The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and the Budget Office of the Federation (BOF) have inaugurated the Joint Technical Committee of the National Sovereign Cloud Initiative (JTC-NSCI), with a mandate to address fiscal, expenditure, procurement, financing and investment considerations critical to the successful implementation of the initiative.

The committee, chaired by the Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Tanimu Yakubu, with the Director-General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, as co-chair, brings together representatives of government institutions responsible for public finance, procurement, investment, connectivity, power and energy, cybersecurity, data governance and other critical areas.

Declaring the committee inaugurated, Yakubu described its assignment as an increasingly important question of state capacity, particularly as government expenditure rises alongside growing public reliance on digital infrastructure.

He said the committee would ensure that investments in digital infrastructure are properly planned, prioritised and supervised to deliver efficiency and greater value for public resources.

“Our challenge is to ensure that these investments are properly planned, appropriately prioritised, fiscally sustainable, and capable of delivering greater value from public resources,” Yakubu said.

He explained that the National Sovereign Cloud Initiative should help government improve efficiency and resilience, reduce duplication, optimise existing capacity and support better-informed investment decisions.

According to him, government does not necessarily need to finance or own every component of the digital infrastructure ecosystem, stressing the need to leverage private capital, competitive markets and credible long-term demand to complement public investment.

Yakubu further emphasised that sovereign cloud implementation extends beyond technology, requiring coordinated action across public finance, budgeting, procurement, investment, power, connectivity, cybersecurity, data governance and regulation.

“Sovereign cloud implementation is not solely a technology matter. It cuts across public finance, budgeting, procurement, investment, power connectivity, cybersecurity, data governance, and central regulation. No single institution can address these issues in isolation,” he said.

He added that the progress of the committee would be assessed based on practical outcomes, including improved utilisation of existing assets, reduced duplication, stronger resilience, better value for public expenditure and increased private-sector investment.

The NITDA Director-General and co-chair of the committee, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, described its inauguration as a defining step towards Nigeria’s digital future and an important platform for strengthening the country’s digital sovereignty.

Inuwa warned that excessive dependence on foreign digital infrastructure could leave Nigeria’s digital future in the hands of foreign companies.

“This Joint Technical Committee of the National Sovereign Cloud Initiative (JTC-NSCI) is a defining step for Nigeria’s digital future. The level of interest the initiative has drawn since the underlying regulatory instrument was issued has been remarkable,” he said.

He noted that developments associated with the Fourth Industrial Revolution increasingly depend on digital infrastructure, connectivity and computing power, making digital self-determination critical to national development.

“As a nation, we should determine our digital future. We should have control over our data. We should have control over our algorithms, our AI, and all our transactions,” Inuwa said.

The NITDA boss disclosed that the agency was working towards certifying cloud service and infrastructure providers that meet Nigeria’s sovereign cloud standards, as well as system integrators that would support banks and government institutions in migrating their workloads.

He also said the initiative would introduce a cloud-first approach that could help government agencies reduce operational costs and the burden associated with maintaining individual data centres.

According to him, the committee would also help harmonise regulatory requirements across government institutions while creating conditions capable of attracting private investment into Nigeria’s cloud infrastructure ecosystem.

Also speaking at the inauguration, the Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Dr Adebowale Adedokun, described the committee as a paradigm shift towards achieving value for money across sectors of the economy.

Adedokun said the initiative was aligned with the provisions of the Public Procurement Act and pledged the bureau’s support in strengthening compliance and creating an enabling environment for investment and growth in the cloud industry.

“Our competitors are not sleeping. Nigeria cannot sleep. It is time for us to use our collective understanding, partnership, and collaboration to secure our nation digitally,” he said.

The BPP boss stressed that the initiative would be critical to maximising scarce public resources and ensuring that Nigeria remains competitive within the global digital economy.

The inauguration of the JTC-NSCI underscores the Federal Government’s determination to coordinate the implementation of Nigeria’s sovereign cloud agenda by bringing together institutions responsible for fiscal management, regulation, infrastructure, investment, cybersecurity and other critical enablers.

The committee is expected to provide a dedicated inter-agency platform for reviewing government ICT and cloud expenditure, total cost of ownership, utilisation of existing infrastructure, budget and procurement alignment, infrastructure financing, investment mobilisation and the broader fiscal implications of cloud adoption.

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