The Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, signed the Artemis Accords on behalf of Nigeria.  He also announced partnership with Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) to provide broadband access across the whole of Nigeria.  These two events took place at the ongoing US-Africa Leaders’ Forum (USALF), taking place in Washington DC, United States of America. The Summit is hosted by President Joe Biden of the United States and brought together leaders from across Africa.

Pantami signed the Accords to signal Nigeria’s participation in the next phase of space exploration to be coordinated by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). President Paul Kagame also announced Rwanda's endorsement of the Accord.  President Paul Biya of Cameroon, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and the Deputy Secretary of Commerce, Mr. Don Graves, also spoke at the event. Nigeria and Rwanda were the first two African countries to sign the Accord and the 22nd and 23rd in the world.  The signing took place on the 13th of December 2022 at the U.S.-Africa Space Forum- a side event at the USALF.

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said “I’m thrilled Nigeria and Rwanda are committing to the safe, sustainable use of outer space. In an era where more nations than ever have space programs, today’s signings highlight a growing commitment to ensure space exploration is conducted responsibly.” He also stated that “as the first African nations to sign the Artemis Accords, Nigeria and Rwanda exemplify the global reach of the accords and are demonstrating their leadership in space exploration.”

Artemis Accords were established by NASA in 2020, as a set of principles to guide the next phase of space exploration, reinforcing and providing for important operational implementation of key obligations in the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. The Accords also serve to reinforce the commitment of the United States and signatory nations to the Registration Convention, the Rescue and Return Agreement, as well as guidelines and best practices NASA and its partners have supported, including the public release of scientific data.

The Honourable Minister also announced Nigeria’s partnership with SpaceX, having approved their application as a High Throughput Satellite (HTS) Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) Operator in the Nigerian Telecommunications Sector.  As part of the partnership, Space X is to provide broadband access across the whole of Nigeria, enabling nation-wide access to broadband connectivity way ahead of the December 2025 schedule, as outlined in our National Broadband Plan.  With this collaboration with SpaceX’s Starlink, Nigeria is set to be the 1st African country to introduce the service. The nation-wide rollout shall take place before the end of 2022, after conclusion of a few administrative processes.  The announcement was made at the US-Space Forum, where Professor Pantami also served as a speaker.

The Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, under Professor Pantami’s leadership, will continue its committed implementation of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) to ensure that Nigeria’s digital economy remains a leading light, both in Africa and across the globe.

Dr. Femi Adeluyi
Technical Assistant (Research & Development)
to the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy
December 14, 2022

Nigeria’s Minister of Communications and first ever, of Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim (Pantami) has emerged winner of the distinguished award for digital innovation.

The award which was conferred on him by President Muhammadu Buhari (GCFR), today, 21^st October 2022, during the Excellence in Public Service Awards at the Presidential Villa, Abuja is yet, another attestation of Professor Pantami’s game changing leadership qualities which he has brought to bear in the nation’s economy.

President Buhari had earlier in the week paid glowing commendations to the Minister describing him as “one of the most resourceful, innovative and effective public officials that I have in this administration. His depth of knowledge of complex issues is amazing and remarkable and his loyalty and dedication to duty is worthy of emulation”

The President further noted that “the appointment of Pantami was one of the best choices I have made because he has added tremendous value to good governance”

Recall that since assumption of office in August of 2019, Professor Pantami has made global history with his aggressive initiatives and reforms towards digital transformation.

Uwa Suleiman

Spokesperson to the Honourable Minister of

Communications & Digital Economy

21^st October 2022

In furtherance of its digital capacity building initiative, the Federal Government of Nigeria has entered into partnership with Coursera, a global online digital skills acquisition platform, to empower twenty four thousand Nigerians with digital and developer skills in various fields over a three year period.

Declaring the training open on behalf of President Muhammadu Buhari (GCFR), today Wednesday, October 19, 2022, the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim (Pantami), noted that “we are championing a paradigm shift of prioritizing hard, soft and social skills over theory and this collaboration will go a long way in supporting this shift. Coursera is one of the world’s top online learning platforms hosting thousands of courses for some of the best universities and companies, and has remained at the forefront of providing the global society with the education and resources it needs to build and maintain digital systems”.

