The Nigeria Startup Bill has been approved

President Muhammadu Buhari has signed the Nigeria Startup Bill into law. The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, announced this on Wednesday after a meeting with the President at Aso Villa.

This news comes a year after the draft bill was first submitted to the Presidency and the Federal Executive Council (FEC). It also comes almost three months after the Nigerian senate passed the bill, Techcabal reports.
The start-up Bill should create a good environment for Nigeria’s tech ecosystem. Tech startups in Nigeria face a number of regulatory hurdles and suffer from a lack of basic amenities like constant power supply and limited funding.

BREAKING!
His Excellency, @MBuhari has just assented to Nigeria Start-up Bill. It has now become Nigeria Start-Up Act, 2022. It was an Executive Bill, initiated by both Office of the Chief of Staff & the Office of the Minister of Comms & Digital Economy. Congratulations to all!

— Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim (@ProfIsaPantami) October 19, 2022

The major aim of the Start-up bill is to bridge the engagement gap between startups and regulators and ensure that harmful regulations like these are shut down. According to the document, startups can also access a special seed fund created under the law. The fund will provide labeled startups with finance and relief to technology laboratories, accelerators, incubators, and hubs.

The timeline of the bill

June–September 2021: The Nigeria Startup Bill draft is created by the Nigerian presidency, in collaboration with 30 tech leaders including Ventures Platform founder Kola Aina and Future Africa founder Iyin Aboyeji, NITDA officials, and the minister of digital economy Isa Pantami.

October 2021: A draft of the bill is submitted to the Presidency and the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

December 2021: The Federal Executive Council (FEC) approves the bill.

February 2022: Nigerian president, Muhammadu Buhari, passes the bill to the National Assembly.

March 2022: The bill reaches the National Assembly and is received by the Nigerian Senate.

June 2022: Lagos, Nigeria’s most populous state, announces plans to domesticate the bill at state level.

July 2022: Nigerian Senate approves the bill and passes it to the House of Representatives. 

July 2022: The House of Reps passes the bill to the president for approval. 

October 2022: President Muhammadu Buhari signs the bill into law.