THE Director General of National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Dr Isa Pantami has said that over N13 billion has been save as a result of adherence to the NITDA regulations on ICT procurement and other things associated with ICT by Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

Addressing journalists ahead of the upcoming e-Nigeria 2018 Conference, Dr Pantami said immediately he assumed office, he led a team to develop a 2017-2020 Strategic Roadmap for the Agency.

He said considering the wide scope of NITDA’s mandate, the Action Plan relies extensively on the NITDA Act, the National IT Policy, the Nigerian Strategic ICT4D Plan and e-Nigeria communiqués (2015 and 2016).

He, therefore said: “Regulation is a key tool for achieving the social, economic and environmental policy objectives of government. The National Information Technology Development Agency is charged with the mandate to develop and regulate Information Technology for sustainable national development pursuant to Section 6 of the NITDA Act.”

He highlighted the achievements of the regulation to include “all the MDAs have been provided with a copy of the template and it has also been made available online. We have developed the procedure for an objective analysis of all the IT projects submitted for clearance.”

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Others according to him include: “Over 13 Billion Naira has been saved through compliance with this process, surveillance has captured 100+ ICT projects, a total of 410 MDA’s and 105 Higher Educational Institution have been engaged in order to ensure compliance, framework and Guidelines for IT Projects Clearance has been developed, enforcement of executive order 001: (MDAs website assessment conducted and report produced for improvement).

On the upcoming e-Nigeria Conference, Dr Pantami said “e-Nigeria is Nigeria’s annual international summit on Information and Communications Technology (ICT), organised by NITDA in collaboration with relevant stakeholders. It provides a platform for brainstorming on emerging technologies, local innovation and relevant ICT issues for the socio-economic development of Nigeria. The event will also feature exhibitions and Awards to deserving people and institutions in the Nigerian ICT ecosystem.

“I am delighted to announce to you that His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR is our Special Guest of Honour at this year’s event. He will declare the Conference open during the Opening Ceremony slated for Monday, 5th of November, 2018 at 10:00 am.

“The theme for e-Nigeria 2018 is “Promoting Digital Economy in an Era of Disruptive Technologies Through Effective Regulations”. Our Keynote Speaker is Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, the Pioneer Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). We also have a pool of respected and highly knowledgeable Resource Persons that will deliberate on the 3 focal points of the theme, namely Digital Economy, Disruptive Technologies and Effective Regulations.”

Speaking further, the NITDA DG said: “Our vision at NITDA is to be the prime catalyst for transforming Nigeria into an Information Technology (IT) driven economy.”

He said NITDA has established “166 ICT Centres established in the country from 2016 to date by NITDA, ICT policies have been developed for 14 States across the country. Establishment of fully functional Virtual libraries and e-libraries at the twelve locations, 16 universities have benefited from the WAN project, 166 e-Learning Centres have been established since 2016.”

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