The Director General/Chief Executive Officer of the National Board for Technology Incubation (NBTI), Dr. Kazeem Kolawole Raji, has officially unveiled the NEXTGEN Innovation Challenge 2026, a national platform designed to accelerate technology-driven entrepreneurship and attract global investment into Nigeria’s innovation ecosystem.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, Raji described NEXTGEN 2026 as a defining national platform designed to accelerate innovation, mobilise investment, and position Nigeria as Africa’s undisputed innovation powerhouse.
He emphasised that the initiative was not a competition but a national development catalyst and a global innovation diplomacy platform.
Raji commended President Bola Tinubu for his administration’s economic reforms and Nigeria First Policy, noting that innovation had been repositioned as a central pillar of national development.
According to him, President Tinubu’s reforms that innovation is the new oil, had redefined Nigeria’s development architecture, placing the country on a strategic path toward a knowledge-driven economy powered by intellectual capital and technological advancement.
Organised by NBTI in partnership with UK-based consultancy firm, UKALD, NEXTGEN 2026 aims to connect Nigerian innovators with global investors, development finance institutions, governments, multilateral agencies and private sector partners.
“Innovation boot camps will begin in Abuja, while the grand finale is scheduled for October 2026 at the ExCeL Centre in the United Kingdom. The programme is designed to move innovators from laboratories to livelihoods, from prototypes to products, and from ideas to commercial success,” Raji explained.
He noted that NEXTGEN 2026 would also feature international editions in Doha, Qatar, targeting Middle East investors and sovereign wealth funds, and in London, United Kingdom, which would serve as the global flagship showcase.
Raji further stressed that the NEXTGEN Innovation Challenge 2026 would prioritise high-impact sectors including artificial intelligence and robotics, advanced semiconductors, telecommunications with 6G and AI integration, green and renewable energy, climate resilience and flood detection systems, agri-tech, health-tech, edu-tech, women in tech and gender-inclusive innovation, as well as virtual reality and 3D manufacturing.
According to him, these sectors aligned with Nigeria’s national development priorities and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
NBTI also disclosed that the initiative will deepen collaboration with institutions such as Cambridge Centre of Alternative Finance, and the Commonwealth Investment Network.
“The programme is structured to unlock climate finance, attract Foreign Direct Investment and scale environmentally sustainable innovations,” Raji added.
Describing the initiative as a matured global platform, he said NEXTGEN is designed to scale ideas, unlock capital and deliver tangible economic impact.
The NBTI boss urged Nigerian universities to prioritise the commercialisation of research, encouraged investors to provide structured capital to startups, and challenged young Nigerians to see their ideas as national assets.
