The 18th report from the GE Global Innovation Barometer report has stated that multinationals as well as Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) remainkey drivers of innovation in the Nigerian economy.

The report, which was titled ‘‘From Chaos to Confidence: Emerging players, emerging technologies, emerging challenges”, noted that out of the 80 Nigerian business executives surveyed, 36 percent of them said multinationals drive innovation compared to the global figure of 23 percent. The study indicated that business executives who favour protectionism do it for business reasons, while almost three in four business executives think that government was not driving innovation and was unable to keep up with the pace of innovation.

According to the President and CEO, GE Africa, Farid Fezoua, who spoke at a recent event organised by his group in Lagos, “innovation and technology are fundamental for Africa to be able to compete in a global framework. Localisation is also important – innovation needs to be tailored to the specificities of local needs. We need to develop home-grown solutions for Africa.”

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Fezoua added that programmes like the GE Lagos Garage, aimed at Nigerian entrepreneurs, had helped support local innovation in the country. The report, which explores how Nigerian business leaders perceive the barriers to and opportunities for innovation in the country, was unveiled at a forum held at GE Nigeria’s headquarters as part of events celebrating GE being in Africa for over 120 years.

Findings from the study indicated that 23 percent of the executives believe that SMEs contribute significantly to innovation against the global figure of 12 percent.

“One in two Nigerian business executives see the benefits of protectionist policies (51 percent), while 49 percent of business executives believe these policies would have a negative impact on innovation in the country,” said the report. In his address, the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by the Secretary to State Government, Folasade Jaji, said, “Through its activities, GE has supported economic growth in Africa within a period spanning over 120 years. It has also been a key partner in progress in Nigeria where it has operated for over four decades.