Afr J. Lib. Arch. & Inf Sc. Vol. 16, No. 1 (2006) 9-18

National Information Technology Policy in Nigeria:Prospects, Challenges and a Framework forImplementation

Wolc Michael Olatokun

Africa Regional Centre for Information Science(ARCIS)No. 6 Benue Road, P.O. Box 22133.University of Ibadan, Nigeriawoleabbeyolatokun(ci>yahoo.co. uk

Abstract

The paper highlights the crucial role ofinformation technology (IT) in developmentglobally and the need for countervailing policiesto regulate IT. The Nigerian Government 'sinitiatives in the IT sector especially theformulation of an IT policy in 200/ waspresented. An overview and review of Nigeria sNational Information Technology Policy and theefforts of the National Information TechnologyDevelopment Agency (NITDA). the policy'simplementation organ, towards implementation,followed. The prospects and challenges ofimplementing the IT policy were later discussed.By way of recommendation, the paper suggesteda framework for the successful implementationof the IT policy. It concludes by submitting that itis the responsibility of NITDA with the fullbacking of the Nigerian government, to transformthe digital divide to digital opportunity forNigerians and that the future and destiny of IT inNigeria is bright provided the Government andNITDA work together and apply therecommendations suggested.

IntroductionThe crucial role of information and communicationtechnologies (ICTs) in stimulating development is of

a double-edged type. On the one hand, it allowscountries to leapfrog stages of economic growth bybeing able to modernii e their production systems andincrease their competitiveness faster than in the past.The most striking example is that of the Asian Pacificeconomies, and particularly the cases of Hong Kong,Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia and South Korea. Thisis so in of spite the current fuiancial crisis which isunrelated to competitive performance and theattractiveness of booming Asian economies to globalcapital flows. On the other hand, for those economiesthat arc unable to adapt to the new technologicalsystem, their retardation becomes cumulative.

Siib-Saharan Africa and South Asia are at thebottom of the list of world regions in terms of digitalprosperity and opportunity. It is said that these lessinfonnation and communications technologies (iCTs)-devcloped countries are not able to participateeffectively in the accelerated process of globalisationand the acceleration of growth and transformationof work and factors of production now occurring asa result of ICTs. But it is also true that the developedcountries cannot effectively and efficiently globalisetheir capitalist expansion into new and emergingmarkets without a minimum existence of the requisiteICT infrastructure available in developing countries(UNCTAD 1998). On a global scale, there is a needfor appropriate policies that would demonstrate aconscious effort to make the entire world enjoy thebenefits of globalisation.

Nigeria returned to democratic governance in1999. In 2001 the Government formulated theNational Policy for Information Technology (IT) torespond to the emerging global trend. Since theformulation of the policy, stakeholders have notedthat not much is being done by the NationalInformation Technology Development Ageney(NITDA), the governmental organ entrusted with the

10 WOLE MICHAI-.

implementation of the policy, to make Nigeria realiseits dream of being part of the process of globalisation.In other words, the formulation of the policy had notyielded the necessary fruits and dividends owing tothe strategies that NITDA had adopted for itsimplementation. This article examines the Nigeriannational information technology policy situation andrecommends a framework tor the policy's suceessfulimplementation.

An Overview of Nigeria's National InformalionTechnology Policy (NITP)

The Nigerian Federal Government approved anational information technology (f I) poliey in March2001 and its implementation started in April 2001 withthe establishment of the National InformationTechnology Development Agency (NITDA),charged with the implementation responsibility. Thepoliey recognised the private sector as the drivingengine of the IT sector. NITDA is to enter intostrategic alliance, collaboration and joint venture withthe private seetor for the actualisation ofthe IT vision,which is to make Nigeria an IT eapable country, usingIT as an engine for sustainable development andglobal competitiveness. It is also to be used foreducation, job and wealth creation, poverty eradicationand global competitiveness.

