MDAs Move Online to Cut Costs

Nigerian government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) are beginning to conduct their businesses online, after initial lethargy and this is helping many MDAs reduce costs and increase their productivity.

Some 400 MDAs have already connected to the worldwide web using the .gov.ng domain platform while all MDAs are expected to migrate to local domain by the end of 2014.

Ministry of Communications Technology which is driving the migration to e-Governance is aggressively pursuing the connect Nigeria project.

The ministry plans to launch an online service portal “Getting Government Online” Tuesday (tomorrow) to improve the service delivery of government to Nigerians and other stakeholders.

Efem Nkanga, special adviser on media to minister of Communication Technology, said the primary objective of the Government Service Portal is to create a single point of entry for every Nigerian and other stakeholders to access the government services online.

The “Getting Government Online” portal will bring together a directory of existing online government services as well as newly automated services from the ministries of Industry, trade and Investment, Agriculture, Health, Education and Communication Technology.

The ministry hopes to achieve this by facilitating the provision of a ubiquitous broadband infrastructure and providing access to infrastructure and device ownership to promote inclusive development.

It will be recalled that MDAs had initially ignored the directive to operate their businesses online but with the added bite by the ministry of Communications Technology,  more MDAS are begin to operate seamlessly online as in the private sector, it was learnt that government directed MDAs migrate to the .ng domain.

Today registered email accounts in government circles on the .gov.ng domain names have hit more than 100,000, while more than 400 websites have been hosted on .gov.ng platform.