The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has called on stakeholders across Nigeria’s digital ecosystem to contribute to the review of its Strategy Roadmap and Action Plan (SRAP 2.0), ahead of the development of a new strategy in 2027. The agency wants independent feedback on its performance, implementation gaps and the effectiveness of its digital transformation initiatives.
NITDA Director-General, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, made the call during a stakeholder engagement workshop held on the sidelines of the Digital Nigeria International Conference and Exhibition (DNICE) in Abuja on November 11, 2026.
He explained that the agency’s broad responsibilities, which cover the planning, research, standardisation, utilisation and coordination of information technology in Nigeria, make it important to involve stakeholders in evaluating its performance and shaping future priorities.
According to him, NITDA wants the review to move beyond an internal assessment in which the agency evaluates its own achievements. Instead, it expects businesses, technology professionals, researchers, academic institutions, civil society organisations and other participants in the digital ecosystem to provide independent perspectives on its progress.
The engagement is expected to help the agency determine which initiatives have delivered meaningful results, identify areas requiring improvement and establish priorities for its next strategic planning cycle.
NITDA Seeks Independent Assessment of SRAP 2.0
Inuwa emphasised that technology is evolving rapidly, making regular reviews necessary to ensure that government policies and programmes remain relevant to changing industry needs.
He recalled that NITDA began its strategic planning journey with SRAP 1.0 in 2019 before developing SRAP 2.0 in 2023. The current roadmap provides the agency’s strategic direction for digital transformation, innovation and technology development.
However, he stressed that the agency did not want to assess its performance in isolation.
The Director-General urged participants to identify what NITDA had achieved, where implementation had fallen short and which interventions required adjustment. He maintained that stakeholder contributions would help the agency evaluate its commitments more objectively and recalibrate its priorities.
This approach places accountability and collective ownership at the centre of the review, particularly as Nigeria prepares for another phase of digital development.
Eight Strategic Pillars Under Review
Presenting an overview of SRAP 2.0, Raymond Onuoha of Lagos Business School explained that the roadmap was built around eight strategic pillars designed to guide Nigeria’s digital transformation.
These include:
- Digital Literacy and Talent: Expanding digital skills, improving digital literacy and developing a workforce capable of participating in the technology economy.
- Technology Research Ecosystem: Strengthening research, development and collaboration between academic institutions, technology companies and innovation centres.
- Policy Implementation and Legal Framework: Improving the regulatory environment and ensuring that technology policies translate into practical outcomes.
- Inclusive Access to Digital Infrastructure: Expanding access to reliable digital connectivity and infrastructure across different parts of the country.
- Cybersecurity and Digital Trust: Strengthening online safety, data protection, cybersecurity capacity and confidence in digital services.
- Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Supporting startups, technology businesses and locally developed solutions.
- Strategic Partnerships and Collaboration: Encouraging cooperation among government, industry, academia and international development partners.
- Organisational Culture and Agile Workforce: Improving NITDA’s institutional capacity, workforce development and ability to respond to technological changes.
Onuoha disclosed that the roadmap contained 37 aggregate success indicators and approximately 78 initiatives implemented across the 2024–2026 period.
The review is expected to examine how effectively these initiatives have contributed to the agency’s objectives and whether the existing indicators adequately capture their impact.
NITDA Reports Progress in Digital Skills and Startup Development
During his presentation, Onuoha highlighted several achievements recorded under SRAP 2.0, including the training and certification of approximately 2.8 million Nigerians in digital skills.
He also reported that the agency had supported more than 700 startups and mobilised $51.2 million, alongside an additional $100 million, for technology startups.
In regulatory development, NITDA had produced approximately 17 standards and frameworks to guide different aspects of the country’s technology ecosystem.
The agency’s IT project clearance initiative had also reviewed public-sector technology projects valued at approximately ₦2.77 trillion, generating reported optimised cost savings of ₦141 billion.