Based on the content analysis carried out on thepoliey, it was found to be very comprehensive inscope. The policy gave recognition to fifteen sectoralareas, namely: human resource development,infrastructure, governance, research anddevelopment, health, agriculture, trade and commerce,fiscal measures, government and private sectorpartnerships, arts, culture and tourism, nationalseeurity and law enforeement, legislation, globalconsiderations, and IT popularisation and awareness.

The policy eould be described as relevant to theIT needs of the eountry. The only gap is howrealisable most ofthe objectives and strategies setout in the policy are. The vision statement of thepoliey is "to make Nigeria an IT capable country inAfrica and a key player in the information society bythe year 2006, using IT as the engine for sustainabledevelopment and global competitiveness." The lowlevel of general literacy coupled with computerliteracy makes the vision statement much of an emptyrhetoric. Nigeria's population is predominantly ruraland a large number of people do not have aecess to

education facilities, and sometimes, where these* areavailable, they are of very poor quality. Althoughilliteraey rates ofthe adult population have reducedfrom the figures ofthe 1980s and early 1990s(i:arthTrends, 2003), the number of people who cannot reador write in Nigeria is still relatively high. Added tothis is the low level of computer literacy. Even amongthe literate Nigerian population, a majority are notcomputer literate.

The consequences of a large number of peoplein Nigeria not being able to read and write, as shownin table I and figure 1, on the one hand, and on theother, not being able to use computers, are many.Among them is the negative effect on development.This fact is supported by the Organisation of AfricanUnity's (OAU) statement delivered on 8 September1995 - International Literacy Day, which indicatedthat "Illiteracy is the number one enemy to.Atrica'sdevelopment, contributing greatly to the povci t\ andmarginalisation of its people" [The Horn of AfricaBiiUetin 1995). Another effect is the inability ofthepeople to use various information communicationtechnologies and aeeess digital information

Table 1: Adult Literacy Rate - Nigeria,and World

Adult LiteracyRate, 2002FemaleMale

Youth LiteracyRate (ages 15-24), Both Sexes19802002

Nigeria

59%73%

55%88%

Sub-SaharanAfrica

55%71%

55%79%

Africa

World

75%86%

80%87%

Source: Earth Trends, 2003

Also, the mission statement of Nigeria's IT policyidentified five key areas for the use of IT: edueation,creation of wealth, poverty eradication, job creation,and global competitiveness. The question is, how canIT be used to create jobs and eradicate poverty whena large number ofthe population is still illiterate andnot knowledgeable about IT? Moreover, in thesectoral applications, Strategy (vii) under the NationalIT backbone reads "ensuring that the entire country

NATIONAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY POLICY IN NIGERIA 11

Literacy Rate for Adults over the age of 15, Nigeiia, 19S0-20OO

Source: Earth Trends, 2003

is linked through information network systems by theyear 2006." When one considers the present levelof information and communication infrastructure inthe country today, including low level of computingculture, underdeveloped communication equipment,as well as the low level of literacy and computerliteracy, it is difficult to see the relevance ofthestrategy to the situation on the ground. In Nigeria,for a large number of people who have access tocomputers, this is largely on computers located atworkplaces. The concept of computers for homeuse is not wide spread, partly due to the fact thatprices for computers in Africa are unaffordable. TheNigerian Government still considers computers asluxury goods and thus imposes high import duties andsales tax on computers making them more expensiveand unaffordabie to the majority.

