Nigeria wants to set the pace in Africa, we’re here to support them: BSV Association’s Nicolas Wellinger

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In his role at the BSV Blockchain Association, Nicolas Wellinger strives to understand governments’ challenges and how BSV blockchain can solve them. He was at the Digital Nigeria International Conference 2023, and in an interview with CoinGeek Backstage, he described Nigeria as a nation at the cusp of digital implosion, and “We’re here to support them.”

Digital Nigeria attracted thousands to the Abuja International Conference Centre, including local entrepreneurs, innovators, global investors, and government officials. Wellinger, the Global Public Sector Lead at the BSV Association, was at the event, where he interacted with dozens of the attendees. In an interview with CoinGeek Backstage, he praised
Nigeria’s bold approach to new technology, which he believes sets the country up for digital disruption.

“Nigeria has never shied away from dropping things that are not working and going full-on into new technologies. This is a really important mindset to be disruptive in the tech world,” he told CoinGeek Backstage reporter Becky Liggero.

Nigerians are excited about new technology, including “the educational programs we’re rolling out here,” he added, referring to the association’s partnership with Domineum and NITDA to impart blockchain skills to Nigerians. The BSV Association’s campaign onboarded 60,000 Nigerians in its first cohort, aiming to expand it to 500,000 students.

“We need to take this momentum and work on it. They [Nigerians] want to leapfrog, and we’re here to support them,” he said.

In his role at the BSV Association, Wellinger works on “understanding the public sector” to determine how BSV blockchain can best be applied to solve their challenges.

“We also work closely with policymakers. We want to understand how regulations need to evolve over time to allow us to compete fairly while also giving security to our users,” he added.

Watch: Digital Nigeria 2023 highlights Nigeria’s effort to leapfrog into the modern world