Minister’s Week in Review

Last week’s (September 30 – October 4, 2024) recap of the activities of Dr. ‘Bosun Tijani, Honourable Minister for Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

INTRO 

After a busy week at the 79th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (#UNGA79) my team started the last quarter of the year by reviewing our progress and plan further towards building on our progress over the past year.

In the week under review, my activities focused on positioning Nigeria as a key player in the global technology space, as I Co-Chaired the Working Group on AI in the public sector, and also assumed position as Co-Chair of the ITU Advisory Body for Submarine Cable Resilience, to protect critical infrastructure that powers global communications and the digital economy.

TIMELINE

Monday

I returned from the 79th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, following which I shared details of my activities at the global event towards accelerating the digital transformation of Nigeria.

Wednesday

After Tuesday’s Independence Day celebration, I delivered the opening remark at the first stakeholders’ meeting of the ‘Working Group on AI in the Public Sector’, which I co-chaired with Amb. Nele Leosk, Ambassador for Digital Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia.

In my remarks, I highlighted the importance of the Working Group towards generating collective wisdom and developing a collaboration that can unlock AI’s true potential for public service transformation in a country like Nigeria. This Working Group will serve as a platform for creating the frameworks, policies, and best practices that will enable AI to be a force for positive change in government operations worldwide. 

I ended my address by extending my appreciation to the World Bank’s Governance Global Partnership for the outstanding initiative.

Thursday

At the instance of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, I travelled to Paris, France to attend the 19th Francophone Summit, a two-day gathering of heads of state and members of the International Francophone Organisation to deliberate on the future of the French language, as well as discuss the effects of ongoing international crises.

Friday 

I participated in the opening session of the Francophone Summit in Paris, France, where I represented Nigeria. The highlight of the Summit was President Emmanuel Macron’s keynote address where he called on participating countries to come together and make a major contribution to global peace. The event also had an insightful panel discussion featuring young people making strides in AI Sequence.    

Later on Friday, I announced my appointment as Co-Chair of the newly formed International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Advisory Body for Submarine Cable Resilience.

The International Advisory Body will serve as a platform for international multi-stakeholder collaboration, bringing together governments, regulatory authorities, industry leaders, and key stakeholders in areas related to enhancing the safety, redundancy, and protection of submarine cables.

My appointment underscores Nigeria’s active advocacy towards ensuring resilience in the global digital infrastructure, particularly with respect to subsea fibre-optic cables, which is an area we are particularly invested in, considering our recent challenges with cuts to our submarine cables.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               BLUEPRINT REVIEW

In a relatively short week, my activities focused on our Trade and Infrastructure pillars as we work to position Nigeria as a key player in the global technology space .