Perhaps one ofthe most unrealistic objectivesin the content ofthe policy is Strategy (iv) undergovernanceasasector. The strategy requires all civilservants to become functionally computer- literatewithin 24 months ofthe policy coming into force.This is equally spelt out in Strategy (xiv) under policyimplementation: "making IT skills mandatory for allgovernment employees and achieving computerliteracy for all civil servants by year 2002," and underStrategy (iv) under the health sector as follows:making IT skills acquisition mandatory for all

healthcare professionals thus achieving computerliteracy within 24 months." Today, after about fiveyears since the policy came into operation, not muchhas been done in respect of training civil servants,although NITDA has, through its Human CapacityBuilding project, forged a thriving partnership withpublic and private organisations, A more detaileddiscussion ofthe Human Capacity Project of NITDAis discussed in the next section),

The policy also places emphasis on thedevelopment of National Information InfrastructureBackbone (NIIB) and Human ResourcesDevelopment. In addition, information technologyparks are to be developed in Abuja and in each ofthe six geo-political zones. The policy recognises theprivate sector as the driving engine ofthe IT industryand the Government is meant to enter into alliances,collaboration and joint ventures in order to achievethe goals and objectives ofthe IT policy.

Final ly, al I through the IT pol icy document, genderconcerns are not addressed in a way that shows anunderstanding of power imbalances and genderrelations. It makes no attempt to show anunderstanding or appreciation of gender issues, asevidenced by the use of gender-neutral terms in thedocument. It was assumed that by using these terms,it included everyone within broader categories ofpeople, without recognising the different contexts,needs or contributions by different sexes.

12 WOI.E MICHAEL OLATOK.UN

Activities of National Information TechnologyDevelopment Agency

The National Infonnation Technology DevelopmentAgency (NITDA) has since 2001 embarked on anumber of projects to make real the dream of usingIT for development in Nigeria. The Public ServiceNetwork (PSNet), Mobile Internet Unit (MIU) andHuman Capacity Development arc some of theseprojects. NITDA has been able to start the processof integrating IT into the public service through amassive enlightenment campaign that was targetedat the top echelon ofthe service. However, therehave been challenges of inadequate funding and lackof political will.

(a) Some Projects of NITDANil DA has embarked on a number of projects aimedat stimulating the growth of IC I in the country. ThePublic Service Network (PSNct) is one of suchprojects. The project is to address the major problemof ICT infrastructure and facilitates ICT services. Itconsists of a Very Small Aperture 'Icrminal (VSAT)sited in each state capital. This VSAT providesInternet access for that central location and all otherlocations connected to this centre using BroadbandWireless Access (BWA) technology. The varioussites around the country are then connected to eachother through a Virtual Private Network (VPN). Ninestates have already been completed in the first phaseofthc project (Ajayi, 2002).

Human capacity building has been another focusof NITDA, Towards realising this goal, NITDA hasco-operated with public and private organisations inwhat has become a public-private partnership (PPP).The Enterprise Technology Centre (HTC) is one suchPPP that is worthy of note. The ETC is a partnershipbetween NITDA and two private companies toprovide IT training for civil servants. In Nigeria, it israther difficult for a private company to embark onthe training of very top officials ofthe civil service.The ETC, which is located within the FederalSecretariat Abuja, has provided training for these topofficials. The Head ofthe Civil Service oftheFederation led all the permanent secretaries for atwo-week training. 1 his enlightenment has greatlyaided NITDA in its bid to integrate IT into the publicservice. With the training ofthe top oillcials, NITDAhas provided an enabling environment for the privatesector to train civil servants from top to the lowercadre.

NITDA has also collaborated with severalmultinationals and international organisations todeliver specialised training in some train-the-traincrworkshops. These institutions include UNESCO,International Centre lor Theoretical Physics (ICTP).Cisco Systems, etc. NITDA also collaborated withICTP by hosting the first African Workshop on OpenSource and Web Technologies for Developmentearlier in the year 2003. There has also beencollaboration with UNESCO on the Virtual Libraryand Virtual Laboratory projects for Nigeria.

