NITDA DG: Digital identity is trust layer of Nigeria’s digital economy
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NITDA DG: Digital identity is trust layer of Nigeria’s digital economy
By Alabidun Shuaib AbdulRahman
The Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency, NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, has described digital identity as the “trust layer” of Nigeria’s digital economy, saying it can expand access to services and strengthen the country’s digital public infrastructure.
Abdullahi stated this on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York while participating in a high-level panel, “Identity in Action and Access to the Digital Economy,” convened by the National Identity Management Commission, NIMC.
The session formed part of discussions on “The Digital Public Ecosystem: Identity, Trust and Inclusive Access,” which brought together policymakers and private-sector stakeholders to examine the role of trusted digital identity in expanding access to the digital economy.
The NITDA boss joined the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President, Senator Ibrahim Hassan Hadejia; National Coordinator of the Renewed Hope National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme, Aderemi Adebowale; and Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Flutterwave, Olugbenga Agboola.
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The session was moderated by the Executive Director of Technology for Social Change and Development, Diwura Oladepo.
Abdullahi said digital identity should not be viewed merely as a card or identification number but as foundational infrastructure upon which trusted digital services could be built.
“Digital identity is the trust layer of the digital economy,” he said.
According to him, a trusted identity system would allow authorised innovators and service providers to build on foundational identity infrastructure instead of creating separate and fragmented verification systems.
He said this could reduce verification costs, accelerate customer onboarding and expand access to digital services across sectors including financial technology, healthcare, education, agriculture, insurance and government.
The NITDA director-general illustrated the potential of an interoperable system with the example of a farmer who could use the National Identification Number to establish identity, verify eligibility through an agricultural platform, receive support through a payment system and interact with authorised government services without repeatedly submitting the same information to different institutions.
He said the next challenge for Nigeria was to convert the growing scale of digital identity into practical and trusted utility.
Abdullahi said the objective should go beyond identifying Nigerians to building a secure and interoperable digital ecosystem capable of enabling citizens to access services and participate safely in the digital economy.
“Digital identity is not the destination; it is the doorway,” he said.
He added that such an ecosystem should enable Nigerians, irrespective of location, gender or economic circumstances, to access services and opportunities while protecting their identities and personal information.
