By James Ishaku
Nigeria’s drive toward a fully digital economy is gathering pace as the Federal Government intensifies work on e-governance and digital economy bill to strengthen the regulatory framework for emerging technologies and boost public sector innovation.
At the Global Partnership for Human-Centric ICT Standardisation (GIST) Nigeria Introductory Stakeholder Workshop in Abuja, north central, Nigeria, the Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Mallam Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi representing the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani said the country had moved beyond strategy design to implementation of its national Artificial Intelligence (AI) roadmap.
He noted that the current phase focused on developing clear guidelines and regulatory frameworks to ensure AI deployment aligned with ethical standards, accountability, and strong safeguards.
As part of the broader digital transformation agenda, he said, the government was also advancing data classification efforts to ensure the availability of clean, reliable datasets for AI training. In parallel, he added, it was promoting cloud adoption across public institutions to enhance efficiency, scalability, and service delivery.
Mallam Abdullahi stressed the importance of a “cloud-first” policy, warning that continued dependence on premise systems could slow large scale digital transformation. However, he added that cloud integration would be approached cautiously to safeguard Nigeria’s digital sovereignty and protect critical national data.
Progress is also being recorded in the e-governance space, with the development of an interoperability framework and the Nigerian Government Enterprise Architecture. Additionally, work is ongoing on a data exchange platform to support Government Statistics Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI), aimed at improving data sharing and coordination among Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
The initiative is expected to harmonise public sector digital projects while creating opportunities for private sector participation.
Abdullahi stressed the need for stronger collaboration among government, industry, and other stakeholders to build resilient digital infrastructure. He expressed confidence that the proposed legislation and related initiatives would enhance Nigeria’s standing in digital governance while promoting innovation, transparency, and inclusive growth.
Earlier, the European Commission’s Team Leader for Digital Governance(DG), INTPA Peter Marien , highlighted the role of international cooperation in shaping global digital standards. He said the European Union’s digital strategy prioritised partnerships and ecosystem alignment across regions, including Nigeria and the United Kingdom.
Marien referenced a recent engagement in Brussels on e-governance, organised with Smart Africa, which included participation from NITDA. He described Nigeria’s involvement in the GIST initiative as a strong signal of its commitment to global digital governance.
He emphasised the EU’s focus on a human-centric digital ecosystem that prioritised inclusivity, privacy, and security, noting that its 27 member states had, over two decades, built a cohesive digital framework centred on citizens.
Marien also identified Nigeria as a strategic player in Africa’s quest for a unified digital market, highlighting its role in advancing cross-border digital integration.
According to him, standards served as the “invisible backbone” of modern societies, supporting critical systems across sectors. He said the GIST platform enabled alignment of technical standards and fosters knowledge exchange between regions.
