Abia’s ‘One Citizen’ Vision Gets Federal Tech Backing as NITDA Pushes Interoperable Governance

Abia’s ‘One Citizen’ Vision Gets Federal Tech Backing as NITDA Pushes Interoperable Governance

By Gloria Sarauniya Usman

ABUJA, NIGERIA February, 2026 - The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting sub-national digital reforms, partnering with the Abia State Government to advance enterprise architecture and data interoperability across public institutions.

The collaboration was spotlighted at the Future Enterprise & Data Architecture of Abia State workshop themed, “One Citizen, One Identity: Unlocking Data-Driven Governance.” The forum convened policymakers, technocrats and development stakeholders to outline a roadmap for building an integrated digital public sector designed to eliminate duplication, improve revenue performance and enhance citizen service delivery.

Representing NITDA’s Director-General, Kashifu Inuwa, the Agency’s Director of Stakeholder Management and Partnerships, Dr. Aristotle Onumo, stressed that digital transformation succeeds only when institutions move beyond siloed operations. Speaking during a panel session titled “Breaking Silos, Building One Government,” he said interoperability must become the backbone of governance reform, enabling secure and consistent data exchange among Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

He noted that NITDA is developing a national interoperability framework while promoting Enterprise Architecture standards to ensure structured data integration nationwide. According to him, digital reform is not merely technological but cultural, requiring leadership alignment, mindset shifts and sustained capacity development across the public service.

Declaring the workshop open on behalf of Governor Alex Otti, Deputy Governor Engr. Ikechukwu Emetu described the initiative as central to Abia’s economic modernisation drive. Stakeholders concluded with a call for stronger federal–state collaboration, positioning Abia’s “One Citizen, One Identity” model as a potential blueprint for unified, data-driven governance in Nigeria.