In a significant push to modernise Nigeria’s public service, the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation has announced a partnership with the Federal Government to boost the digital capacity of civil servants. The newly launched programme, in collaboration with the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) and Coronation Group, is designed to transform how government workers operate, aiming for increased efficiency, transparency, and citizen-centred delivery.
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What the Programme Entails
This initiative addresses longstanding challenges within Nigeria’s bureaucracy—namely, outdated workflows and limited familiarity with digital tools in many Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs). According to the Foundation, many public servants lack essential digital literacy, which hampers automation, slows decision-making, and weakens collaborative efforts across government.
The training modules will centre on four core areas:
- Microsoft Office productivity tools, enhancing accuracy and documentation skills.
- Cloud collaboration and communication, encouraging real-time teamwork through modern platforms.
- Enterprise systems, especially Enterprise Content Management Systems (ECMS) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) to streamline workflow and data access.
- Digital workplace readiness, making sure civil servants are comfortable operating in a digitally-enabled environment.
The intention is to equip participants with the practical skills they need—not just to use technology, but to integrate it into their daily work, enabling smarter decisions, greater accountability, and more responsive public service.
Who Will Benefit
The programme is being delivered by Wootlab Foundation in Abuja, with a cohort of 500 civil servants selected. These officers will come from:
- Federal Ministry of Justice
- Federal Civil Service Commission
- Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investment
Both directorate-level and mid-level officers will be included, receiving practical instruction on collaboration, workflow automation, and document management using ECMS and CRM.
Why This Matters: Strategic Impact
Digitalisation as Reform
Eniola Olowu, Deputy Director of Programmes at the Foundation, emphasised that digitalisation is at the heart of a “modern, efficient, and citizen-centred Civil Service.” By building capacity in digital tools, the programme seeks to strengthen public sector performance, ultimately improving how citizens experience government services.
Alignment with National Policy
The initiative neatly fits into the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 2025 (FCSSIP25), particularly its enterprise content management component. The timing aligns with broader national goals, including Nigeria’s drive to become more digitally literate across its workforce.
Private-Sector Commitment
For Coronation Group, the partnership underscores its belief that a strong private sector depends on an efficient public service. Ngozi Akinyele, Coronation’s Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, highlighted that upskilling civil servants is not just good governance, but also foundational for business confidence and economic growth. Meanwhile, the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation sees this as part of its mission to encourage public sector innovation and long-term institutional reform.
Broader Context: Digital Literacy Across the Civil Service
This upskilling effort is not isolated. In September 2025, the OHCSF launched a Digital Literacy Action Plan across the federal civil service. The plan, backed by NITDA (National Information Technology Development Agency) and Cisco, requires core MDAs to train staff on digital competency, cybersecurity, and emerging technologies like AI. Weekly peer sessions and webinars will support continued learning, while a Digital Literacy Award will recognise MDAs that excel.
Additionally, earlier this year, Google joined a similar effort: it launched an AI training programme for civil servants, in partnership with the Ministry of Communications and Apolitical, a global learning platform.
All these initiatives reflect the government’s increasingly coordinated strategy to build a tech-literate public service. And the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation’s programme slots neatly into that – its specific, skills-based training complements national reforms aimed at achieving up to 95% digital literacy by 2030.
Challenges and Opportunities
Challenges
- Scaling: While 500 civil servants is a strong pilot, scaling this training across all MDAs will be demanding, given Nigeria’s large public service.
- Sustained Adoption: Training is one step; embedding new digital habits into everyday processes is another. Without ongoing support, there’s a risk that civil servants may revert to old, manual systems.
- Infrastructure Gaps: Not all government offices may have reliable internet or modern hardware that supports cloud-based tools.
Opportunities
- Efficiency Gains: If adopted widely, digital tools like ECMS and CRM could radically speed up government operations, reducing redundancy and boosting transparency.
- Data-Driven Decision Making: Equipping civil servants with data tools opens up the possibility for more evidence-based policy and service delivery.
- Model for Other Reforms: This could set a template for future public sector reforms, private–public partnership, capacity building, and digital transformation integrated around a national strategy.
Conclusion
By partnering with the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation, the Federal Government is making a bold statement: it wants a civil service that doesn’t just operate in the 21st century, but leads in it. With the right training, 500 selected civil servants will become the first wave of a digitally empowered workforce, one equipped to embrace automation, collaborate seamlessly, and serve citizens more responsively.
If successful, this programme has the potential to catalyse a broader transformation across Nigeria’s public service, driving more efficient, transparent governance, and laying the groundwork for a fully digitised civil service in the years ahead.
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