Galaxy Backbone Limited (GBB), Nigeria’s foremost ICT infrastructure and shared services provider to the Federal Government, wishes to reiterate and clarify the availability, maturity, and ongoing expansion of the Federal Government’s official email infrastructure, widely known as GOVMAIL.

GOVMAIL is a secure and centralized official email platform established for use by Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to facilitate professional, auditable, and efficient communication across all arms of government.

The platform was launched by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs, Didi Esther Walson-Jack as part of a broader digital transformation agenda aimed at modernizing public service workflows and reducing reliance on paper-based correspondence and fragmented, external email services.

Recent statements by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Didi Esther Walson-Jack, underscore the strategic importance of GOVMAIL in the wider push towards a paperless civil service.

In late 2025, she announced that over 100,000 official GOVMAIL accounts had been created for civil servants across federal MDAs under an expanding paperless policy and that the transformation reflects a clear shift away from traditional paper correspondence to secure digital communication at scale. Today, that number has grown to over 150,000 Official government email accounts, current in use by government workers across MDAs.

Galaxy Backbone also affirms that these email accounts operate within a protected sovereign government domain environment hosted on secure local infrastructure, supported by enterprise-grade cybersecurity architecture.

The platform underpins centralized identity management and ensures compliance with national data protection standards, reinforcing accountability, audit-trail visibility, and overall digital governance efficiency.

In addition to GOVMAIL, Galaxy Backbone operates secure national Tier III and Tier IV Data Centres, a robust National Fibre Backbone, a Security Operations Centre (SOC), and a Network Operations Centre (NOC) that jointly power mission-critical government digital services. This infrastructure is closely aligned with the Federal Government’s digital economy strategy and its efforts to deepen digital service delivery, transparency, and efficiency across MDAs.

To accelerate adoption and ensure that every government worker who is expected to have an official email has one, GBB is working collaboratively with MDAs to close existing gaps and onboard remaining staff within the shortest possible time. These coordinated efforts reflect the shared objective of equipping public servants with the digital tools necessary for responsive, efficient, and secure inter-agency communication.

Galaxy Backbone remains committed to working with stakeholders across the different arms of government to sustain and build on this progress. The company appreciates the emphasis placed on strengthening digital governance and remains ready to provide technical clarifications and support collaborative engagements that further advance Nigeria’s digital public service ecosystem.

In a strategic move to modernise Nigeria’s public service, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has concluded a specialised digital capacity-building programme for the Federal Character Commission (FCC).

The initiative, which included the donation of 35 laptops, aims to transition the Commission from manual processes to a data-driven oversight model, ensuring more transparent and equitable representation across all government MDAs.

In alignment with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s key priority area of reforming the economy for sustained and inclusive growth, as well as improving governance for effective service delivery, it forms part of NITDA’s Digital Literacy for All (DL4All) programme aimed at strengthening digital capacity across public sector institutions and building a workforce equipped to drive Nigeria’s digital transformation agenda.

The training, held at the Commission’s headquarters, focused on enhancing participants’ competencies in critical areas such as data analysis and data management, skills considered essential to improving institutional performance and service delivery.

Representing the Director General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa CCIE, the Acting Director of Digital Literacy and Capacity Building, Dr Ahmed Yusuf Tambour, explained the purpose of the intervention.

“We are here at the Federal Character Commission to carry out a training for staff of the Commission in the area of digital literacy to enhance their proficiency,” he stated.

He noted that the training was deliberately tailored to align with the Commission’s statutory responsibilities.

“We are particularly focusing on data analysis and data management, because this really aligns with the core mandate of the Commission,” he said.

The Federal Character Commission, which is responsible for monitoring and ensuring equitable representation in public service across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), relies heavily on accurate and well-managed data to carry out its oversight functions.

By strengthening staff capacity in data handling and digital tools, NITDA aims to enhance the Commission’s ability to manage nationwide datasets efficiently and transparently.

Describing the programme as impactful and well-received by participants, Inuwa said, “So it’s been a great journey. We’ve trained 35 participants here, and the training has been very well received.”

As part of the intervention, NITDA donated 35 laptops to the Commission to facilitate continuous learning and enable staff to seamlessly integrate digital tools into their daily operations.

The gesture is expected to reinforce the sustainability of the training outcomes and improve workflow efficiency within the Commission.

Expressing optimism about the long-term benefits of the initiative, Inuwa added, “We are hoping that this will help the Commission to manage the very, very important data that they collect across all MDAs.”

The intervention reflects NITDA’s sustained commitment to deepening digital inclusion within government institutions under the Renewed Hope Agenda. By equipping public servants with practical digital skills and the necessary tools, the Agency is advancing institutional efficiency, strengthening data-driven decision-making, and supporting the Federal Government’s vision of a modern public service capable of driving inclusive national development and economic reform.

Nigeria and the European Union have inked a scientific and technology deal that grants access to about €100 billion in research and innovation funding for scientists, start-ups, and public institutions.

The agreement is a significant boost to the country’s tech environment, providing new prospects for research, innovation, and start-up growth.

The arrangement was signed in Abuja by Gautier Mignot, head of the EU delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, and Kingsley Udeh, Nigeria’s minister of innovation, research, and technology.

After more than two decades without a formal framework, the agreement transfers cooperation from informal to structured, large-scale collaboration.

The European Commission’s Horizon Europe programme, the world’s largest public research budget, is at the heart of the deal, which will bring together Nigerian researchers and firms to work on cross-border projects in health, agriculture, climate, food systems, and new technologies.

Udeh stated that the relationship puts Nigeria as a continental powerhouse for science and enterprise, with an emphasis on translating research into commercially viable products and assisting startups in scaling into global players.

Gautier Mignot noted that Nigerian organisations are already active in several Horizon-backed and global health research projects, but the new pact provides a legal and political framework to significantly expand participation, funding access and visibility.

To ensure delivery, both parties created a Joint Science and Technical Cooperation Committee to drive implementation and track measurable outcomes.

Beyond academia, the agreement aims to support innovators, boost university–industry collaboration, and help more Nigerian tech firms compete globally, strengthening Nigeria’s position as a leading startup hub in Africa.