The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has stressed the urgent need for Nigeria to harness emerging technologies as tools for accelerating socio-economic development.
This call was made on Thursday by the Director-General of NITDA, Dr. Kashifu Inuwa, during his keynote address at the 2025 IoT West Africa, Data Centre Cloud Expo, Power and Water Nigeria Annual Exhibition and Conference.
Speaking on the theme, “Bridging the Digital Divide – Advancing Africa’s Digital Economy with Emerging Technologies,” Inuwa, who was represented by Dr. Ayodele Bakare, Assistant Director, Cybersecurity Department at NITDA, outlined a clear path for Nigeria’s digital transformation.
He identified technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) as key drivers of socio-economic growth in the digital era.
“Nigeria, with a population exceeding 220 million, is positioned as a continental leader in digital transformation,” Inuwa said. “We have missed out on the first, second, and third Industrial Revolution, but the fourth Industrial Revolution provides us with the opportunity to catch up and reform.”
The NITDA boss listed some of the agency’s initiatives, including the Three Tech Talents Programme and the National AI Strategy, aimed at boosting digital literacy and building relevant skills.
“We are building the infrastructure, the talents, and also the ecosystem to leverage IoT and AI to reach national and regional targets,” he said.
However, he raised concerns over data quality, which he said was hampering the effective adoption of AI technologies.
“We need to have a national data strategy that provides governments and private sector with a framework for data management,” Inuwa said.
To ensure widespread digital inclusion, he revealed that NITDA was expanding digital literacy efforts to rural and underserved communities, with the ambitious goal of achieving 95 percent digital literacy by 2030.
Inuwa added that NITDA was also developing ethical frameworks and standards to guide the responsible use of AI and IoT technologies.
He emphasized the importance of collaboration among stakeholders, saying the agency was promoting innovation platforms, funding, and commercialization of tech talents, while fostering cooperation between governments, industry, academia, civil society, and global partners.
“IoT and AI are not just technologies, but opportunities presented to us from the fourth industrial era,” Inuwa said. “Let us ensure that as the world marches forward into a smart and intelligent future, Nigeria and Africa are not passengers but drivers.”
Also speaking at the event, Managing Director of Vertex, Shitij Taneja, described Africa as standing at a transformative crossroad in a world increasingly driven by data, energy, and AI-powered technology.
Taneja said the continent had the right ecosystem and leadership to drive this change, adding that the conference was designed to spark bold partnerships, fuel infrastructure investments, and empower a new era of sustainable and inclusive digital growth.
The conference, which began on May 13, ended on May 15.
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