The Federal Government has announced plans to establish a National Cybersecurity Coordination Council, signalling a strategic shift toward a more unified, partnership driven approach to protecting Nigeria’s fast-growing digital economy from increasingly sophisticated cyber threats.
The announcement was made by the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, with the initiative being championed by Communications Minister Bosun Tijani. The proposed council will serve as a multi-stakeholder platform to enhance coordination, information sharing, and collaboration across public and private sector institutions, aimed at improving Nigeria’s ability to respond to cyber incidents that have disrupted operations across key sectors.
According to Sahara Reporters, Tijani said the initiative follows recent cybersecurity incidents that have posed significant risks to customers and disrupted operations across major private institutions, public systems, and Nigeria’s services industry.
Among the high profile incidents cited is a breach at Sterling Bank, where a threat actor claimed to have exposed data linked to hundreds of thousands of customer accounts, raising widespread concerns about identity theft and financial fraud.
The council is envisioned as a non-statutory body bringing together Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs), cybersecurity professionals, technology firms, law enforcement agencies, and relevant government institutions. It will also provide advisory support to the Federal Government on strategies and frameworks needed to strengthen national cyber resilience.
Stakeholders will collaborate on threat intelligence sharing, sector-wide cyber defence protocols, capacity-building programmes for Nigeria’s cybersecurity workforce, incident response and recovery frameworks, and governance and regulatory alignment to enhance accountability and readiness.
To get the council off the ground, Tijani directed four agencies, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Galaxy Backbone Limited, and the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) to jointly establish a technical coordination secretariat. The secretariat will be domiciled within NITDA and will report to the minister’s office.
According to Tech Africa News, formal stakeholder consultations are set to begin this month with a national cybersecurity industry roundtable, which will define the Council’s operational framework.
The process will also be conducted in consultation with the Office of the National Security Adviser, reflecting the broader national security implications of cybersecurity governance.
Tijani summed up the government’s position plainly “Cybersecurity is a shared national responsibility. Protecting Nigeria’s digital economy requires strong partnerships, trusted collaboration, and collective vigilance across government, industry, and civil society.”