Another project ofNIIDA is the Mobile InternetUnit (MIU), which is a locally made bus that hasbeen converted into a mobile training and cybercentre. Its interior has ! 0 high-tech workstations allnetworked and connected to the Internet to lacihtateaccess to several IT resources. It is equipped withprinters, a photocopier and a number ofmulti-mcdiafacilities. Internet access is provided via a Very SmallAperture Terminal (VSAT) equipment with a 1.2mdish mounted on the roofof the bus. Ihe unit is alsoequipped with a small generator to ensure regularpower supply. The MIU provides everything userswould need in a high-tech cyber centre and it hasthe added advantage of being mobile. It takes theInternet to places that have no other means of auccss,e.g. the rural areas. It has also been deployed tovarious primary and secondary schools. The plan isto get all states and possibly local government iueus(LGAs) to have their own MIUs so as to facilitatethe penetration ofthe Internet and IC T around thecountry (Ajayi, 2002).

(h) NITDA's ScoreciirdIn the past three years. NITDA has committed a lottowards ensuring that the public service, particularlythose in the top echelon, embrace IT. The rewardsof this drive have been most encouraging andrewarding, and NITDA has been able to get top-level civil servants to champion the course of IT inthe country, IT is now a major part of the ongoingcivil service reform currently on and the FederalGovernment has given instructions that NITDAshould serve as a clearing house for all IT projects inthe public sector. This will allow for a morecoordinated approach in thedevelopment of ICTs inthe public service.

Three years after the IT policy was adopted,the government has made efforts towards improvingthe telecommunication systems and introducing

NATIONAL INFORMATION TUCHNOLOGY POLICY IN NIGERIA 13

computer education in schools curriculum andenacting relevant laws, (although the freedom oi'information and c> ber crime laws are yet to be pas.sedby the national a.sscmbly). However, there is still aneed for a more significant shift in government'sattitude towards IT. With regard to the concretesteps which NITDA has taken towards implementingNigeria's IT policy, the real questions are as follows:what are the indices of a practical and sustainableframework for the implementation ofthe NigerianIT policy? Where are the research works in line withthe underlying philosophy with which government andNITDA have tried to pursue Nigeria's national ITaspirations? 1 here seems to be a deliberate attemptto address national IT superficially while the realissues arc buried under the overblown shadow of agovernment committed to making If the cornerstoneof a private-sector led economy. Specifically, whereare the IT parks and what has become of theambitious plan to produce the 500,000 IT skilledpersonnel for the national economy? Also, what hasbecome ofthe plan of making NITDA a proactiveand dependable guardian of a national IT blueprint?All these questions beg for answers.

Looking at the Mobile Internet Unit (MIU)project of NITDA, one cannot but describe it asanother failed project. Nigerian rural population isbetween 75- 82% and purely agrarian. So how manyvans will NlfDA buy to cover the entire Nigerianrural populations? Also, most roads in Nigeria's ruralareas are not tarred and the general literacy level,coupled with computer literac). is low. Moreimportantly, the MIU project is inflexible with respectto time as users are expected to be ready to use thefacility whenever it comes to their areas.

In sum, IT development in Nigeria today isincreasingly becoming synonymous with thegovernment officials and policy makers deliveringlong-winding speeches on the achievements ofthecurrent administration in IT. According to Oruame(2004) the advent of the GSM players and theirradical impact on the Nigerian large market is takento mean the development ofthe Nigerian IT sector.But IT development is really more than that, ITdevelopment hinges on a fundamental question: Howmuch of what goes around us as IT is Nigerian incontent? Government has severally expressed i tswillingness to support the indigenous softwareindustry but there is little to see in that direction, interms of concrete and practical support (Oruame,

2004). NITDA neither does not have any sustainablerelationship with indigenous software experts nor anic on local software entrepreneurs. Also, it doesnot have a clear-cut blueprint for softwaredevelopment.

Challenges for IT Policy Implementation inNigeria

As Africa's most populous country, Nigeriapossesses its most valuable resource, human capital.There are millions of people that could be potentialcandidates for information technology training. Unlikenatural resources, the high-technology industry isman-made and can be located in those countries thathad the foresight to produce the best scientists andengineers. India is perhaps the best example of thiskind of success. Once this training can be developedand implemented, the result will be increasedsoftware development, hardware development andmore companies doing business in Nigeria.