Professor Pantami also reiterated government’s commitment to ensure that the nation’s citizenry is digitally empowered and properly positioned for the fourth industrial revolution. “The recent Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) entered into, with Microsoft to train five million Nigerians in various fields of technology, is part of government’s efforts to fulfill the requirements for digital transformation as laid down in the Nigeria Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) document.”

While expressing delight over the partnership, the Honourable Minister called on Coursera to expand its presence in Nigeria and especially in the academia where it already has an existing partnership with Covenant University. “Coursera is in partnership with Covenant University which is one of the best private universities in Nigeria based on their annual rankings and publications which I have keenly observed. I have no doubt that this partnership has had a huge impact on the institution’s excellent standing. I therefore request that Coursera engages more academic institutions, at least one, in each geo-political zone and bring their expertise to bear within the identified environments.”

The Federal Government of Nigeria, through the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, is spearheading this collaboration under the auspices of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).

Uwa Suleiman

Spokesperson to the Honourable Minister of

Communications & Digital economy

19^th October 2022

The President, Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR has approved the appointment of a new Postmaster General/Chief Executive Officer (PMG), for the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST). This is following the recommendations made by the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim (Pantami).

The new Postmaster General of NIPOST, Hon. Adepoju Adeyemi Sunday, is appointed for an initial term of five (5) years.

Hon. Adepoju is a professional accountant and a former member of the Federal House of Representatives from 2011 – 2015 and 2015 – 2019, representing Ibarapa East/Ido Federal Constituency.

NIPOST is an agency under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy and the appointment of Hon. Adepoju as the new PMG of NIPOST is with immediate effect.

Signed:                                                                         

Uwa Suleiman

Spokesperson,

Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy

5^th October 2022

Minister of ICT for Algeria is statutorily the Chairman of ATU-CPC 2022 as the hosting country.

Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami from Nigeria was unanimously voted by the 54 African Ministers on the 23rd of July, 2022, as the Vice-Chairman even before he arrived in Algeria.

Prof Pantami led a discussion that led to the adoption of a consensus candidate, from Kenya to serve as the Secretary General of the African Telecommunication Union, where Mauritania stepped down.

The Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, will publicly unveil two of his recent books at the Stakeholders’ Consultative Forum on Emerging Technologies, coordinated by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).  The Forum will take place on Thursday, the 14^th of July 2022, at the Sheraton Hotel, Maryland, Lagos.

The first book is titled “Datafication of Society to Foster an Internet Economy” and the foreword was written by the Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Mr. Houlin Zhao.  Mr Zhao has had a long distinguished career at the ITU and has served as the Secretary-General since 2014.  The International Telecommunication Union is the oldest UN agency and is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for many matters related to information and communication technologies.

The second book is titled “Cybersecurity Initiatives for Securing a Country”, with the foreword written by the President of International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP), Professor Mike Hinchey.  Professor Hinchey is a professor of software engineering at the University of Limerick, Ireland and was previously Director of the Software Engineering Laboratory at National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Goddard Space Flight Centre in Greenbelt, Maryland, United States of America.  He was the leading graduating student during his undergraduate studies and he had his post-graduate studies at both Oxford University and Cambridge University.

Emerging technologies are playing a vital role in the development of digital economies around the globe.  The 2 books of the Honourable Minister emphasize key aspects of emerging technologies, namely datafication and cybersecurity.  With respect to datafication, it shows how data- its generation, processing and use play a critical role in determining success in the digital economy.  The book on cybersecurity discusses the importance of cybersecurity in protecting data and infrastructure to secure the digital economy of countries. Mr. Zhao and Prof Hinchey, both renowned global ICT personalities will serve as special guests at the public presentation.

The presentation of the books will take place during the Annual Stakeholders’ Consultative Forum on Emerging Technologies.  Professor  Mike Hinchey will deliver the keynote address at the event. Other  speakers include Dr. Soglo of Intel, United States of America (USA), Levin Born McCall of Regent Square Group, USA, Engr Richard Ogbuji, Chrema Technologies, Nigeria and other notable speakers.

Signed:

Reuben Muoka                                                                                   Dr. Femi Adeluyi                                                 

Director, Public Affairs                                                                       Technical Assistant (Research & Development)
Nigerian Communications Commission                                                to the Honourable Minister of Communications

Nigeria Identity Management                                                              and Digital Economy

July 13, 2022