IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

According to the minister, the ICT capacity building, which the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) is expected to coordinate within the polytechnics and other tertiary institutions under the purview of the Board, was part of the importance attached to the development of Internet connectivity networks in the education sector.

Former Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr Ernest Ndukwe, has said the three tiers of government in Nigeria are slow in adopting Information and Communications Technology (ICT).

Addressing Nigeria eGovernment 2019 Conference in Lagos, with the theme: ‘Powering Governance with Information and Communication Technology,’ Ndukwe said Nigeria should embrace new technologies like other developing countries of the world.

Top on the list is the drive to use the satellite to boost government’s e-governance and e-learning agenda. The nation’s tertiary institutions are also to benefit from a ‘walless’ programme that would connect them through virtual library and seamless campus connection.

The federal government has been advised to adopt e-governance strategies in tackling corruption, which has been identified as the bane of good governance and Nigeria's development.

The acting Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Dr. Vincent Olatunji, who gave the advice during the 12th edition of the Nigerian Telecom Awards in Lagos recently, said one major thing that has brought the reputation of Nigeria low before international communities, is corruption. He acknowledged the efforts of the federal government in fighting corruption, but advised the presidency to adopt e-governance strategies, which he said would help reduce financial corruption in the government circle and the private sector to a greater extent.

The Minister of Communications Adebayo Shittu has said the Federal Government or any of its agencies will not restrict access of Nigerians to social media.

But the minister quickly added that the social media space must be regulated to guard against abuse and hate speech.

NITDA is the clearing house for IT projects in the public sector with the mandate to bring government and its services closer to the people through IT. It was also created to implement of the National IT policy, which seeks to make Nigeria an IT capable country in no distant future.

According to its President, Mr Wole Ajayi, electronic health record gives physicians, patients and other health care providers’ access to patient’s medical record facilities.

He, however, said the proposed Health Bill, which was about to be signed by Mr President, is aimed at providing a framework for standardisation and regulation of health services, may not be favourably disposed to health record.

Minister of Communications Technology, Mrs. Omobola Olubusola Johnson, made this disclosure at the Nigerian Telecomms Awards, hosted by Logica Media Group in Lagos at the weekend in commoration fo the 10 years of telecommunications in the country.

She said the review report was presented to her last week Friday in Abuja and would soon be fianlised to give new meaning to a National Information and Communications Technology (ICT) policy for the country after harmonisation with existing National Information Technology policy.

The Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) has said the harmonisation of the national database is a right and fundamental step towards a functional e-government system.

In a statement on Sunday in Lagos, Prof. Sola Aderounmu, the NCS president, said it would assist in the fight against crime, when agencies draw data from the same database.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that President Muhammadu Buhari recently directed the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to harmonise the biometric data.

Afolabi made the call at the 1st Annual National Conference on “Outsourcing’’ held in Abuja. Afolabi was represented by Dr Dere Awosika, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Science and Technology.

The conference, with the theme “Building a Culture of Service Through Information Technology’’, was organised by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).

In a recent paper titled: “Challenges and Opportunity for eHealth in Nigeria,” Mohammed Lecky, director, Planning, Research and Statistics Department, Federal Ministry of Health said the world is gone ICT way and time for the country to integrate its health progammes with ICT is now.

He revealed that many health agencies, especially in the developed countries, and more recently in a good number of developing countries are taking advantage of ICT, to ensure that people have access to healthcare with ease.

The newly inaugurated board of Hendai Investment Limited, a multinational company has vowed to begin in earnest the construction of the foremost Africa Smart City in Akwa Ibom State.

The company during last December’s Board of Directors inauguration also presented the Hendai City Business opportunities to the public. The event which was chaired by distinguished Senator Osita Izunaso, Chairman Senate Committee on Capital Market had the Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, Cui Jianchun as the Special Guest of Honor and other eminent dignitaries drawn from the private and public sectors.

The Health Information Managers Association of Nigeria (HIMAN) has called for electronic health (e-health) record keeping to enhance quality health care.

According to HIMAN President, Wole Ajayi, e-health record gives doctors, patients and other health care providers quick and easy access to patients’ medical record facilities.

Ajayi said the proposed health bill is designed to provide a framework for regulation of health services, and may not be favourable towards health records, explaining that the health bill failed to cover the statute of limitation on the retention of hospital and clinical records.

''In fact the introduction of the ICT tools into the service today is in tandem with my sincere desire to bequeath a civil service that is performance and result-oriented, customer-service focused, technology-driven, responsive to the public and service delivery conscious''.

In Nigeria’s heart lies Anambra, a state with potential in agriculture, tourism, trade, and commerce. Anambra is like a vibrant individual stuck in the constraints of uncertainty, yearning to unleash its full brilliance upon the world. Thankfully, the governor dreams of transforming the city into a smart city, and the possibilities are boundless. But can this dream become a reality? It has been two years since Governor Chukwuma Soludo embarked on a journey fuelled by grand campaign promises, envisioning Anambra as the Southeast’s digital excellence hub and a shining ‘African Dubai-Taiwan.’

The road to transforming Anambra into a smart city is no small feat, it demands both visionary foresight and practicality. As we ponder on whether the governor’s remaining two­—term tenure is enough to realise the dream of an ‘African Dubai-Taiwan’, we must understand that monumental achievements around the world often started as audacious dreams. Consider Singapore, a nation that once existed as a dream of Lee Kuan Yew. Like Singapore’s transformation, turning Anambra into a smart city is achievable but can take time.

The growing use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) is catalysing the formation of knowledge societies, thus providing greater avenues to people, especially those who have mostly been deprived of the benefits of good governance, to participate in their own development process.

On a consistent basis, Lagos and Abuja, Nigeria’s topmost cities, are found behind their African peers in the IMD Smart City Index ranking on account of poor infrastructure stock, housing affordability issues, among other challenges.

The IMD Smart City Index (SCI) assesses the perceptions of residents on issues related to structures and technology applications available to them in their city.

Buhari: We’ll support state to unleash potential

Lagos State is on course to become a full-fledged smart city by 2030, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said on Tuesday.

He believes it can happen with the many plans set in motion by his administration.

The governor spoke at the opening of the eighth Lagos Economic Summit (Ehingbeti), held at Eko Hotels and Suites on Victoria Island.

The primary purpose of government in Nigeria, at least constitutionally, is the security and welfare of the people. This is the case in democracies all over the world. The people vest power in their government through their constitutions and the government, in exchange, directs this power to the people’s security and welfare through its various agencies and the services they deliver. As populations increase and the needs of society increase in complexity, governments turn to technology (or e—Government) to increase the speed and quality at which it delivers services to the public.

The World Bank defines e-Government as “the use by government agencies of information technologies (such as Wide Area Networks, the Internet, and mobile computing) that have the ability to transform relations with citizens, businesses, and other arms of government. These technologies can serve a variety of different ends: better delivery of government services to citizens, improved interactions with business and industry, citizen empowerment through access to information, or more efficient government management. The resulting benefits can be less corruption, increased transparency, greater convenience, revenue growth, and/or cost reductions.”

One of the highlights of the last administration is the revolution in the ICT space. The records of success achieved by Dr. Omobola Johnson as Minister of ICT are enviable. These included the Nigeria Broadband plans, Digital Girls Club, ICT Incubator Centers, increased adoption of ICT by government agencies and development of ICT “local content” framework.

Most industry watchers believe that this administration’s professed commitment to youth and entrepreneurship will take ICT to the next level as this was part of their electioneering campaigns. The Vice President notably has been the one doing the talking, but the man who will do the implementation is Alhaji Shittu Adebayo.