The Federal Government has saved over N22.45bn through the enforcement of the guideline for the clearance of information technology projects in federal public institutions.
Director-General, National Information Technology Development Agency, Kashifu Abdullahi, announced this during the NITDA 20th anniversary press conference in Abuja on Monday.
He said the enforcement of the guideline, which was one of the regulatory instruments of NITDA, started in 2016, adding that its implementation had helped to address unnecessary spendings on IT projects in public institutions.
Abdullahi said, “Some of the regulatory instruments were operational before their release. The enforcement of the IT Clearance Process of NITDA, for example, started in December 2016.
“In addition to the value addition to IT project delivery, the IT clearance has saved over N22.45bn for the Federal Government.”
NITDA as the clearing house of IT projects in Nigeria is mandated to clear all IT projects in line with the policy objectives of the Federal Government to maximise transparency and accountability in carrying out IT projects by public institutions.
Consequently, the Federal Government issued a Circular No SGF/6/S.19/T/65 of 18th April 2006 directing that all public institutions planning to embark on any IT project shall obtain clearance from NITDA.
The agency stated it realised that over the years, public funds that were spent on IT projects were not commensurate with the value derived from such projects.
It said the funds had also failed to evolve a digitally-enabled public service that would advance the citizens’ yearnings of digital economy, hence the need to strategically reposition the deployment of IT products and services in public institutions.
NITDA stated that it was therefore imperative to ensure that maximum value was derived from such huge investment of public funds, especially at a time when the need for accountability, transparency, efficiency and effectiveness were eminent.
Abdullahi further noted that through the release of the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation, NITDA had created a new industry, stimulated new business models, and empowered thousands of Nigerians through capacity building and skills development.
He said, “We licensed 72 Data Protection Compliance Organisations, created over 2,686 new jobs roles in the industry, developed a new data protection sector valued at around N2.2bn.”
The NITDA boss said his agency had also investigated and issued data breach fines to many organisations, including public institutions, as other countries were looking up to the agency for guidance on data protection regulation.
