Nigeria’s Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, has revealed that by the end of 2025, the country will implement a comprehensive data classification system, with full local data hosting expected to be completed by the end of 2026. Speaking at the Africa Hyperscalers Digital Infrastructure Outlook 2025, Abdullahi explained that the data classification system will determine which types of data must remain within Nigeria’s borders, marking a critical step toward strengthening data sovereignty and supporting the nation’s growing digital infrastructure.
Abdullahi emphasized that this initiative is part of Nigeria’s broader digital transformation goals. With over 85% of Nigerian businesses already utilizing cloud platforms, he highlighted the significant growth potential in sectors like fintech, noting that Google Cloud’s largest customer in Africa is a Nigerian fintech. By encouraging the storage of data in local data centers, the government aims to enhance security while unlocking substantial economic opportunities for both local businesses and international investors.
In addition to the data sovereignty plan, Abdullahi discussed the progress of Nigeria’s Cloud-First Strategy, launched in 2019 to encourage government agencies and businesses to rely on cloud services instead of building individual data centers. While exceptions were allowed for regions lacking local infrastructure, the long-term vision is to develop hyper-scale cloud capabilities within Nigeria, nurturing local capacity and attracting international tech giants. He also shared insights on ongoing collaborations with global hyperscalers like Huawei and Google Cloud, who are actively working to establish regional data centers in Nigeria, further reinforcing the country’s growing role in Africa’s digital economy.
Abdullahi also shared the outcome of a two-day workshop held in November 2025, where local data center operators and hyperscalers gathered to discuss strategies for setting up infrastructure in Nigeria. The workshop resulted in a clear plan and timeline to ensure compliance with data sovereignty laws. Notably, just one month later, Huawei launched a region in Lagos, while Google Cloud engaged in discussions that led to a partnership with the Nigerian government. These discussions, including a meeting between Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Google CEO Sundar Pichai in Paris, focused on Nigeria’s transformative digital ambitions and the role of technology in driving national progress.
The collaboration with Google focuses on five key areas: infrastructure, skilling, AI innovation, cloud adoption, and investment frameworks. Abdullahi noted the immense potential technology holds in driving economic diversification, national security, food security, digital infrastructure, education, and healthcare. He emphasized the importance of regulation in creating laws and policies that foster market growth, enable innovation, and protect consumers. Additionally, he outlined how AI applications, rather than merely training models, should be a focus for Africa. At NITDA, AI has already been integrated into operations, such as document automation, regulation drafting, and knowledge management. These AI-driven initiatives aim to improve efficiency, reduce operational costs, and extend the benefits of AI across government agencies and sectors like finance, healthcare, agriculture, and education.
