Exceptional and transformational Chief Information Officers were recently, honored for their innovative contributions to Nigeria’s technology space.
The award with the theme: “Honouring Digital Eminence,” held in Lagos, was organized by an enterprise governance firm, Edniesal Consulting Limited.
Speaking during the event, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Pantami, said the award ceremony was truly a testimony that the contribution of those who have greatly shaped the industry, disrupted the ecosystem, and immensely added to the economy with their creative ideas and solutions will not go unnoticed.
Pantami, who was represented by the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the National Identity Management Commission, NIMC, Engr. Aliyu Aziz said: “In essence, we need a digital government, a digital society, and also a digital economy for a digital transformation to improve the lives of our people and support stronger communities.
“The task at hand requires a nationwide coordinated effort. For stakeholders, it must be a collaborative effort to reorganize administration and governance. I want to implore all participants here to study the strategy and see areas of collaboration to transform Nigeria.
“The level of technological advancement and data-driven solutions have shown us that digital innovation is no longer an option but an essential tool for reinvention and effectiveness that will benefit businesses, individuals, and nations.” he said.
According to him, “The projects and initiatives of the Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy and its commitment to the digital transformation of Nigeria are being enabled through the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy, NDEPS, whose focus is for the digital economy to drive other sectors in the economy, while facilitating the digitalization of all sectors in Nigeria.
Also, the convener of CIO Awards and the CIO Club Africa, Abiola Laseinde, in her welcome address said that the CIO Awards is the first of its kind in Nigeria and has now embarked on an African expansion to include digital leaders from Kenya, South Africa, and Ghana.
According to her, “The Awards are widely recognized and warmly saluted by winners and fellow participants.
“This year, the Awards categories have been increased to include Media, Education, and Social Services. Our special awardees are transformational leaders who are running the most successful projects, winning initiatives, and driving transformational growth in the industry.
“All the finalists were selected during strict evaluation processes. I need to let you know that all the nominees are highly distinguished people and notable contributors to the technology ecosystem. “We invited independent members of the Jury from Nigeria and other African countries to assist us to objectively examine and make qualified assessments of the shortlisted entries and nominees.
“The evaluation exercise was done in conjunction with our technical partners; Deloitte and KPMG. I want to appreciate the incredible hard work put into the entire project.
Similarly, President of the Executive Leadership Council of the CIO Club Africa, Mr. Obinna Ukonu said the need to recognize, celebrate, and appreciate digital personalities has never been this important.
“When we consider the mass exodus of talents that we are currently witnessing leave Nigeria for other countries, platforms like this and events like this provide an opportunity to recognize these talents for their outstanding contributions to the Nigerian IT ecosystem.
“This kind of platform, The CIO Awards can retain and sustain the talents that we have. The reason for this is because; these IT talents form a major part of our human infrastructure in Nigeria. If we lose them, we will definitely spend more to close the gap that we have created or even to import capabilities that will be needed to help us drive our digital agenda,” he added.
