The recent inauguration of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS)’s N9.1 billion Technology Building in Abuja provides a convergence point for security agencies in the country to review the degenerating insecurity issues, including porous border and how to address these through economic integration and population control, Adeyemi Adepetun writes
The Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) Medium Term Plan for 2017 – 2020 was developed by the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to restore economic growth while leveraging the ingenuity and resilience of the Nigerian people – the nation’s most priceless assets.
In the ERGP, the Federal Government prioritises the deployment of Information and Communications Technology (ICT), not only to ensure effective diversification of the economy from over-dependence on oil revenue but also to address the issue of insecurity, tackle corruption and enhance economic growth.
The policy direction, already cascaded to all the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government for implementation is in sync with the Federal Government’s National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy 10-year roadmap, among other policy initiatives aimed at digitally transforming the Nigeria economy.
It is instructive, therefore, that in recent times, countries around the world, Nigeria inclusive, have been in a rat-race, leveraging ICT towards enhancing government operational efficiency and better service delivery to citizens.
In Nigeria, the most recent of such ICT projects in this direction is the Technology Building that was recently implemented by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) under the leadership of its current Comptroller General (CG), Mohammad Babandede. The project heralds a new vista for the country to be able to strengthen regional and international collaborations through effective data management and information sharing.
NIS’s Technology Building
The Technology Building houses the National Command and Control Centre of NIS, thus providing a unique platform for security agencies in the country to truly synergise and harmonise efforts under one roof to frontally address various national security concerns using the instrumentality of Information and Communication Technology.
Speaking at the commissioning of the ultra-modern ICT infrastructure in Abuja recently, President Muhammadu Buhari said: “The Technology Building has been implemented by NIS as part of efforts by the Federal Government to effectively leverage ICT to enhance Nigeria’s socio-economic development and improve the national security of lives and property in the country while ensuring international collaboration.”
Economic/security imperatives of project
The NIS’s Technology Building makes it a great investment and a huge contribution to global security, particularly with its effective connectivity to special platforms such as the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) and International Civil Aviation Organization’s Public Key Directory (PKD) and Public Key Infrastructure (PKI). While the PKD is a central repository for exchanging the information required to authenticate e-Passports, PKI, on the other hand, is a hierarchical system made up of hardware, software and strict policies enabling the management, distribution, use, storage, and revocation of digital certificates and public-key encryption.
Read more at: https://guardian.ng/technology/new-ict-infrastructure-targets-national-security-economic-growth/
