Minister of Communications Technology, Mrs Omobola Johnson has inaugurated the council of ICT Heads of Federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

At the inauguration held in Abuja, the Minister said that it will mark the beginning of a new era in the ICT governance in MDAs.

The council, according to the Minister was a positive step to reinforce the commitment of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan in establishing an ICT Ministry to drive amongst others internal efficiency in government and good governance.

The Council of ICT heads according to the Minister is an advisory body with no decision making authority but can deploy influence, peer pressure and moral suasion to enable change within MDAs.

*Communications Technology Minister, Omobola Johnson

The Minister’s special assistant on Media, Efem Nkanga in a statement said that the Minister emphasized that the Council Heads would drive internal efficiency in MDAs, ensure improved IT service delivery, coordinate Federal Government IT Strategy and Implementation, Effective IT Project Management, and Integrated IT Budgeting within federal MDAs.

The Council she added would meet at least six times a year and the secretariat will be established in the E-Government Department of the Ministry of Communication Technology.

According to her, the Council may establish other Governance bodies including Architecture & Innovation Committee, Assurance, Compliance & Security Committee, Portfolio, Programme & Service Management Committee and IT Utilisation, Skills and Capacity Development Committee.

The terms of reference of the Council of ICT Heads according to the Minister includes promoting understanding of National Goals and Aspirations e.g. Vision 20:2020, promote collaboration and sharing of IT assets infrastructure and applications among MDAs and cross –Ministries, provide advice and act as sounding board for the Ministry of Communication Technology in ICT policy formulation and execution.

Other terms are encourage peer review of IT Architecture, IT Operations, IT Budget and IT Projects of ministries to identify opportunities for improvement and sharing/re-use of IT assets to optimize usage, act as change agents for the diffusion and adoption of leading IT Practices across MDAs, Promote Professionalism amongst the IT cadre and grown future leaders in the IT industry.

Earlier in his opening remarks, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr Henry Akpan said that the Heads of ICT in MDAs will play a significant role in achieving the mandate of the Ministry which is centered on deploying Information and Communication Technology to drive transparency in governance and improve the quality and cost effectiveness of public service delivery in the country.

He added that the Ministry was created to facilitate ICT as a key tool in the transformation agenda of Mr President in the areas of youth employment, wealth creation, economic growth, efficiency and transparency of government.