As part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which focuses on improving infrastructure, driving diversification through innovation and digitalization, bolstering governance for effective service delivery, and reforming the economy for sustainable growth, Nigeria is paving the way for an ambitious digital future anchored on innovation, inclusivity, and resilience.
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‎Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), gave a keynote address at the NORDIC Nigeria Connect 2025 in Lagos, and this was the key message.
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‎Nigeria’s digital ambition, according to Inuwa, goes beyond the actual building of data centers or the installation of fiber-optic cables. It involves creating a new economic operating system for Nigeria that is based on inclusivity, resilience, security, and digital prosperity. Inuwa spoke on the topic of “Nigeria’s Digital Infrastructure Ambition and Path to Sustainability.”
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‎The Shared Digital Backbone and the Operational Backbone are the two main pillars upon which the country’s digital vision is built, according to Inuwa. The Shared Digital Backbone represents the hardware layer — including terrestrial fiber optics, subsea cables, green data centers, and sovereign cloud services that secure Nigeria’s data and ensure digital sovereignty.
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‎The Operational Backbone, which forms the software layer, refers to Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) — a suite of interoperable systems that include digital identity, payment frameworks, and secure data exchange platforms. When combined, they form a cohesive national digital ecosystem that enables startups to produce in-house solutions that are suited to Nigeria’s particular socioeconomic situation.
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‎He emphasized the significance of digital independence by citing the recent global cloud outage that Amazon Web Services (AWS) encountered, which interfered with digital operations in multiple African countries.
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‎“This incident reminds us that relying solely on foreign cloud regions does not ensure business continuity or digital independence. We must build the capacity for digital self-determination,” he asserted.
‎Inuwa noted that achieving Nigeria’s digital ambition requires more than technology, it demands strong, forward-looking policies that encourage innovation while safeguarding consumers.
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‎Inuwa outlined the three fundamental pillars of policy, people, and partnerships as Nigeria’s route to sustainability.
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‎He clarified that Nigeria is creating a stable, pro-innovation regulatory environment that encourages growth and investor confidence under the Policy Pillar.
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‎The government has established the foundation for a stable digital market that protects rights and promotes innovation through the Nigeria Startup Act and Data Protection Act.
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‎On the People Pillar, he noted that no infrastructure can thrive without the human talent to sustain it. Nigeria is creating a self-sustaining talent engine that enables its citizens to plan, create, and propel the nation’s digital future through the National Digital Literacy Framework and the Three Million Technical Talent (3MTT) Program.
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‎Under the Partnership Pillar, Inuwa reiterated the need for strategic collaboration with global partners. He highlighted that Nigeria is moving from ad-hoc relationships to structured partnerships that promote joint ventures, attract investment, and co-develop technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI).
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‎He revealed several major projects that are transforming this ambition into action. On infrastructure, the Project BRIDGE initiative is expanding Nigeria’s terrestrial fibre network to 125,000 kilometres through public-private partnerships, while the National Sovereign Cloud Initiative is fostering a competitive data storage ecosystem within Nigerian jurisdiction.
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‎On the software side, the Nigeria Stack is driving nationwide digital identity, payments, and data exchange systems, while the OneGOV platform will unify all government services under a single digital window.
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‎He also cited ongoing efforts at the National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (NCAIR), which is leading applied AI innovation through initiatives like the AI Collective and N-ATLAS, Nigeria’s indigenous large language model project.
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‎He further called for greater collaboration within Nigeria’s digital ecosystem and stronger international partnerships, and particularly identified the Nordic region as a key ally in Nigeria’s digital journey, citing opportunities to leverage Nordic expertise in technology and innovation while offering Nigeria’s vast talent pool and creative potential in return.
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‎According to Inuwa, the three main pillars of Nigeria’s digital transformation are strategic alliances, human capital development, and strong digital infrastructure.
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‎Through a clear vision, strategic approach, and inclusive policy frameworks, he stated, “We are confident that Nigeria will not only achieve digital sustainability—we will lead Africa’s digital transformation.”
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