Nigeria has accomplished its first task inbecoming an equal player in the global economy. Ithas been able to link its telecommunicationsinfrastructure to the United States and Europe. Thislink will allow for freer flow oftechnology and skills.Nigerians will be better able to market their countryand its resources in the hope of drawing in increasedinternational investment. Investment from the privatesector is the key to the continued development ofthe telecommunications infrastructure and theinternet.

The Nigerian government is a signatory to severalInternet Corporation for Assigned Names andNumbers (ICANN) treaties and are at least awareof responsibilities regarding IP address spaceallocation, protocol parameter assignment, domainname system management, and root server systemmanagement functions. The key is for theGovernment to develop its own specific regulationsand enforce those regulations. The Government isoffering certain incentives to invite furtherinvestments by private sector firms. First, that taxesand import duties will not be excessive. Fiscalincentives will be available to those companies thatencourage local manufacturing oftelecommunications equipment and related softwareand easier methods for importing telecommunicationsequipment. The Nigerian government would like toeliminate a lot ofthe "red tape" and bureaucracy

14 WOLE MICHAEL OLATOKUN

involved in licensing and regulation procedures whichwould be simplified to encourage rapid inflow ofprivate investment.

The challenge of using IT as a too! fordevelopment in Nigeria has been a great one and thefact that the paradigm shift is taking place iscommendable. The greatest challenge has been thatof providing adequate funding for the implementationof Nigerian IT policy.

The 2004 literacy statisties indicate that only 65%of Nigerians over the age of 15 can read and write.These figures are a travesty to a country with suchvast human resources. There were no college leveleducation programmes focused on informationtechnology until a 1996 Organisation of African Unity(OAU) programme that was funded by the WorldBank. Generally, the country is far behind othercountries in West Africa like Ghana in IT policy.

Perhaps related to this, and even a greaterproblem, is that the brain drain and generally lowlevels of education and literacy amongst thepopulation has created a great scarcity of skills andexpertise (at all levels, from policy making down toend-user). Rural areas in particular suffer with evenmore limited human resources. Along with the verylow pay salary scales in the Nigerian civil service,is the chronic problem for governments and NGOswho are continually losing their brightest and mostexperienced manpower to the private sector. This issimply exacerbating the situation in Nigeria becauseexperienced technicians, even from the loeal privatesector, are able to find much higher paying jobs inEurope and North America. Also, women representmore than half of Nigeria's population, yet they aredenied educational and career opportunities whichare necessary for IT exploitation.

Internet access is currently very expensive andexcept for a handful of links, the connections areextremely slow. According to Jensen (2002)" ISP'spay too much for their international connectivity.''He also blames high licence fees, conditions imposedon those licences, limitations imposed on w ireless andVSAT access, excessive import duties on equipment,and limited skill and knowledge of the available optionsfor providing access.

Further, irregular or non-existent electricitysupplies are a common feature and a major barrierto the use of ICTs, especially outside the majortowns. Nigeria has extremely limited powerdistribution networks whieh do not penetrate

significantly into rural areas. Power shedding is acommon occurrence even in some major cities.

Finally, the general business elimate for increasedinvestment in Nigeria, acutely needed for the ICTsector, has suffered from the well-known problemsof small markets divided by arbitrary borders, non-transparent and time-consuming procedures, limitedopportunities, currency instability, exchange controlsand inflation. All these are the major challenges ofIT policy implementation in Nigeria.

A Framework for Implementing Nigeria's ITPolicy

In this section, we recommend a framework for theimplementation of Nigeria's IT policy as the wayforward towards implementing the policy. In doingthis, the following sectoral applications are suggestedwith reeommendations on what needs to be doneeither by the Government or NITDA.

