Telecom
NCS urges Government to Leverage ICT Infrastructure for Sustainable National Electoral Process
The President of Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) has said that using ICT to elect credible leaders could motivate successful and satisfied politicians and encouraged emerging governments to adapt ICT innovations to mainstream development and governance.
Professor Adesola Aderounmu, President, Nigeria Computer Society and Co-Centre Leader, World Bank-Designated Centre of Excellence in Software Engineering, said this during a keynote lecture delivered at the 5th Covenant University Conference on e-Governance in Nigeria, on Thursday 7th June, 2018.
Aderounmu, said that it is important to highlight the existence of a genuine need for ICT systems for development in sub-Sahara Africa.
He said, “In particular, we have to distinguish elections as the best opportunity to encourage political leaders to promote innovation in the polity.
“As the 2019 elections draw closer, there is no doubt that putting in place relevant ICT infrastructure now for the application of adaptable technology in our electoral processes will go a long way to ensure transparency and credibility of the elections.
“It is a welcome development that the leveraging of technology had started, even if rudimentary, with the last 2015 elections that ushered in the present administration in Nigeria.
“For instance, the application of technology for biometric registration of voters, the issuance of smart permanent voters card (PVCs) to voters and voter verification and authentication using the smart card reader, has helped the infiltration of ICT into the electoral process.
“So also was the idea to scan and upload all voting result sheets for all the elections on a database, which was made accessible to all stakeholders for some months after the 2015 elections.
“All these formative adaptations of technology with the 2015 elections are commendable, but there is still a long way to go with our future elections”.
He further explained that for us to use ICT to transform our future electoral processes and elections,there is need to employ sensitization,Civic Education and E-Inclusion.
He said that “when it comes to conducting elections, sensitization and civic education are very key in the electoral process and are necessary for democracy.
“It is all about voter consciousness and popular participation in elections.
“The citizens who are voters need to be effectively sensitized or enlightened about their civic duties and rights during elections.
“Voter education should come before and during an electoral event, showing how, where, and when to vote.
“Citizens need to know why they must turn out to vote and how to cast their votes to make them count.
“Sensitizing and educating voters in Nigeria have always been done via the traditional mass media and direct town-hall community engagements.
“Now, with the pervasive influence of technology in society today, educating and cultivating the Nigerian voters can be done better with the leverage of digital media like the mobile phone with bulk SMS, bulk voice call or inbound interactive voice response, and the use of web-portals from pre-election polls.
“Digital technology now enriches political communications and voter engagement like never before.
” And with the majority of people having access to computers and mobile technology devices these days, INEC and other concerned agencies can transform the sensitization, civic education and e-inclusion of Nigerian voters with the use of the Internet via popular social media like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, WhatsApp and special mobile applications to channel and disseminate voter education messages.
He noted that another way to leverage ICT for Nigeria’s electoral process is through constituency delimitation, using digital maps and charts for proper voter registration.
Professor Aderounmu, stated that voter Registration and Data Capture constitute a major foundational step in the electoral process.
“Without a proper voters register, there cannot be proper elections.
“In the words of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on its website, “Voter Registration is a process through which those qualified to vote are identified and included in a list called the register of voters.
“They are then issued with voters’ cards, which entitles them to vote during elections.” INEC goes further to state that “A credible voters’ register is a prelude to free and fair elections.
“Voter registration helps to facilitate the credibility of the electoral process by preventing multiple voting as each person is only allowed to register once. With this, no one is allowed to register at multiple centres.
“It helps in preventing cases of underage voting because only adults of voting age (18 years and above) are registered.”
He admonish the controversies being experienced in Nigeria, over voter registration as some complains of ghost names appearing on the voters register, names of foreign nationals appearing and names of under-age voters appearing too on the register.
“Others complain of missing names on election days after they have registered.
“All these issues tend to mar the electoral process, but the use of ICT infrastructure can make a positive difference.
“Thus one would recommend the use of a Centralized Countrywide Database for voter registration, drawing on the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) data inventory.
“Updates to the centralized database can be done through Web Portal E-mails with smart fields, mobile apps, and automatic fingerprint and photo identification systems.
“In a way, online voter registration via the Internet is simpler and more secure than paper registration and manual updates,” he added.
Aderounmu, said that, Nigeria would catch up with the rest of the world’s advanced democracies with adoption of ICT tools in securing electoral process integrity and deepening a truly democratic culture, the government must demonstrate enough Political will.
In his words, this implies that there must be implementation of bold policy moves on the part of the stakeholders involved to commit to actualizing an ICT-driven electoral system for the nation.
