Nigeria’s push to modernise governance gathered momentum in Cross River State as the Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa, called for a decisive shift from analogue bureaucracy to digitally driven public administration.
The charge came during the official flag-off of the Civil Service Technology Empowerment for Capacity and High Performance (CIVTECH) Programme, an initiative of the Cross River State Government hosted through the Cross River State Microfinance and Enterprise Development Agency (CRS MEDA).
The programme aims to equip 2,000 civil servants with critical digital competencies needed to enhance efficiency and deliver technology-enabled public services.
Delivering a keynote address titled “From Bureaucracy to Digital Excellence: Leveraging Technology for a High-Performing Public Service,” Inuwa, represented by NITDA’s Director of Stakeholders Management and Partnership, Dr. Aristotle Onumo, underscored that governance in the digital era demands speed, data intelligence and innovation.
“For decades, the public service has been the engine room of national development but in an era defined by speed, data, and innovation, traditional bureaucratic processes are no longer sufficient to meet the expectations of citizens and businesses,” he stated.
He observed that citizens increasingly expect government services to mirror the seamless efficiency they experience in digital banking, e-commerce and mobile platforms, stressing that public institutions must evolve accordingly.
Highlighting the economic rationale for digital reform, the NITDA DG noted that Nigeria’s ICT sector contributed nearly 20 per cent to the nation’s real GDP in 2024, an indicator of technology’s growing influence on economic competitiveness.
While noting that digital transformation extends beyond hardware and software deployment, he declared: “It is an economic agenda, it is a governance agenda, and it is a national competitiveness agenda.”
According to him, maintaining outdated bureaucratic systems comes at a high cost, manifesting in delayed decisions, operational inefficiencies, weak transparency and diminishing public trust. By contrast, digital excellence offers faster service delivery, stronger accountability, improved productivity and enhanced citizen satisfaction.
“This is the shift from paperwork to performance, from process-driven governance to outcome-driven governance,” he added.
Inuwa further emphasised that sustainable institutional transformation is fundamentally people-driven. “Technology alone does not transform institutions. People do, and digital excellence requires public servants who are digitally skilled, innovation-driven, solution-oriented, performance-focused, and citizen-centric,” he asserted.
Reassuring civil servants that automation is not a threat to their roles, he said, “Technology frees you from repetitive administrative tasks so you can focus on strategic thinking, policy innovation, and national development.”
He outlined NITDA’s strategic priorities, including expanding digital literacy and skills development, strengthening digital public infrastructure, automating government processes, enhancing cybersecurity and data protection, and promoting adoption of emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence across public institutions.
Commending Cross River State for positioning itself at the forefront of sub-national reform, he noted that initiatives like CIVTECH align with the Federal Government’s broader objective of building an efficient, transparent and citizen-centric public service.
“The future of governance is digital. Together, we can transform governance. Together, we can transform Nigeria. And together, we can build a public service worthy of the digital age,” he concluded.
Declaring the programme open, the state’s Head of Service, Mr. Orok Okon, reaffirmed government’s commitment to strengthening workforce capacity, and stressed that in a rapidly evolving technological landscape, equipping public servants with relevant skills is indispensable to delivering efficient, technology-enabled services.
He maintained that investment in human capital remains critical not only for streamlining internal administrative processes but also for ensuring that citizens receive timely, transparent and high-quality service delivery.
Earlier in his welcome address, the Director General of CRS MEDA, Mr. Great Ogban, expressed appreciation to the Governor and the Head of Service for their sustained commitment to technology-driven workforce development.
He urged all selected participants to demonstrate full dedication, noting that the initiative supports the state’s ambition of transitioning to a fully paperless civil service.
Ogban also expressed optimism about the expanding collaboration between Cross River State and NITDA, stating that the partnership would accelerate the state’s digital transformation agenda and enhance the quality of capacity-building programmes for civil servants.