Sectoral Implementation

(i) Human Resource DevelopmentThere is a need for an appropriate IT educationphilosophy for sustained human expertise at all thelevels of the Nigerian edueational system - primary,secondary and tertiary levels. According to theAfrican Information Society Initiative (AISl)framework drawn up by the United NationsEconomic Commission for Africa (UNECA), thefocus on capacity building is important since theadoption of appropriate information andcommunication policies would be futile ifaeountry'sinstitutions do not have the capacity and the incentivesto ensure effective policy implementation.

The Government should earry out masseducation of the populace both in general literacy,and in computing. This could be done right from thelocal government level under the supervision of themonitoring committee. Related to this is that theGovernment should aeeelerate IT awareness amongadministrators and decision-makers in government.Their literacy in IT will enable them to perceive therelevance oflT to nation building. Finally, institutionsof higher learning and research should be made torevise their curricula to incorporate the fundamentalsof IT including computer-aided design (CAD) andcomputer-aided manufacturing (CAM) systemsgeared to the local environment.

NATIONAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY POLICY IN NIGERIA 15

(ii) Infrastrticture DevelopmentThere should be the establishment of Nationalinformation Infrastructure Backbone (NIIB) to beinvolved in the planning, designing and configuringof a scalable National Information InfrastructureBackbone (NIIB). It will achieve a minimum eapacityof 2.5 Gbps using a combination of optical fibres,satellite communications and wireless technology. Inthe creation ofthe (NIIB), nodes should be set up ineaeh state and loeal government for easy andeffective implementation.

Existing facilities such as power grids andrailways infrastructure should be used to enhancethe creation ofthe (NIIB), encouraging the privateseetor, through relevant incentives, to build interfacingNil of fibre transmission systems. The NIIB shouldbe designed strietly to provide transmissioncapabilities on lease basis to service providersessentially for data transmission and not for telephony.

Plans should be put in place to ensure that theentire eountry is linked to information networksystems. This should be implemented in such a waythat the whole venture is decentralised and localisedfor easy monitoring and effectiveness. Also ,thereshould be short-, medium- and long-term aspects ofthe plan.

(in) IT Awareness and PoptdarisationA programme should be put in plaee aimed atpopularising information technology in the differentsectors ofthe Nigerian economy. The programmeshould be aimed at expanding the skill and careerdevelopment opportunities of infonnation teehnologyprofessionals in government. It eould also improvethe management and use of information technologywithin and among agencies. This could be achievedby developing infonnation technology proeedures andstandards, and by identifying and sharingexperiences,ideas and praetiees.

Also, the Government should encouragewidespread IT use in all major national agencies,especially in mission eritieal areas like finance,national planning, scienee and technology, education,health eare delivery, defence, etc.

(iv) DatabanksDatabanks designed to serve critical economicsectors are ofthe utmost importance in harnessingthe power of IT for national development. Databanks

should be set up to serve as repositories of accurateand reliable socio-economic data about the activitiesof government. The development of a government-wide or country-wide databank presupposes theavailability of resourees to make this work, Thus,the Government should make the following resourcesavailable: an enabling policy and legislativeframework; integration ofthe data bank with relatedsystems; availability ofmanpowerand tools to managethe databases and information network; improvedawareness of and provision of user-friendly accessto the databank, etc. The National Data Bank shouldbe strengthened and be put in charge ofthis sector.

{v) Research and DevelopmentGovernment's concern in this sector should be gearedtowards promoting self-relianee and export of ITproducts and services, and encouraging joint R & Defforts between the private sector and the universitiesespeeially in the area of software development. Also,the Government should identify key technologicalareas and there should be the provision of fiscalsupport and incentives to encourage local technologydevelopment as well as encourage technologytransfer.

There should be proper funding of R & D inidentified universities and stimulating growth of localIT industries through government patronage of localIT industries, products and services. The existing R& D institutions should be strengthened for them toachieve their set objectives. Government shouldencourage R&D activities as they relate to IThardware and software products. Along this line, theGovernment should provide a conducive environmentthrough poliey instruments to mobilise the humanresources of the country to go into softwareengineering with a long-term objective of earving outa niche for the eountry within the Sub-Sahara Africanregion.

