In an effort to improve communication amongst Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) and accelerate the nation’s shift to a paperless civil service, the Nigerian government created the 1Government Cloud Academy over the Galaxy Backbone.
President Bola Tinubu attended the 2025 International Civil Service Conference in Abuja, where the project was highlighted.
Tinubu, who opened the conference, emphasized the strategic significance of data in government and referred to it as “the new oil,” but he added that, unlike oil, its worth rises with refining and proper use.
In accordance with worldwide data privacy standards, the President instructed all ministries, departments, and agencies to carefully collect data, protect it under the Nigerian Data Protection Act (2023), and disseminate it in ways that add value to the public.
“We must let our data speak for us,” Tinubu said. “We must publish verified data assets locally and share them globally. This will enable international benchmarking and strengthen Nigeria’s standing on the world stage.”
He further stressed that data sovereignty and privacy must be rigorously preserved within local and allied data centres.
In her remarks, Head of the Civil Service of the Federation Didi Esther Walson-Jack described Nigeria’s digital reforms as a model for others, citing the automation of processes through the Enterprise Content Management (ECM) system, the introduction of a Performance Management System, and the deployment of ServiceWise GPT, which aligns individual roles with national priorities.
During a panel discussion at the event, Wumi Oghoetuoma, the program director of the 1Government Cloud initiative, provided a thorough analysis of the effort and emphasized the need of trust and understanding in the adoption of digital solutions.
“A lot of digital solutions have failed because users didn’t trust or fully understand them, not because they weren’t effective,” Oghoetuoma said.
He emphasized that the training encompasses both technical competence and critical soft skills required for transformation, and he commended the Federation’s Head of Civil Service for her resolute reform efforts in the digitalization of the public sector.
Richard Montgomery, the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, also spoke at the event and praised President Tinubu’s reform plan in Nigeria.
He emphasized that effective service delivery and integrity within the civil service are essential for the reforms to succeed, calling these “bold and necessary steps for long-term development.”
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