“It is not enough to make promises; there must be affirmative action”.
He added, that investing in capital and IT infrastructure for an ICT-enabled electoral process is very important.
He said, Sufficient investment (capital wise) and infrastructure will set the country on the right course.
“If a chunk of the trillions of Naira loot being recovered by the government is invested in IT infrastructure for our elections, it will go a long way to help.
“Robust ICT systems for a national electoral system do not come cheap, but they will pay dividends for our democracy in the long term.
The NCS President, also proffered solutions we can leverage on to solve the challenge of poor ICT application in our electoral process.
He stated that if could invest in the use of intuitive and easy to use machines, we will getting close to solving the challenges.
“The government, especially INEC, must invest in intuitive and easy to use database and software technologies that are as simple as using mobile phones.
“This will remove the factor of complexity in the deployment of ICT tools in our electoral system”.
Aderounmu, emphasized the fact that in spite of the many challenges of deploying technology in our electoral processes and elections in Nigeria, its benefits remain enormous.
He said that, we must catch up with the rest of the world in adopting ICT tools to streamline our electoral process, advance our democracy and institutionalize an enabling e-governance culture.
He noted that, the incorporation of ICT in our electoral system will greatly help improve election management in the country.
“We must go further to deepen the ICT usage by upgrading, especially, our applications of Electronic Voters Register, Automatic Fingerprints Identification System and Smart Card Reader in 2019 General Elections in order to minimize the unwholesome practices of multiple registration and multiple voting.
“This is how we can guarantee electoral integrity and strengthen our democracy.
He however recommended the following six step if we want to get our electoral system right and strengthen our democracy.
1. The Federal Government should urgently push for broadband access all over the country through PPP models
2. The Government must develop a robust sustainability model
3. Must roll out and implement effective local content policy
4. Must invest in high quality IT Manpower development
5. Must see to the Establishment of IT parks and Digital Centres in all the 774 LGAs through PPP models
6. And lastly, the Government should embrace a unified database for Nigeria
Google has unveiled a new feature that allows Gmail users to change their existing email addresses without losing data or access to services, marking a major shift in the company’s long-standing policy.
Gmail
According to an update on Google’s account help page, the new option enables account holders to replace their current @gmail.com address with a new one while retaining all associated data, including emails, photos, and integrations with services such as Google Drive, Maps, and YouTube.
The guidance, however, was first spotted on the Hindi version of Google’s support page, suggesting that the rollout may begin in India or Hindi-speaking markets before expanding globally.
The English-language support page still carries the older advisory that Gmail addresses “usually cannot be changed.”
Google explained that under the new policy, users who update their Gmail address will automatically keep their original address as an alias.
This means emails sent to the old address will continue to arrive in the inbox, and the original address will remain valid for signing in to Google services.
Previously, users seeking a new Gmail address had to create an entirely new account and manually transfer their data, a process that often disrupted third-party app integrations. The new feature eliminates that inconvenience, ensuring continuity for users.
The company further clarified that while users can reuse their old Gmail address at any time, accounts that change their address will face certain restrictions.
These include a 12-month waiting period before another new Gmail address can be created, and the inability to delete the newly chosen address once it has been set.
Google assured users that all existing data would remain intact after an address update, including stored photos, messages, and emails.
The gradual rollout of the feature indicates that full global adoption is expected in the coming months, a move likely to be welcomed by millions of users who have long requested the ability to update their Gmail identities without starting afresh.
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has said that Nigeria’s internet usage reached a record 1.24 million terabytes in November 2025.
According to the latest data from the NCC, the figure rose modestly from 1.235 million terabytes in October, reflecting steady growth in digital activity across the country.
Broadband penetration in Nigeria crossed the halfway mark in November 2025, reaching 50.58 per cent, up from 45.61 per cent in January, the telecoms regulator reported.
The figure, however, falls short of the 70 per cent coverage target outlined in the National Broadband Plan 2020–2025, which expires this month.
The country had roughly 109 million broadband subscriptions by November. Growth has been uneven, hindered by infrastructure and regulatory constraints, including frequent fibre-optic vandalism that triggers 30 to 43 network cuts daily, high right-of-way fees, and declining subscriber numbers earlier in the year.
Expansion of mobile networks, particularly 3G and 4G services, alongside limited 5G rollouts in urban centres, affordable smartphones, and competitive data plans, has driven uptake.
Investments in the National Communications Backbone and private-sector initiatives have also improved access, especially in underserved areas.