In this connection, research should also be fundedto promote Nigerian languages. Democratisingaccess to ICTs requires more than technical literacy.It demands the ability of eitizens to not only usecontent but also generate content on their own. Atthe moment, much ofthe content on the Internet isin European languages, which are not understood bythe majority of Nigerians, suggesting that the contentofthe Internet is largely incomprehensible to them.Government should therefore promote R & D that

WOLE MrCHAEL OLATOKUN

will lead to the presence of Nigerian languages onthe Internet so as to make it truly a meaningfuldevelopment and information tool for al I Nigerians.

(vi) TelecommunicationsThe issues that are of strategic importance in thissector include the following among others:liberalisation of access and pricing oftelecommunication services, regulation of providersof telecommunications services and significantimprovement in telecommunications infrastructure.In line with these issues, Government shouldencourage the setting up of communication facilitiesto facilitate the flow of information. This could bedone by deregulating the telecommunication sectorfurther and allowing for more competition by thedifferent players in the sector. The fact that only fouroperators were allowed to operate initially in theGlobal System for Mobile Communication servicesmay be adequate for now, there is a need for theNigerian Communication Commission (NCC) toensure adequate interconnectivity, regulation ofservice quality and pricing, etc. Also more operatorsmay be invited to provide GSM services in order toderegulate the sector further.

(vii) Content Creation and Content IndustryThe convergence of print media, databases andtelecommunications has led to the advent of theelectronic content industry. The content industry hascome to mean various commercial and non-commercial activities relating to the bibliographic,textual and statistical databases, as well as theinformation, education and entertainment materialsin audio, video and multimedia forms. The Nigeriangovernment and its agencies are the largest producersof socio-economic and statistical information. Thesedata resources should be rationalised by usingstandardised formats and retrieval mechanismsthereby making them easily available online to theplanners, scholars and the public. All non-classifiedor declassified information in the possession ofthegovernment agencies should be made available tothe content industry on non-exclusive basis. In linewith this, the government should fund and sponsorresearch on various aspects of content creation anddevelopment, including related market studies, as wellas short and long-term vision and growth strategiesfor the sector. Detailed research studies eould beundertaken to identify specific areas for content

creation and its marketing at regional, national andinternational levels.

The national, regional and other public librariesshould be required to develop databases of theirholdings which should be hosted at designatedwebsites for free access to users. Also, universitiesand polytechnics should be supported to hostdissertations/theses submitted for research degreeson designated websites.

(viii) IT IndustryEfforts should be geared towards the developmentofthe Nigerian sofhvare industry. The productivityof the Nigerian software industry should becontinuously upgraded by de-licensing andderegulating the import of software productivity tools.In order to keep pace with the fast changing trendsin software technology, companies and softwaredevelopment organisations should be progressivelyencouraged to spend at least one-fourth of their totalsoftware budget for the purchase of softwareproductivity and quality tools and nascent softwarerelated to the latest software teehnology trends. Thegovernment should stimulate growth of local ITindustries through government patronage of local ITindustries, products and services.

(ix) Regional/International SectorIn this sector, efforts should be geared towardexploiting the opportunities offered by existinginternational and regional IT programmes. The natureof information technology is such that regional andinternational co-operation at various levels is essentialnot only for the setting up of regional/internationalstandards but also to continuously taking advantageofthe experiences of other nations in the planning,implementation and operation of IT systems. Towardsthis end, bilateral arrangements should be exploredfor this purpose.

The Government should fund the NationalInformation Technology Development Agency(NITDA) to meet obligations ofthe internationalcommunity and participating effectively in allinternational activities whose objectives wouldpromote IT development in the country. Also, theGovernment should support the effort of theEconomic Community of West African States(ECOWAS) in harmonising the training of ITpersonnel.

NATIONAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY POLICY IN NIGERIA 17

Legal Framework

It is recommended that NITDA should ensure thatall relevant bills forwarded by the government to theNational Assembly be passed into law. This will givea legal backing to the national IT policy. Laws shouldbe enacted to facilitate electronic communication,electronic commerce and mobile commerce; topromote intellectual property and copyright; topromote acceptable standards, authenticity andintegrity in IT use nationwide; and to establish cyber-laws to combat computer crime, etc.

In this regard, Nigeria could share from theexperiences of Malaysia and Singapore. Legalinitiatives to foster the implementation ofthe IT planin Malaysia are in consonance with the legalframework in Singapore: the Malaysian Evidence andCustoms acts have been amended so that companyrecords can be stored in electronic form and haveequal legal status as written documents. Other billsintroduced into the Malaysian Parliament in 1997 todeal with the challenges of electronic commerceinclude the Computer Crime Bill of 1997; the DigitalSignatures Billofl997;theTelemedicine Bill of 1997;and the Copyright Amendment Bill. The last billintroduces technology-neutrality into the copyrightlaw. The amendment also incorporates what isreferred to as the "communications to the public"right as defined within the confines of the WIPOCopyright Treaty. This expands the exclusive rightsof a copyright owner and improves the ability ofowners to protect materials published or sentelectronically over the Internet (Osineye andWoherem, 2000).

Policy Review

Also, NITDA should, among other functions, see tothe periodic review ofthe IT policy. Informationpolicy-making is a continuous process that can neverbe considered as finished (Horton, 1997). The nationalIT policy in force should be reviewed continuouslyto verify that it remains pertinent to the ever-changingpolitical, economic and social contexts in which thepolicy operates.

It should be noted that it is impossible to profferiron-cast guidelines that will make the task of anational IT policy hold for all times. The key issueswhich have been identified must all be carefullyreviewed/revised periodically to avoid operationalisingan IT policy that is obsolete. Thus, from lime-to-

time, NITDA should organise conferences andbrainstorming sessions where IT policy stakeholderswouI4 fine-tune and review the national IT policy.Alternatively, NITDA could organise a nationalinformation technology forum with the participationof relevant organisations and individuals after twoyears, in the first instance, to assess the policy'sperformance and thereafter as the need arises. Also,NITDA should issue annual reports on informationtechnology (IT) development in Nigeria. Advice onimplementation and revision may also be sought fromothercountries through bilateral arrangements.

Conclusion

Information technology (IT) is a multidimensionaltechnology and can, therefore, give every nation somerole in the globalising world. The development andsuccessful implementation ofIT policy in Nigeriaholds great hope for sustainable economicdevelopment ofthe country. It is the responsibility ofthe Nigeria Government and NITDA to transformthe digital divide to digital opportunity for Nigerians.It can be concluded that the future of IT in Nigeriacannot but be bright provided the Government andNITDA and other stakeholders work together andapply some of the recommendations given in thepreceding section.

References

African Development Forum (ADF) (1999a)Informalion and CommunicationTechnologies for Improved Governance inAfrica. Theme Paper. Addis Ababa; UnitedNations Economic Commission for Africa E/ECA/ADF/99/6, p29.

African Development Forum (ADF) (1999b)National Information and CommunicationInfrastructures; Country Profile. Addis Ababa:UnitedNations Economic Commission for AfricaE/ECA/ADF/99/l,351p.

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Ajayi, G.O. (2001) Overview and Analysis ofCurrent Multi-Country ICT Initiatives taking

18 WOLE MICHAEL OLATOKUN

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* Wole Michael Olatokun is a lecturer in the AfricaRegional Centre for Information Science at theUniversity of Ibadan, Nigeria. He obtained his Masterand PhD degrees in Information Science from theUniversity of Ibadan.