The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has revealed that Nigeria spends $2 billion annually on Information and Technology projects. Speaking at a sensitization workshop and stakeholders’ engagement on IT project clearance portal and draft guidelines, yesterday, Director – General of NITDA, Dr. Isa Ali Pantami stressed the need for the sector to be properly regulated in order for the country to effectively benefit from the full potentials offered by ICT. “It may interest us that about $2 billion is being expended on IT projects on annual basis in Nigeria.
“Accordingly, the apparent disparity between increasing budgetary allocation and expenditures on IT projects and services and the insignificant increase in automation of public services call for concern. “The need for proper coordination can therefore not be over-emphasized.
A major step at properly addressing this is the IT Projects Clearance initiative in MDAs. He said findings showed that many IT projects were riddled with several challenges: ‘The conceptualization and planning of many projects done poorly and without sustainability plans; many IT projects were being done in silos, thereby leading to duplication, waste and redundancies; He added that MDAs were embarking on projects that ‘sounded good’ based on contractor’s pitch rather than expressed need and priorities of the MDAs” Saying that IT was increasingly becoming a conduit pipe to siphon huge public resources. All these and more, led to the creation of a standing committee on IT projects clearance in NITDA. According to the DG this committee comprises of professionals from all relevant walks of life.
From its small beginning in early 2017, the Committee has grown to become a respected body by many MDAs who have interacted with it. “Various Agencies have written or verbally expressed their appreciation of the Committee’s inputs to making their projects more successful.
Therefore, “Our goal at NITDA is to use the IT Projects Clearance process to correct the ills identified above and to further entrench IT product manufacturing and services in Nigeria. “Accordingly, NITDA is poised to ensure effective ICT deployment and ensure minimum global standards and value for money in ICT projects of all MDAs,” he said. Chairman IT project s clearance Committee, Dr. Usman Abdullahi Gambo said other countries have done it and it worked.
“I don’t know why we cannot do it here in Nigeria but with the help of NITDA it is possible. He added that findings had shown that “90 percent of government IT facility have failed and another 95 percent is vulnerable, we have seen very important facility lying fallow not been put to use,” hence the need for the sensitization on the objective of the clearance initiative. The Agency reports that it has within the last one year saved the federal government over N6 billion on IT projects.
Calls for reorientation of citizenry on cybercrimes: Meanwhile, NITDA has called for more orientation of the citizenry on existing laws rather than creating new ones. The NITDA DG said this at the NUJ award marking the International Press Freedom Day in Abuja last weekend. He noted that, “We need to create more publicity to reorient our society” especially on cybercriminals. “There are many things that may be right but we need to be reoriented about them
. “I personally do not support enacting any new law because most of the issues we are dealing with, if we follow our constitution, penal code, Cybercrime Act 2015, all these issues have been addressed. “For example, when you look at the right to privacy as amended, section 37 of the constitution addresses the issue.
“When it comes to freedom of expression, 1999 constitution as amended, section 39 sub section 1, when it comes to regulating our utterances, respecting the law of the land, that has been addressed by section 39 sub section 3 of the constitution. “When you come to committing fraud or crime on the net, which has been addressed by Cybercrime Act of 2015. All these things have been addressed but the issue many Nigerians do not know cybercrime exist. “We need to create more publicity to reorient our society. Before we go ahead enacting new laws. Speaking on enacting the hate speech bill the DG said, “What we need is to teach people self-regulation, meaning that whatever I want to report, I need to ask if it will promote unity because Nigeria needs unity in diversity.
“We have a very serious diversity in the country and we need unity in this diversity because we do not have another country other than Nigeria. He added that Nigerians need societal reorientation to promote peace, unity, justice and fairness and to ensure that whatever we write will in anyway promote peace, justice and equity in our country and not shading blood of innocent people. On his award, he said he consider it as “ a challenge and a motivation for me to do more.
“ I am not expecting Nigeria Union of Journalists to give me an award without doing their background checks, without making an investigating about my personality, what I have been doing, and they found out that I deserve this award. “It is an encouragement for me to do more for Nigeria and at the same time to maintain a professional and cordial relationship with the media itsel
