The Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (            ), Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, reaffirmed Nigeria’s leadership in shaping Africa’s digital future. He said this at a series of high-level engagements held on the sidelines of the 18th International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance (ICEGOV 2025) in Abuja.

Over three landmark events – ICEGOV 2025, the West African Digital Governance Forum (WADGov) and the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) E-Governance Expert Meeting, Inuwa emphasised that Africa’s digital transformation must be driven by trust, collaboration and a strong commitment to data sovereignty.

Hosted for the first time in West Africa, ICEGOV 2025 brought together ministers, regulators, development partners and digital innovators from over 50 countries under the theme: ‘Shaping the Future of Digital Governance through Cooperation, Innovation and Inclusion’.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, he described digital governance as a social contract built on accountability and shared progress. “Digital is not an accessory to development – it is its backbone,” he stated, adding that “Africa’s digital sovereignty must be built on systems that protect our data, empower our people, and strengthen our capacity to innovate locally and compete globally”.

Despite accounting for nearly 18 per cent of the world’s population, Africa contributes less than one per cent to global data centre capacity and cloud infrastructure – a gap that poses significant risks to the continent’s digital independence.

Inuwa emphasised that data sovereignty cannot exist without local infrastructure capable of hosting, processing, and securing Africa’s data. He noted that strengthening domestic cloud capacity, encouraging local data hosting, and promoting regional interconnection are essential for achieving true sovereignty in the digital era.

He underscored that Africa must build the systems to govern and protect its own data, rather than outsourcing its digital destiny to external actors.

At the West African Digital Governance Forum (WADGov), he called on member states to adopt shared frameworks that align with the African Union Digital Transformation Strategy (2020–2030). He underscored the need for interoperable systems, cross-border collaboration, and open digital ecosystems that reflect Africa’s unique realities.

“When our services interconnect, our nations progress together. The real power of digital governance lies not in competition, but in cooperation,” Inuwa told regional delegates.

At the APRM E-Governance Expert Meeting, Inuwa urged African leaders to co-create a continental framework for measuring digital governance maturity that is uniquely African, people-centred, and grounded in transparency, inclusion, and accountability.

“E-Governance is not about automating bureaucracy; it is about humanising public service,” he said, adding, “Citizens should experience government as moments of trust — registering a business in hours, accessing healthcare securely, or paying for services without barriers. When those moments work, trust grows; when they don’t, trust erodes.”

At the events, Inuwa also showcased Nigeria’s achievements in building Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) – spanning identity, payments, and data exchange – and highlighted the Data Protection Act 2023, which institutionalised digital trust. He cited over 126 million Nigerians now enrolled in the National Identification Number (NIN) system and referenced the 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) and Digital Literacy for All (DL4ALL) programmes as examples of Nigeria’s commitment to inclusive digital capacity building.