*The National Information Technology Development Agency inaugurates a taskforce to drive implementation of Nigeria’s sovereign cloud initiative, and strengthen the country’s digital sovereignty, attract investment, create jobs, and retain tech talents
Gbenga Kayode | ConsumerConnect
In line with the major ecosystem-wide reform to transform critical sectors of the Nigerian economy, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has inaugurated a taskforce to drive the implementation of the country’s sovereign cloud initiative.
ConsumerConnect reports NITDA emphasised the move is aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s digital sovereignty, attracting investment, creating jobs, and retaining technology talent.
Malam Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, Director-General of NITDA, stated this while speaking at the inauguration of the taskforce, in Abuja, FCT.
Inuwa highlights taskforce’s terms of reference
Malam Inuwa described the initiative as a major ecosystem-wide reform capable of transforming critical sectors of the Nigerian economy.
He also explained that unlike previous reforms in the telecommunications and banking sectors of the economy, the digital transformation agenda cuts across virtually every area of the economy, including education, finance, healthcare, agriculture and manufacturing.
The Director-General of the IT sector regulatory agency said the taskforce would prioritise compliance with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s January 1 deadline for financial institutions.
He equally noted that NITDA would organise workshops to showcase compliant cloud solutions and build confidence among banks and other regulated institutions in the economy.
Besides, NITDA will collaborate with industry stakeholders to develop an end-to-end certification framework, covering infrastructure providers, cloud service providers and system integrators involved in migrating financial institutions to compliant cloud environments, stated Inuwa.
The NITDA Chief Executive further said: “We want you to work with us to co-design how we can certify the infrastructure providers, the cloud service providers, and cloud educators.
“Because we need to certify end-to-end, from the infrastructure, the cloud services, and those who will go and help banks to migrate.”
Inuwa: Portal for directory of certified cloud service providers goes live October
According to him, the agency planned to launch a portal by October 2026 to provide a directory of certified cloud service providers, infrastructure providers, system integrators and aggregators.
The NITDA Chief also explained that the portal would enable banks, and other regulated institutions to identify and select accredited technology providers for their cloud migration requirements in the ecosystem.
The Director-General stressed the need for effective monitoring and visibility into cloud infrastructure to ensure that sovereign data remains hosted within Nigeria, and that regulated institutions comply with applicable requirements.
The initiative, he noted, would also provide greater opportunities for Nigerian technology professionals by creating jobs and enabling skilled workers to build careers and businesses locally, thereby helping to reduce the migration of technology talent.
Digital stability crucial to financial system stability: CBN chief
Speaking at the event also, Rakiya Yusuf, Director of Payment System Policy at the Central Bank of Nigeria, said digital stability was fundamental to the stability of the financial system.
Yusuf emphasised the importance of having access to reliable and timely data for effective policy formulation and decision-making.
She noted the CBN would continue to collaborate with NITDA and other stakeholders to ensure successful implementation of the framework.
The Director of Payment System Policy of CBN, therefore, described the initiative as an important component of Nigeria’s broader economic transformation efforts.
Meanwhile, Ikechukwu Nnamani, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Medallion Data Centres Limited, has said the sovereign cloud policy could attract significant Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into Nigeria’s data centre, connectivity and cloud infrastructure sectors.
Nnamani said the localisation of cloud infrastructure could also help to reduce capital flight by keeping payments for cloud services within Nigeria while easing pressure on the Naira.
The Chief Executive of Medallion Data Centres Limited stated the initiative would generate employment opportunities, strengthen national security, and improve the quality of digital services through reduced latency.
Said he: “We are beginning to see a lot of companies come to Nigeria to physically deploy and implement their cloud infrastructure locally. So that is going to drive in foreign direct investment into the country.”
Nnamani assured that the digital project would create opportunities for Nigerians to acquire skills in emerging technologies, and contribute to employment generation, particularly among the country’s growing youthful population.
Earlier, Emmanuel Edet, Acting Director of Regulation and Compliance Department of NITDA, had said the inauguration marked the transition from the development of Nigeria’s cloud guidelines to their implementation.
Edet said the taskforce would provide a platform for regulators, government agencies, and private-sector stakeholders to work together towards strengthening digital sovereignty, and creating an enabling environment for economic growth in the West African country.
He said: “We want to create a framework where regulators, stakeholders, private sector can actually work together to achieve a common goal which will eventually translate to other sectors of the economy.”
The Acting Director of Regulation and Compliance Department at NITDA noted the agency, as a pioneer agency in Nigeria’s digital ecosystem, has remained committed to ensuring that the country fully harness the opportunities presented by the digital economy.
Edet declared: “We hope to continue in that stead to ensure that we achieve all what the potentials of a country as large as Nigeria can attain in the digital environment.”