The United Nations University on e-governance states that it will continue to support the International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance, with a focus on digital transformation in Africa.

Delfina Soares, director of UNU-EGOV, said this at the weekend during the closing ceremony of the 18th edition of ICEGOV, organised by the National Information Technology Development Agency in Abuja.

Ms Soares said over the years, ICEGOV had served as a global platform for countries to jointly reflect on digital transformation, policy evolution, and governance innovation.

She said that Nigeria, along with participating countries, would benefit directly from the strengthened knowledge exchange, peer engagement, and international networking that took place among participants.

Soares, who noted that Nigeria has been part of ICEGOV activities since 2018, stated that the country’s continuous participation reflected the increasing priority it places on modern digital governance.

“One of the impacts is the strengthened community that was here; there is also the volume of information exchanged about the latest developments in frameworks, policies, and challenges of digital governance.

“This knowledge certainly benefits Nigeria and the countries that participated in the conference. The UNU-EGOV remains committed to organising and supporting this conference for better digital governance,” she said.

Adegboyega Ojo, programme chair for ICEGOV 2025, said Africa must adopt emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, in a way that aligned with Africa’s context and governance realities.

“Africa needs to own its digital transformation because the  deal will not be handed over to us. Africa understands its own problems, so it must adapt ideas discussed here, like AI for governance, in ways compatible with its systems,” he said.

Also speaking, Lukman Lamid, special assistant to the NITDA director-general on innovation and research, stated that the federal government was prepared to incorporate the conference’s outcomes into its digital economy policy frameworks.

Mr Lamid said that part of the recommendations included strengthening digital public infrastructure, with emphasis on broadband penetration and connectivity.

“The project to roll out 95,000km of fibre optic cable by 2027 is aimed at ensuring more Nigerians have access to the internet. This will improve the digital economy and diversify the broader economy, and that is a project on building digital infrastructure,” he said.

(NAN)