Once again, stakeholders within the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector have voiced their opposition to the proposed amendment of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) Bill. This bill aims to establish legislation granting NITDA the authority to oversee the administration, implementation, and regulation of Information Technology Systems and Practices in Nigeria.
Over the weekend, the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) organized a virtual press conference and united with fellow industry stakeholders in opposing the bill. They emphasized that the bill fails to adequately reflect the national interest of the country due to its disregard for the valuable input of industry stakeholders.
NCS President, Prof. Adesina Sodiya says NITDA was established as an IT Development Agency for the implementation of IT policies in the country. Industry stakeholders were not carried along in the formulation of the NITDA bill and the bill does not reflect the position of industry stakeholders because our views were not represented in the bill. We have taken a closer look at the bill and discovered that it is not good for the development of Information Technology in Nigeria.
He further explains that they have approached NITDA’s management and told them of the implication of the bill, but they have since realised that the bill is being pushed by the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ibrahim Pantami, in collaboration with NITDA, to the detriment of industry stakeholders and the IT industry.
