By 
By Uwa Suleiman
Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami today in Abuja, under the auspices of the All Progressives Congress Professional Forum, addressed Nigerians giving account of his stewardship in office so far.
Pantami, in a detailed discourse, gave account of the strategies deployed by the sector under his supervision to support the three point agenda of Security, Anti Corruption and Economic Development of President Muhammadu Buhari . These include the development and implementation of over a dozen policies to enable the digitalisation of Nigeria in line with global best practices.
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Addressing newsmen at the party’s headquarters in Abuja, Pantami disclosed that the sector as at “March 2021 has successfully saved over N22.4 billion to the federal coffers by executing its mandate to support of the anti corruption drive of the president through the implementation of the IT projects clearance policy.
“Under this policy, over 727 Institutions have complied with over 323 projects cleared in accordance with the laid down guidelines”.
He cited the policy on virtual engagements for public institutions as an impetus to fighting corruption and reducing the cost of governance while also promoting e-governance.
In the area of economic development, the minister disclosed that enabling policies enacted in the sector to support the digitalisation of the economy have empowered it to provide and enhance digital capacities among the citizenry. Pantami noted that the National Policy frameworks on on entrepreneurship and start-ups, the digital literacy and skills – all part of the pillars of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy for a Digital Nigeria, have given impetus to the acquisition of digital skills and job creation drive of the sector.
His words: “Under the DigitalNigeria portal, over 210,000 citizens including women, youths and the physically challenged have been equipped with various digital skills for economic empowerment. These trainings are implemented in collaboration with technology giants like Microsoft, Huawei, Cisco, etc and the certificates are globally recognised and respected”
He said the establishment of a world class e-government centre in line with the e-government Master Plan also ensures that the digital training needs of the Nigerian labour force are met.
The minister also noted that the sector has established over 300 ICT Centres, fully funded by the federal government across all states in the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
In the area of security, the minister noted that although it is not a direct mandate of his ministry, it is a priority of government and therefore, sectoral policies to aid security agencies in the discharge of their duties have been developed and implemented. He cited the National Policy on SIM registration and the revised Policy on NIN/SIM linkage as a huge boost to the nation’s security as “it is no longer business as usual for criminal elements that hitherto used stolen identities to perpetrate crime unhindered”
According to the National Bureau of Statistics in its reports from the Q2 of 2020 till date, the digital economy sector under Dr. Pantami has retained the unprecedented position of the fastest growing sector in the nation’s economy with a whopping 14.70% growth rate.
Mrs. Uwa Suleiman is spokesperson to the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami.
