Nigeria’s National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has released draft technical standards for its Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and is urging citizens, businesses, and international partners to provide comments and feedback on the crucial document.
This significant step, announced on Friday, underscores the Nigerian government’s commitment to building an inclusive, secure, and interoperable digital ecosystem. The aim is to drive economic growth, improve public service delivery, and empower citizens across the country.
The move follows the release of the Digital Public Infrastructure Framework by the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovations, and Digital Economy in March. This framework envisions a platform to reform public service delivery through a unified government approach, also offering opportunities for the private sector to develop and deliver essential cross-cutting services. The framework also established the Nigerian Digital Public Infrastructure Centre (Ng-DPIC) to coordinate the national effort.
The newly released draft Technical Standards for DPI provide a structured approach for the development and deployment of Nigeria’s digital infrastructure. They outline the essential technical requirements and proven methods to ensure that digital services are interoperable, secure, and efficient. By establishing clear guidelines, these standards aim to support the seamless integration of DPI components, fostering a digital ecosystem that is secure, scalable, and resilient.
Furthermore, the draft standards detail how sector-specific DPIs, such as digital identity systems, payment platforms, and data exchange frameworks, will be integrated. The goal is to establish clear guidelines for interoperability, data protection, cybersecurity, and the involvement of both public and private sector stakeholders in building digital public goods.
NITDA stated that the development of these draft technical standards was guided by extensive research, international best practices, and consultations with various stakeholders. It reflects the government’s ambition to harness the power of digital technologies to achieve national development goals and improve the lives of all Nigerians.
The key objectives of the draft Digital Public Infrastructure Regulation include enhancing interoperability between platforms, ensuring data security and privacy, promoting accessibility and usability for all citizens, defining performance benchmarks for reliability and efficiency, fostering governance and compliance, encouraging innovation through open-source technologies, and standardising testing practices.
The Nigerian government has emphasised the vital role of public input in shaping effective regulations and is therefore inviting all stakeholders, including citizens, businesses, civil society organisations, academia, and international partners, to review the draft and provide valuable feedback.
Following the public consultation period, NITDA will carefully consider all feedback before finalising and implementing the Digital Public Infrastructure Regulation. The government believes this initiative is a significant step in Nigeria’s digital transformation journey and will be instrumental in unlocking the full potential of the digital economy for sustainable and inclusive development.
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