These figures provide part of the performance picture that stakeholders are expected to examine. However, the review will need to consider not only the number of programmes delivered but also their sustainability, reach and measurable benefits to citizens and businesses.
For example, digital skills training figures should be assessed alongside the extent to which beneficiaries apply their skills in employment, entrepreneurship and everyday activities. Similarly, startup support should be evaluated through business survival, access to markets, investment and job creation.
Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence Remain Priorities
Cybersecurity and indigenous artificial intelligence development also featured prominently in the assessment.
Onuoha disclosed that nearly 80,000 participants had received cybersecurity training through the agency’s interventions. The programmes reflect the growing importance of digital trust as more Nigerians rely on online platforms for financial transactions, communication, business operations and public services.
He also highlighted NITDA’s support for indigenous artificial intelligence development, particularly N-ATLAS, an openly released AI language model with eight billion parameters and four speech recognition models incorporating Nigerian languages.
According to the presentation, the model had attracted more than 140 registered collaborators, while 18 third-party applications had been certified for integration.
Nevertheless, Onuoha acknowledged that commercialisation and sustained adoption remained at an early stage. He therefore called for stronger infrastructure, funding, access to data, computing capacity and standards to support wider deployment.
This assessment points to a wider challenge facing Nigeria’s technology sector: developing local innovations is important, but ensuring that they become useful, commercially sustainable products requires additional investment and an enabling environment.
Digital Competitiveness and Infrastructure Gaps
The stakeholder engagement also examined Nigeria’s position in global innovation and artificial intelligence readiness assessments.
Onuoha noted that Nigeria improved its position in the 2025 Global Innovation Index, moving from 113th place in 2024 to 105th.
He also highlighted an improvement in the country’s Government AI Readiness ranking, which rose to 70th position from 103rd in 2023.
Despite these improvements, he identified skills development, technology utilisation, regulatory effectiveness and the translation of policy commitments into measurable economic outcomes as areas requiring further attention.
Digital inclusion also remains important, particularly for underserved communities where limited connectivity, electricity challenges and the cost of devices can restrict access to digital opportunities.
Furthermore, Nigeria needs stronger digital infrastructure, including data centres, cloud services and computing resources, to support artificial intelligence development and other advanced technology applications.
These challenges are likely to remain important considerations as NITDA reviews its current roadmap and prepares its next strategic direction.
NITDA Plans Online Dashboard for Public Accountability
To strengthen transparency and stakeholder participation, NITDA disclosed that it was working with the German development agency GIZ, through the Digital Transformation Centre, towards establishing an online dashboard for monitoring the implementation of its strategic initiatives.
When completed, the platform is expected to provide information on the agency’s strategic pillars, initiatives and performance indicators.
It is also intended to allow stakeholders to monitor progress and provide feedback, creating a more continuous assessment process rather than relying exclusively on periodic engagement workshops.
The proposed dashboard could help improve public understanding of NITDA’s activities and make it easier to identify areas where implementation requires additional attention.
However, its effectiveness will depend on the quality, frequency and accessibility of the information published, as well as the agency’s willingness to respond to feedback and address identified gaps.
Stakeholder Participation to Shape NITDA’s 2027 Strategy
The review of SRAP 2.0 represents an important stage in NITDA’s strategic planning process as the agency prepares to develop a new strategy in 2027.
For technology companies, startups, researchers, universities, investors and digital professionals, the exercise provides an opportunity to contribute practical experiences and recommendations to national digital policy.
Their feedback could help identify emerging technology trends, infrastructure requirements, regulatory challenges and opportunities for local innovation.
Ultimately, Nigeria’s digital transformation will require more than policy documents and performance indicators. It will depend on effective implementation, sustained investment, institutional accountability and collaboration across the public and private sectors.
By inviting stakeholders to assess SRAP 2.0 independently, NITDA is seeking to build a more evidence-based foundation for its next strategic plan.
The outcome of the review will therefore be important in determining how the agency adjusts its priorities and strengthens its contribution to a more inclusive, innovative and competitive Nigerian digital economy.
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