The Minister of Communication, Mr Adebayo Shittu, has called on Nigerians to patronise indigenous Information and Communication Technology (ICT) companies.

Adebayo made the call on Monday during a tour of MainOne Data Centre, located in Lekki, Lagos.

He said that the patronage of indigenous ICT companies would go a long way to promote their local content and boost the nation's economy.

“Nigerian companies and individuals need to patronise indigenous ICT companies because if we continue to patronise foreign companies, then Nigeria money will be stashed away.”

According to him, government has a duty to protect indigenous companies through patronage.

He said the main aim of visiting the MainOne Data Centre was to assist Nigerian ICT companies to gain self sufficiency.

Adebayo called on stakeholders for collaboration on policy that would ensure that indigenous ICT companies were patronised and promoted.

Responding, the Chief Executive Officer of MainOne, Ms Funke Opeke, said the company had invested a lot of money on ICT to make Internet available in the country and bridge the divide.

Opeke said that there were submarine cables coming into the country, but they were not fully utilised.

She said that the company was building and expanding its infrastructure, creating jobs to absorb 80 per cent of Nigerians in its work force.

According to her, there is the problem of adoption of shared infrastructure, which needs to be addressed.

Opeke said that there was need to get services out to consumers, since there was huge capacity in the country. (NAN)

•Photo shows Shittu.