NITDA has launched a campaign to examine IT projects of Federal Public Institutions for the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation, and the Bureau of Public Procurement. This is following President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which aims to improve governance for efficient service delivery. Additionally, NITDA has asserted its mandate as the clearinghouse for all government IT projects.
NITDA’s Reviewed IT Project Clearance Guidance Document, an updated framework intended to standardise the planning, financing, and implementation of IT projects following national digital economy goals, was the main focus of the visit. NITDA’s function as the clearinghouse for all government IT projects under the National Information Technology Development Act (2007) is strengthened by this document, which is an update of the 2018 Guidelines for Clearance of IT Projects and places a strong emphasis on cost-effectiveness, regulatory compliance, and openness.
The Director General of NITDA stressed throughout these visits that the Agency cannot accomplish the Renewed Hope Agenda of digitally transforming the economy by working alone. “And in keeping with the President’s agenda, we must investigate ways to improve our alliances and teamwork.”
He asserted that in order for the nation to continue to lead Africa, IT projects must be implemented with greater intentionality and focus. “We go for the latest technology, fail to design before building the technology, and fail to consider the business value proposition we are trying to deliver with the projects,” he said, citing the reason why 56% of IT initiatives failed to deliver on what was promised.
Inuwa told his hosts that NITDA has reviewed the IT Clearance Guideline to protect against that because past experience has shown that most Ministries, Departments, and Agencies build IT projects based on the proposals that are submitted to them by the contractors who will design, implement, and operate the projects. This lacks accountability and transparency and has resulted in the failure of many IT projects.
“We are building a digitised government service, and the government is one. We need to work together, work harmoniously, the same way the IT system works to deliver these services. For us to achieve this, we need to be more intentional in the way we design and implement. And if we continue to design and implement in silos, they will never worked together, he warned.
The refreshed guideline, he insisted, aims to make sure that IT projects are planned with an interoperability attitude so that Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) can investigate shared services and adhere to best practices and standards.
“The guideline will guide MDAs on how to design, operate and maintain systems because building these systems is beyond technology, but people, processes and key components are paramount.
The three processes of IT project implementation under the proposed guideline are Solution Design, Implementation, and Quality Assurance, according to the Director General. He also stated that in the future, contractors will need to have a licence and certified personnel for their businesses in order to be considered for government IT projects.
“These measures are designed to eliminate corruption, prevent duplication, and ensure that government IT initiatives are structured to create meaningful change, fostering efficiency, equity, and fairness in public service.”
At the Bureau of Public Procurement, the Director General, Dr. Adebowale Adedokun, stressed the significance of standardising IT Project Bidding Documents. He remarked, “It is disheartening that organisations misuse IT projects to siphon public funds—resources that could otherwise be channelled towards impactful initiatives that can transform the country.
He disclosed that MDAs come with IT projects that were adopted without standardisation and guidelines, “but with this new guideline, our decision should pave way for the development of the IT sector of the country.”
The Bureau has created a standard bidding document for the IT procurement, he added, adding that officials use the intangible nature of most IT project components to embezzle public funds. He described the meeting as essential to eliminating corruption in the implementation of IT projects.
He said, “We have a huge responsibility with NITDA to avoid corruption, duplication of IT projects, and ensure transparency and accountability in the award of IT projects for the Federal Public Institutions. It is disheartening that we are consuming resources that can be deployed to meet other needs of the country, and we need to stop this and say no to wastage.”
He tasked NITDA to reconsider service-wide procurement of licenses of organisations like Microsoft, Oracle and others, and also develop a template for IT Price Intelligence which the Bureau can rely on for costing. “We are not IT experts. If NITDA can help us with data on the prices of IT-related products, which can serve as a benchmark for pricing, it will go a long way in our review.
Dr Adedokun equally canvassed for capacity building for the government’s staff in the IT cadre so they would not be outsmarted by contractors.
Both NITDA and BPP agreed to constitute a working committee that would work out modalities for the realisation of the entire intended plan and sign a Memorandum of Understanding on its implementation.
At the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation, the Auditor General of the Federation, Shaakaa Kanyitor Chira, remarked that NITDA needs to be commended for its thoughtfulness in bringing the guidelines forward for review and inputs.
He assured that once the policy becomes operational, the Office of the Auditor General will conduct a performance audit to assess whether it is effectively contributing to the betterment of the country.
Similarly, the Accountant General, Shamseldeen Ogunjimi, commended NITDA’s efforts to standardise IT project implementation and expressed readiness to support the integration of the clearance guidelines into financial processes.
With the release of the Reviewed IT Project Clearance Guidance Document, NITDA hopes to make sure that the AGF’s financial supervision is in line with its goal of a public sector that is digitally transformed. Nigeria is anticipated to become a pioneer in technology-driven governance, improve service delivery, and reduce inefficiencies as a result of the partnership.
The Guideline for IT Project Clearance was introduced by NITDA in 2018, and in its efforts to clear IT projects, the Agency has saved the nation more than N300 billion.
