The Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa CCIE, has called on executive-level officials across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to actively support Nigeria’s transition from Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) to Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6). Speaking at an IPv6 migration readiness workshop in Abuja—organized by NITDA in collaboration with the Nigeria IPv6 Council and the African Network Information Centre (AFRINIC)—Inuwa described the shift as an essential step toward expanding digital public services and strengthening the nation’s digital infrastructure.

The executive charge was delivered on the Director-General’s behalf by Mr. Oladejo Olawumi, Director of NITDA’s Digital Development Services Department. The workshop was strategically designed around two distinct learning tracks: a managerial stream aimed at equipping directors with an understanding of their oversight responsibilities, and a hands-on technical stream focused on building practical implementation capacity among IT personnel responsible for executing the migration across government institutions.

Explaining the rationale behind the dual-track structure, Inuwa emphasized that effective communication and alignment between management and technical staff are indispensable for a seamless national rollout. Addressing senior directors directly, he noted that management must understand the necessity of the transition to properly back their technical teams, highlighting that participating officials represent the pioneer cohort of executive-level IPv6 training for Nigerian MDAs.

The push toward IPv6 stems from an urgent global demand for internet addresses driven by the widespread proliferation of smartphones, smart devices, security cameras, and Internet of Things (IoT) hardware. While the legacy IPv4 standard limits global connectivity to approximately 4.3 billion addresses, IPv6 offers a virtually unlimited address space, providing the robust foundation required to support Nigeria’s expanding digital footprint and data processing needs.

Inuwa directly linked the migration drive to the Federal Government’s broader digital transformation agenda, particularly efforts to expand online public services and fortify the National Sovereign Cloud Initiative. By transitioning to IPv6, government agencies will gain the network scalability needed to support higher traffic volumes, ultimately improving digital service delivery and reducing the requirement for citizens to visit physical government offices.

To ensure long-term institutional capacity, NITDA announced that it is fully funding professional certification examinations for all participating technical personnel at the conclusion of the workshop. Inuwa described the initiative as a dual investment that simultaneously fortifies public sector infrastructure and provides civil service IT professionals with globally recognized, specialized networking credentials.

The workshop is being led by Mohamed Rudman, Chairman of the IPv6 Council of Nigeria and CEO of the Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN), who commended NITDA for taking the lead in public-sector adoption. Urging participants to fully leverage the training, Rudman noted that combining executive management buy-in with certified technical expertise is crucial to successfully preparing Nigeria’s public sector for the future of the internet.