By Abiodun Folarin
WorldStage– The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has urged Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to strengthen collaboration in protecting government digital infrastructure against rising cyber threats, revealing that cybercrime cost Nigeria more than $3 billion between 2019 and 2025.
The Director-General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa, made the call at the opening of a two-day Cybersecurity Workshop for MDAs in Abuja, themed “Securing Government Digital Infrastructure through Capacity Building.”
Inuwa who was represented by the the Assistant Director in the Agency’s Cybersecurity Department, Dr. Ayodele Bakare, said the workshop comes at a critical time when cyberattacks targeting government digital platforms have become more frequent, sophisticated and disruptive, posing significant risks to governance, public trust and national development.
He said that government websites and digital services, relied upon daily by millions of Nigerians, have increasingly become targets of cybercriminals through website defacement, ransomware attacks, data breaches and the misuse of personal information.
“We have watched websites of government organisations defaced, hijacked and quietly redirected to gambling sites. We have seen coordinated ransomware attacks force government web portals to shut down and witnessed repeated attacks on government databases leading to data exfiltration and abuse of personal data,” he said.
Citing findings from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Cybercrime Assessment for Nigeria, the NITDA boss said Nigeria ranks among Africa’s three most targeted countries for cyberattacks due to its rapidly expanding digital economy and growing digital footprint.
He also referenced the Lloyd Cybersecurity Outlook, which estimated that cybercrime cost Nigeria more than $3 billion between 2019 and 2025.
According to him, every government digital service represents a promise of efficiency, transparency and accessibility, but such promises can only be fulfilled if the underlying systems remain secure.
Inuwa stressed that cyber threats are increasingly orchestrated by organised and well-funded criminal networks capable of exploiting vulnerabilities across institutions, making collaboration among MDAs essential.
“A weakness in one MDA becomes a doorway into another. Our defences cannot be fragmented. Cybersecurity in government is a shared national obligation, and we are only as strong as our least protected system,” he stated.
He reaffirmed NITDA’s commitment to strengthening national cyber resilience through its Computer Emergency Readiness and Response Team (CERRT), which serves as the government’s first point of contact during cyber incidents. However, he emphasised that the ultimate goal is to prevent attacks before they occur through proactive security measures.
The Director-General said effective cybersecurity requires continuous risk assessments, strong governance frameworks, policy implementation, regular awareness campaigns, technical safeguards, incident response planning and sustained capacity building.
He also described personnel as the most critical component of any cybersecurity strategy, stressing that informed and security-conscious employees remain the first line of defence against cyber threats.
“No firewall or technical control can replace an informed, alert and security-conscious workforce. That is what we refer to as the human firewall,” he said.
Inuwa urged participants to take advantage of the workshop by engaging in practical discussions, intelligence sharing and collaborative problem-solving based on real-life cyber incidents affecting public institutions.
He disclosed that participants would also be the first external stakeholders to review and provide input on NITDA’s draft Regulatory Guidelines for Government Information Security Management ahead of wider stakeholder consultations.
He encouraged participants to openly discuss cybersecurity challenges within their respective organisations, noting that lessons learned by one agency could help prevent similar incidents elsewhere.
“Ask difficult questions and honestly share the security concerns within your environment because your candour may help a sister agency avoid the same issue,” he advised.
Inuwa concluded by stressing that Nigeria’s digital transformation presents enormous opportunities, provided government institutions remain committed to protecting the country’s digital assets.
“Nigeria’s digital future is not a threat to be feared. It is an opportunity to be secured. Securing it is precisely the duty we have gathered here to take up together,” he said.
The workshop is expected to strengthen cybersecurity capacity across MDAs, enhance inter-agency collaboration and reinforce Nigeria’s collective resilience against emerging cyber threats, in line with NITDA’s commitment to building a secure, trusted and resilient digital ecosystem.Representing the Director General of NITDA, Ayo Bakare delivers the opening remarks at the Two Day Cybersecurity Workshop for MDAs, underscoring the importance of strengthening cybersecurity resilience across government institutions to safeguard Nigeria’s digital infrastructure.
