Minister’s Week In Review

Recap (November 18 – 22, 2024) of the activities of Dr. ‘Bosun Tijani, Honourable Minister for Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

INTRO 

As we approach the end of the year, our focus is gradually moving from reviewing our performance to making clear and concrete plans to build on the work we have done so far. Strategic documents like the 2025 - 2027 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) & Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) will serve as the basis for us to ensure that our Strategic Blueprint is integrated and aligned with the overall economic development plans of H.E. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

KEY FOCUS

Policy: To ensure efficient use of resources, promote effective governance, and achieve sustainable economic development, Dr. Tijani met with the Permanent Secretary, Directors in the Ministry and heads of agencies to highlight key details of the MTEF & FSP so as to ensure our priorities are aligned with the direction of the medium term document. 

TIMELINE

Monday

On Monday, I attended the Google DeepMind AI for Science Forum which held at the Royal Society in London. The Forum was organised to discuss the opportunities that AI in Science offers and the challenges in delivering on that promise. 

At the Forum I spoke on a panel with Dr. Fabian Theis, Head, Helmholtz Munich Computational Health Center, School of Computation, Information and Technology, Munich, and Dr. Asmeret Asefaw Berhe, Professor of Soil Biogeochemistry and Falasco Chair in Earth Sciences and Geology, University of California. The panel session was Chaired by Paul Hoeinz, President and Co-Founder, Lisbon Council.

Tuesday

With the release of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) & Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) at last week’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, it was important to ensure full alignment in my Ministry with the national growth objectives outlined in the document. In view of that, I held a session with the Permanent Secretary, Directors in the Ministry and heads of agencies to share key details of the MTEF & FSP and finalise plans to ensure all budgeting done so far fully aligns with the document. This follows the budget performance review sessions across respective agencies that held last week.

Then I had a meeting with the Natalija Gelvanovska-Garcia, Senior Digital Development Specialist at the World Bank to discuss the progress of the set up of the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) targeted at delivering 90,000km of fibre-optic cable to enhance internet connectivity across the country.

My final engagement for the day was an introductory meeting of the 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) Advisory Board where I formally welcomed the board members to their role as we work to scale the programme even further in the next few years.

The Advisory Board, which is Chaired by Emeka Afigbo, Senior Director, Developer Success, Okta, was set up to provide oversight and guidance for the continued successful implementation of the 3MTT programme.

Wednesday

Travelled to Geneva, Switzerland to join other distinguished Board members for my inaugural United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Board of Trustees meeting. 

Thursday

After being formally welcomed to the UNITAR Board of Trustees, Day 1 of the UNITAR Board meeting, which was chaired by Ambassador Luis Gallegos, was spent in discussions on the organisation’s strategic frameworks and the importance of the Summit of the Future outcomes. The Board also acknowledged overall growth and performance improvements considering challenging times for several international organisations, even as we continue to push for more impact on UNITAR’s stakeholders.

Friday

I started my day in a meeting with Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General, International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to discuss the ongoing plans for the setup of the Subsea Cable Resilience Advisory Body. We are currently finalising the selection of members and working towards an inaugural meeting before the end of the year.

We continued our deliberations at the UNITAR Board Meeting towards advancing impact by providing high-quality learning solutions to address the capacity development needs of individuals, organizations and institutions.   

      Following this, I was invited to speak at a session with the ITU leadership led by Secretary-General Doreen Bogdan-Martin, to establish the top priorities for 2025, and strengthen adaptive leadership approaches to ensure the organisation meets the challenges of the future.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

BLUEPRINT REVIEW

Last week, the Honourable Minister’s activities focused on the Policy pillar objective of his Strategic Blueprint as he met with the Ministry’s leadership to comprehensively review the 2025 - 2027 MTEF and FSP with a view to positioning Nigeria for robust economic development in the face of global challenges. I also made progress in my global advocacy for submarine cable security by meeting with Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to discuss ongoing plans for the setup of the Subsea Cable Resilience Advisory Body.