While Nigeria is gradually improving digital inclusion, achieving the original broadband plan remains challenging due to high infrastructure costs, coverage limitations, and deployment hurdles.
The NCC maintains that continued investment in mobile networks and broadband infrastructure will sustain gradual growth in the sector.
Commenting on the development, some Nigerian analysts attributed the surge to the broader mobile and broadband adoption and the growing appetite for streaming, online learning and other digital services.
According to the analysts, the figures suggest that internet connectivity is no longer a luxury but a necessity for both business and leisure, underscoring the slow but steady expansion of Nigeria’s digital economy.
Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR) has named the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) among the top three Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the Federal Government with the Best Ranking in Website Performance for 2025.
L-R: Head Special Projects, Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Salamatu Andu; Executive Commissioner, Technical Services, Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC), Engr. Abaraham Oshadame; Director General Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR), Head Customer Support Service, Galaxy Backbone, Rosemary Ehize; Secretary to the ES. Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, Tahir Aminu at the BPSR award ceremony for top four MDAs in BPSR Website Performance and Ranking 2025 at the BPSR office on Tuesday, 23rd December, 2025.
This is coming barely three weeks after the telecom regulator was recognized as one of the top five best-performing Federal Government agencies for 2025 by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) – a testament to the Commission’s consistency in investment in technology for ensuring efficient service delivery.
In the BPSR 2024/2025 scorecard ranking of agencies’ websites, the NCC came second in the ranking, trailing behind Galaxy Backbone Limited, which came first while the Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) clinched the third position, from a pool of 235 MDAs, whose website were evaluated.
BPSR deployed 14 evaluation criteria in include MDA’s website compliance with .gov.ng domain name, appearance and aesthetics (look and feel) of the website, content, relevance to MDAs mandate/government policy and the website’ structure.
Others include website’s responsiveness (device compatibility), security, load time, usability/ease of navigation, availability/uptime, functionality, interactivity, accessibility and capacity building.
The recognition was announced at the official release of Federal Government 2024/2025 Scorecard Ranking for MDAs’ Website held at the Federal Ministry of Finance Auditorium in Abuja on Monday (December 22, 2025) while the award presentation took place at BPSR’s Office on Tuesday (December 23, 2025).
The award, which is an important index metric of the National e-Government Masterplan for determining the Nigeria e-Government Status, was received by the Commission in recognition of its commitment to maintaining a world-class website that enhances service delivery to the citizens.
Receiving the award on behalf of the Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, the NCC’s Executive Commissioner, Technical Services, Abraham Oshadami, appreciated the BPSR for the recognition, describing the award as “another encouragement for the Commission to be a better public service institution leveraging digital platforms such as our web presence to enhance public service delivery to our various stakeholders, thereby implementing the Federal Government’s Ease of Doing Business policy direction.”
While presenting the award to the NCC, alongside other two agencies, BPSR’s Director-General, Mr. Dasuki Arabi, commended the top three for their proactive decisions in maintaining world-class websites, which are compliant with the Federal Government’s policy direction in effective and efficient service delivery to the citizens.
According to the DG, the 2024/2025 MDA’s websites’ ranking represents a collective effort of federal public institutions in Nigeria to be transparent, accountable and open in governance, as well as a confirmation to align with global best practices in service delivery to the citizens.
Developed about six years ago, Arabi said as a result of the annual ranking, more public institutions have indicated readiness to embrace reforms, and align with the policy direction of the current administration’s Renewed Hope agenda on improve governance for effective service delivery, as introduced by His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“The ideals of harnessing and deploying technological tools for service delivery has become imperative following the COVID pandemic, and distortions of socio-economic system of nations, culminating in the evolution of competitiveness, cost effectiveness, and agile governance.
“As engine room of governance, it behoves on us in the public service to perform our statutory duties and we must put in place technological innovations and standardized websites to operate services as well as deliver service needs to citizens,” he said.
The Scorecard exercise, he said, is part of the BPSR reform broader function of conducting research on reform implementation efforts and presenting ‘best practice’ models to the entire Public Service, and to among others, improve access to government information, facilitate seamless financial transaction, eliminate corruption and cyber theft, as well as facilitate access to government services.
Speaking on the rigorous nature of the exercise that produced the top three winners, the DG said “in the past few weeks members of the Scorecard Jury drawn from inter-Ministerial Agencies, had worked tirelessly to mill websites of selected MDAs through a rigorous process of enduring criteria for the ranking and the outcome had also passed through a quality assurance mechanism to validate the outcome.”
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