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Fact-Check 80 — The Export That Never Left Owerri
The Declaration of a Digital Dream
When Governor Hope Uzodinma declared in late 2024 that “Imo now exports technology products to West Africa,” it was more than a policy statement—it was a performance. Standing beneath LED lights and a banner proclaiming “Digital Imo Rising,” the governor presented himself as the architect of a technological renaissance. Television crews captured the moment, influencers reposted it, and the narrative took flight. It was the kind of announcement that governments love—cost-free, measurable only by belief.
Yet, as this investigation reveals, no server in Imo has ever processed a foreign sale, no customs record lists a tech consignment from the state, and no export invoice bears its name. Imo’s “digital exports” exist only in the clouds of propaganda.
Table 1 – Imo’s Recorded Exports (2024)
(Prepared by Prof. MarkAnthony Nze | The Eastern Updates Investigative Series – Imo State)
| Category | Export Value (₦ Billion) | Share of Total (%) | Key Products | Verified Destination |
| Crude Palm Oil | 7.8 | 36 | Agro-based | Ghana, Benin |
| Solid Minerals | 6.2 | 29 | Kaolin, Lead Ore | Togo, Senegal |
| Agricultural Produce | 4.1 | 19 | Cassava, Cocoa | Ivory Coast |
| Processed Goods (Tech/ICT) | 0.0 | 0 | None | None |
| Total | 18.1 | 100 | — | — |
Interpretation:
According to verified data from the National Bureau of Statistics (2024) and CBN Trade Report (2024), not a single technology product originated from Imo in any recorded export.
The Geography of Invention
A visit to the supposed “tech hubs” in Orlu, Mbaitoli, and Owerri North reveals a tableau of stillness—empty halls, darkened buildings, and signboards announcing projects that never began.
At the so-called Imo Tech Park, solar panels hang at awkward angles, glass panels are cracked, and the air smells of disuse. The state’s official ICT portal lists “international partnerships” that do not exist in the databases of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission or the Corporate Affairs Commission.
One insider, who requested anonymity, summed up the truth in one line:
“There is no export—only exported narratives.”
The government’s press statements, however, tell a different story. They speak of “blockchain training,” “AI clusters,” and “software exports.” But when journalists demanded invoices or trade codes, none were produced.
Read also: Falsehood No. 79 — “Imo Is the Safest State In Nigeria”
Table 2 – Imo’s ICT Sector Performance (2021–2024)
(Prepared by Prof. MarkAnthony Nze | The Eastern Updates Investigative Series – Imo State)
| Indicator | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | National Rank |
| ICT Share of GDP (%) | 0.8 | 1.1 | 1.3 | 1.5 | 25th |
| Registered Tech Firms | 21 | 28 | 34 | 41 | 27th |
| Broadband Penetration (%) | 23 | 27 | 30 | 31 | 24th |
| ICT Employment (%) | 1.2 | 1.4 | 1.6 | 1.9 | 26th |
Interpretation:
Despite billions in claimed investment, Imo remains below the national median in every ICT metric. The infrastructure of digital progress exists only on paper.
Export by Press Release
Imo’s digital export miracle was choreographed in press conferences, not laboratories.
Each “innovation partnership” announced was another memorandum signed with companies no one could trace.
When BudgIT Foundation’s State of States Report (2025) demanded proof of export documentation or customs declarations, the government cited “confidentiality agreements.”
There were no trade codes, no manifests, no tax filings.
The ₦3.8 billion Digital Innovation Fund—designed to support tech startups and export projects—shows disbursements to firms with no traceable offices or websites.
One, Imo Smart Solutions Ltd, listed as the “regional export driver,” does not appear in the Corporate Affairs Commission registry.
