with producing a Human Resources (HR) revamp plan for NASENI.

According to the EVC, “Our junior staff are indeed the ones on the frontlines of our work, bearing the biggest burdens, and therefore deserving of special attention, support and welfare.”

To round off the week, the EVC/CEO paid a courtesy visit to the Honourable Minister of Science and Technology, Chief Uche Nnaji, on Friday September 22, at the Ministry’s Headquarters in Abuja.

Commenting on the meeting, which discussed opportunities for collaboration in advancing research in methanol production, lithium mining, and natural medicine, the EVC/CEO said, both institutions were “keen to jointly commercialize existing research outputs,” adding that “I have no doubt that NASENI has a strong and committed partner, in the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology.”

Also on Friday, Halilu met with a young Nigerian innovator based in Maiduguri, Borno State, Mustapha Gajibo, who specializes in converting petrol-fired vehicles to use gas and solar energy.

“There’s no limit to what young Nigerians can achieve in science and technology, and at NASENI we want to be a part of these inspiring stories from every corner of the country,” said the EVC/CEO.

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