NITDA, Dataphyte Foundation welcome the Inauguration of the Digital Governance Multistakeholder Coordination Group

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and Dataphyte Foundation, Co-Chairs of the Digital Governance Thematic Group of the Nigeria Open Government Partnership, today welcomed the inauguration of the Multi-Stakeholder Coordination Group (MSCG) set to implement the National Action Plan (NAP IV) Digital Governance commitments, which won the OpenGov challenge award at the 2025 OGP Global Summit.

The Director General/CEO of NITDA, Mr Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, while inaugurating the group, acknowledged Nigeria’s growing prowess in digital governance globally, which led to Nigeria's win in the OpenGov Challenge. “With this great recognition comes great responsibility,” he said, noting that the ICT clearance by NITDA saved the government over N1.7 trillion in 2025, improving efficiency in the government’s digitisation efforts across MDAs. “The Multi-Stakeholder group will be built on NITDA’s principles of inclusivity, transparency, and accountability, he added.

The National Coordinator of the Open Government Partnership in Nigeria, Dr Gloria Ahmed, in her speech, recognised “NITDA’s continued leadership and commitment to advancing inclusive digital governance in Nigeria.”

“I also wish to specially applaud NITDA and Dataphyte Foundation for leading Nigeria’s efforts in co-creating ambitious world-class commitments for NAP IV, which won the OpenGov Challenge award at the 2025 OGP Global Summit held in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain”, she remarked. “It is noteworthy to mention that this digital governance commitment was the best in the whole of Africa and the Middle East, and the best in the thematic area globally,” she enthused.

Dataphyte Country Director, Oluseyi Olufemi, while presenting the Multistakeholder Group’s working documents developed by Dataphyte Foundation, thanked the new members of the MSCG, noting that the group is tasked with the thorough review and validation of the draft documents, namely, the Digital Governance Toolkit and Scorecard.

He described the Toolkit as “a practical guide for the adoption of ethical, inclusive, and interoperable digital transformation by Nigeria’s Federal/Subnational MDAs” and the Scorecard as the “indicator framework and performance assessment methodology for MDAs digital adoption.”

The Director of Stakeholder Management and Partnerships at NITDA, Dr Aristotle Onumo, assured that “the MSCG would serve as a bridge between policy formulation and implementation, ensuring that reforms under the Strategic Roadmap and Action Plan (SRAP 2.0) and the National Action Plan IV (NAP IV) translate into measurable outcomes.”

In attendance were institutional representatives from various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), including the members of the NITDA team, the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS), Galaxy Backbone, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigeria Communication Commission (NCC), the Federal Ministry of Communication, Innovation and Digital Economy (FMCIDE), and other government members of the newly constituted Digital Governance MSCG. 

Also present was the civil society coordinator for the OGP, Mr Uchenna Arisukwu, and representatives of civil society organisations such as the Integrity Group, the DigicCivic Initiative, Spaces for Change, as well as members of the media.

The Group will serve as a strategic platform for dialogue, policy engagement, and coordinated action on key issues relating to responsible technology adoption, digital inclusion, data governance, transparency, innovation, and citizen participation.