BY CHIKA OKEKE, Abuja
Kashifu Inuwa
The National Information Technology Development Agency ,NITDA, has unveiled a taskforce to fasttrack the implementation of Nigeria’s sovereign cloud initiative and introduce reforms capable of transforming critical sectors of the economy.
Inaugurating the taskforce in Abuja, Director-General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa said that the initiative would strengthen the country's digital sovereignty, attract investment, create jobs and retain technology talents.
According to him, unlike the previous reforms in the telecommunications and banking sectors, the digital transformation agenda cuts across virtually every area of the economy, including education, finance, healthcare, agriculture and manufacturing.
Inuwa noted that the taskforce would prioritise compliance with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s, CBNs, January 1 deadline for financial institutions, adding that NITDA would organise workshops to showcase compliant cloud solutions and build confidence among banks and other regulated institutions.
He stated that the agency would also collaborate with 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.
“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,” he said.
The NITDA DG disclosed that the agency planned to launch a portal by October to provide a directory of certified cloud service providers, infrastructure providers, system integrators and aggregators.
He explained that the portal would enable banks and other regulated institutions to identify and select accredited technology providers for their cloud migration requirements.
Inuwa harped on 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.
He stated that the initiative 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.
The Director of Payment System Policy at the Central Bank of Nigeria CBN, Rakiya Yusuf said that digital stability was fundamental to the stability of the financial system.
Yusuf highlighted the importance of having access to reliable and timely data for effective policy formulation and decision-making, noting that the CBN would continue to collaborate with NITDA and other stakeholders to ensure successful implementation of the framework.
She described the initiative as an important component of Nigeria’s broader economic transformation efforts.
The Chief Executive Officer of Medallion Data Centres Limited, Ikechukwu Nnamani argued that the sovereign cloud policy could attract significant foreign direct investment into Nigeria’s data centre, connectivity and cloud infrastructure sectors.
Nnamani stated that the localisation of cloud infrastructure could also help reduce capital flight by keeping payments for cloud services within Nigeria while easing pressure on the naira.
He informed that the initiative would generate employment opportunities, strengthen national security and improve the quality of digital services through reduced latency.
“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,” he said.
Nnamani said that the development would create opportunities for Nigerians to acquire skills in emerging technologies and contribute to employment generation, particularly among the country’s growing youthful population.
The Acting Director of NITDA’s Regulation and Compliance Department, Emmanuel Edet said that the inauguration marked the transition from the development of Nigeria’s cloud guidelines to their implementation.
Edet noted that the taskforce would provide a platform for regulators, government agencies and private-sector stakeholders to work together towards strengthening Nigeria’s digital sovereignty and creating an enabling environment for economic growth.
“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,” he said.
He pointed out that NITDA being a pioneer agency in Nigeria’s digital ecosystem, remained committed to ensuring that the country fully harnesses the opportunities presented by the digital economy.
“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,” Edet added.
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