Gov. Adeleke’s first bill to Osun lawmakers appears to reveal a priority

Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun state says he will soon be ready with his first executive bill to the state’s house of assembly, and the subject of the bill appears to provide a hint of his administration’s priority.

– A key point to note

The governor said he will submit a bill that creates a state version of the federal startup law that seeks to support small and innovative businesses.

– Why this matters

The decision, a boon for job creation, will place Osun as the second state seeking to domesticate the legislation. Lagos announced its plan in December 2022 to do the same.

According to McKinsey, Africa’s digital economy will grow to about $300 billion by 2025. Although Nigeria currently has the highest number of unicorns in Africa (startups valued at $1 billion or more) and dominates the share of capital influx into the tech space on the African continent, the ratio of unicorns to the population lags far behind most regions.

This presents an opportunity for further growth and the startup law is expected to be a boost to the effort. Under the law, a government council will determine whether a company is a startup, confirming it existed for less than 10 years, is focused on innovation and owned mostly by Nigerians.

Companies will receive a range of benefits including tax incentives, government financing and export incentives.

– Learn more

Mr Adeleke spoke on Feb. 13 when he hosted members of the state assembly, his spokesperson Olawale Rasheed said. But the governor has other less people-focused plans first though.

“I also want to use this opportunity to give a hint about the legislative agenda of our administration. First, we want to support genuine upgrades of facilities at the State House of Assembly Complex. It is a task I am committed to,” he was quoted as saying.

“Secondly, I will soon be submitting some executive bills for the consideration of the legislature. The first bill is about Nigeria’s Start Up Act.”

President Buhari signed the federal startup bill into law on October 19, 2022, a year after it was submitted by the president as an executive bill. Over 30 leaders in Nigeria’s tech ecosystem contributed to its drafting between June and September 2021.

Gov Adeleke said his administration wants the law domesticated so citizens can access local and international support for youth entrepreneurs in the south-west state.

“The bill will align Osun with federal efforts and open doors for our start up innovators to get easy funding,” he said.