L-R: Mr. Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, Director-General/CEO of NiTDA, and Chief Dr. Sylvester Okonkwo, Executive Director, Corporate Services of the SEDC
…As Nigeria Moves to Secure the Nation’s Digital Future
Abuja – Nigeria has taken a major step towards strengthening its digital independence with the unveiling of the National Sovereignty Cloud Initiative and the signing of key data sovereignty documents by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NiTDA).
Present at the historic event was the Executive Director, Corporate Services of the South East Development Commission (SEDC), High Chief Dr. Sylvester Okonkwo, who joined other critical stakeholders in witnessing the signing ceremony aimed at ensuring that Nigeria’s strategic data assets are hosted, managed, and protected within the country’s digital ecosystem.
The high-level ceremony attracted the presence of the Director-General/CEO of NiTDA, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE; representatives of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), including the Director of Payment System, Rukiya Yusuf; the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy; the Managing Director/CEO of Galaxy Backbone; the Managing Director/CEO of Medallion; Directors of NiTDA, and other major players in Nigeria’s technology sector.
The newly introduced National Cloud Technical Guideline 2026 establishes mandatory technical, security, operational, and compliance standards for cloud deployment in Nigeria. The guideline is designed to create a resilient sovereign cloud ecosystem, promote local cloud infrastructure, protect government data, and encourage investment in Nigeria’s digital economy.
A key provision of the policy is the promotion of data residency and sovereignty, requiring government institutions and relevant digital infrastructure providers to comply with national standards for secure data hosting, processing, and management. It applies to Federal Public Institutions, cloud service providers, data centre operators, systems integrators, and other stakeholders involved in managing cloud infrastructure supporting public institutions.
The guideline further provides that sensitive and classified government data should be hosted within Nigeria, with a strong preference for indigenous cloud service providers, while ensuring compliance with security, interoperability, disaster recovery, and data protection requirements.
The initiative is expected to boost Nigeria’s local cloud economy, stimulate technology investment, create opportunities for indigenous ICT companies, and reduce excessive dependence on foreign digital infrastructure.
The participation of High Chief Dr. Sylvester Okonkwo, a highly knowledgeable and experienced tech enthusiast, who was invited to the event, underscores his tech pedigree, as well as interest and commitment to supporting Nigeria in advancing initiatives that promote digital transformation, innovation, technological capacity building, and sustainable economic development across the South East region and Nigeria at large.
This NiTDA milestone marks a defining moment in Nigeria’s digital sovereignty journey, moving from data consumption to data ownership, security, and strategic control.
#DigitalSovereignty
#NiTDA
#SEDC
#NigeriaCloudInitiative
#DigitalTransformation