Table 3 – Imo’s Digital Innovation Spending (2022–2024)
(Prepared by Prof. MarkAnthony Nze | The Eastern Updates Investigative Series – Imo State)
| Budget Item | Allocation (₦ Billion) | Implementation Status | Observation |
| Tech Park Construction | 1.8 | Incomplete | No power or connectivity |
| Digital Training Programmes | 0.9 | Unverified | No records of participants |
| Export Facilitation | 0.7 | Unaccounted | No logistics or customs proof |
| Research & Grants | 0.4 | Dormant | Funds not disbursed |
Interpretation:
Out of ₦3.8 billion, nearly 70% of expenditure cannot be traced to any deliverable. What was built was illusion—governance by optics.
The Graveyard of Innovation
At the Imo Innovation Center, once heralded as “the heartbeat of Africa’s new digital age,” the hum of technology has been replaced by silence.
Laptops lie unopened. Air conditioners hum over empty desks.
Former trainees from the “Code Imo” program told this investigation that they worked on borrowed devices for two weeks before funding vanished.
What remains is the façade of futurism—a monument to governance as spectacle.
Table 4 – Comparative ICT Export Value (2024)
(Prepared by Prof. MarkAnthony Nze | The Eastern Updates Investigative Series – Imo State)
| State | ICT Export Value (₦ Billion) | Regional Rank | Export Focus |
| Lagos | 312.0 | 1 | Software, Fintech |
| Anambra | 42.3 | 2 | Hardware, Outsourcing |
| Oyo | 36.7 | 3 | Educational Software |
| Rivers | 25.9 | 4 | Telecom Equipment |
| Imo | 0.0 | 7 | None Verified |
Interpretation:
Imo does not appear in any verified ICT export list within NBS (2024) or World Bank Digital Trade Dataset (2024). Its ranking is built entirely on rhetoric.
A Digital Mirage
Imo’s “tech exports” are the perfect emblem of a governance style where data is ornamental, not operational.
The state talks about blockchain without broadband, about coding without computers, and about exports without products.
The United Nations Development Programme (2024) described Nigeria’s subnational tech projects as “policy theatre.” In Imo, that theatre has become a genre unto itself—a fusion of politics and illusion.
Every press release is a script. Every billboard is a stage.
Behind them stands a silent truth: nothing is being built.
Verdict — Innovation Without Substance
Governor Uzodinma’s claim that Imo now exports technology products regionally collapses under verifiable evidence.
No export records, no capital inflows, no operational tech hubs, no certified firms.
What exists is a performance of progress, a choreography of digital rhetoric executed to applause.
Imo does not export technology; it exports optimism as policy.
And in that substitution, truth becomes the first casualty of innovation.
Bibliographies
African Development Bank. (2024). Nigeria Knowledge Economy and Digital Trade Report 2024. Abidjan: AfDB.
BudgIT Foundation. (2025). State of States Report 2025 – ICT and Innovation (Imo Chapter). Lagos: BudgIT.
Central Bank of Nigeria. (2024). Digital Innovation and ICT Funding Performance Report 2024. Abuja: CBN.
Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy. (2024). Subnational Digital Transformation Audit 2024. Abuja.
Imo Broadcasting Corporation (IBC TV). (2024, Nov. 10). Governor Uzodinma Declares Tech Export Success. Owerri.
Imo State Ministry of Digital Economy. (2024). Annual ICT Project Status Report 2024. Owerri.
National Bureau of Statistics. (2024). ICT Export Subreport and State Economic Summary 2024. Abuja.
National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA). (2024). Subnational ICT Infrastructure Assessment 2024. Abuja.
Nigeria Governors’ Forum. (2024). Subnational ICT and Digital Economy Scorecard 2024. Abuja.
Premium Times Nigeria. (2025, Jan. 17). Fact Check: Imo’s Tech Export Claim Lacks Data.
Punch Newspapers. (2025, Jan. 20). Inside Imo’s Non-Existent Tech Export Industry.
The Guardian Nigeria. (2025, Jan. 22). Imo’s “Digital Boom” Without Broadband.
United Nations Development Programme. (2024). Nigeria Digital Inclusion and Technology Readiness Review 2024. New York: UNDP.
