The National Information Technology Development Agency has reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to deepening collaboration with the United States to build a secure, trusted, and resilient digital ecosystem, with data privacy, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and capacity building identified as priority areas.
The Director-General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, stated this while speaking at the Nigeria Data Privacy Capacity Building Workshop organised by the United States Department of State in collaboration with the Nigerian Mission and key stakeholders across the digital ecosystem. He described the engagement as a strong signal of the enduring partnership between both countries in strengthening Nigeria’s digital and technical systems.
According to Abdullahi, the collaboration reflects a deliberate and evolving effort by Nigeria and the United States to jointly respond to emerging digital challenges while unlocking opportunities in a rapidly transforming global economy. He noted that the partnership goes beyond policy dialogue and is increasingly focused on practical capacity building, technology exchange and institutional strengthening.
He recalled that in April 2024, both countries, under the U.S.–Nigeria Binational Commission, reached agreements to cooperate more closely on data privacy, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and broader digital development initiatives. That momentum, he said, was further reinforced by the successful hosting of an Artificial Intelligence Conference co-organised by the Nigerian Government and the U.S. Mission in Nigeria, as well as Nigeria’s engagements with U.S. cybersecurity companies to explore partnerships aimed at strengthening the country’s technical ecosystem.
Abdullahi stressed that a prosperous and inclusive digital economy cannot be achieved without strong safeguards for data and systems. He explained that artificial intelligence is fundamentally driven by data, data protection depends on privacy frameworks, and privacy itself can only be sustained through robust security structures, making it critical for governments and stakeholders to approach these issues in an integrated manner.
For Nigeria’s growing digital sector, including technology-driven small and medium-sized enterprises, the strengthened collaboration is expected to support safer digital transactions, improved trust in online services, and better alignment with global standards. NITDA said such efforts are essential to positioning Nigeria as a credible digital economy while protecting citizens, businesses, and institutions in an increasingly data-driven world.
