Smart Government Summit - Abuja
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  2. Smart Government Summit - Abuja

Smart Government Summit - Abuja

Fraser Suites Abuja
July 2, 2026
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM (West Africa Time)

This is a past event and registrations are closed.

However, you can follow it on Linkedin using the hashtag below to see the latest conversations around the event.

The Smart Government Summit stands at the forefront of Africa’s digital transformation, bridging the gap between advanced digital technologies and government operations. This year's event comes at a time when Africa’s digital landscape is witnessing exponential growth, with increasing internet access and mobile connectivity shaping public sector innovation. The summit is a critical confluence for discussing the integration of digital solutions in government, offering a unique perspective on the future of digital government in Africa.

Reimagining Governance: Agile, Open, Inclusive

Conference Image

"Governments and public sector organizations across the world are trying to balance essential, and often conflicting, demands: to deliver better, more relevant public services centred on the needs of the citizens and businesses they serve; to reduce costs and improve the efficiency of their operations; and to reinvent supply chains to deliver services quickly, cheaply and effectively."

 

 Alan Brown, Digitizing Government: Understanding and Implementing New Digital Business Models.

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Impressions
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Decision Makers
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World Class Speakers
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Worth of Deals Closed

Target Audience

The Smart Government Summit brings together leading public and private sector innovators who are driving Africa's digital transformation in government operations and services. This premier event is designed for people in government involved in modernizing public infrastructure, digitizing operations, and harnessing emerging technologies to enhance delivery of services to citizens across African countries. Delegates will gain an invaluable perspective on the future of digital government in the region through insights from experts spearheading major digital transformation initiatives in the public sector.

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Senior Government Officials

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Representatives from International Organizations

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Innovators and Experts in Digital Technology

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Private Sector Executives

Speakers

This year, leaders from the government, public and private sectors will spark transformative conversations at the Smart Government Summit 2025 in Abuja, Nigeria. We invite you to join their ranks as a speaker by submitting your proposal using the link below.

Chairman & Co-Founder, CIO Africa by dx5
Dr Didi Esther Walson-Jack, OON
Opening Keynote Speaker
Dr Didi Esther Walson-Jack, OON
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation
Director – Information & Communication Technology (ICT), National Pension Commission (PenCom)
Sadeeq Usman Omar
Sadeeq Usman Omar
Retired Director, Planning, Research and Statistics, National Centre for Women Development
Hannatu-Favour Asheolge
Reseacher, Tech Safari
Wumi Oghoetuoma
Founder & Managing Director,, Crown Interactive
Solutions Engineer, Sophos West Africa
Ellen Magembe
Community Engagement Lead - Africa, dx5
MD/CEO, Meed Networks
Dr Nasir A. Shinkafi
Dr Nasir A. Shinkafi
Group Head/Technical Services (GH/TS), Galaxy Backbone Limited
Vivian Nnamdi
Vivian Nnamdi
Lecturer & Ag. Head of Department, Cybersecurity , Margaret Lawrence University Abuja
Maryam Aminu Abubakar
Maryam Aminu Abubakar
Country Representative, Nigeria, CIO Africa by dx5
Aliyu Edogi Aliyu
Aliyu Edogi Aliyu
Engineering Consultant , ,
Dr. Michael Oyedele Arowosegbe
Dr. Michael Oyedele Arowosegbe
Deputy Director ICT , NITDA - National Information Technology Development Agency
Francis Ugbodaga
Francis Ugbodaga
Executive Chairman, Ganttworks Business Development Services Ltd
Consultant & Social Change Advocate , ,
Charity Nuhu
Charity Nuhu
Head of ICT,, Court of Appeal, Nigeria
Managing Partner, 3logy Limited
Managing Director, Intelcode Solutions, LTD Nigeria
Agenda
8:00 AM - 9:30 AM
Registration & Networking
9:30 AM - 9:40 AM
Opening Remarks
Ahmed
Ahmed Atere
MD/CEO, Meed Networks
9:40 AM - 10:00 AM
Opening Keynote
Building The Civil Service: What Digital Transformation Actually Requires
As the architect of the FCSSIP25 digital transformation programme, Mrs. Walson-Jack leads the institution that every federal digital initiative ultimately runs through. This keynote will offer the senior practitioner's account of what transforming a 100,000-person bureaucracy actually requires, the institutional design choices, the resistance points, and what the next phase of reform demands.
Dr Didi Esther
Dr Didi Esther Walson-Jack, OON
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation
10:00 AM - 10:20 AM
Keynote
From Plumbing To Public Service: Building Nigeria’s DPI Stack For A Government That Actually Works
Nigeria is at a critical inflection point in its DPI journey. The Framework has been launched. The Technical Standards have been drafted and consulted on. The Nigerian Data Exchange (NGDX) is positioned for use case deployment in 2026. The Nigeria Governors’ Forum is engaged. International partners, ranging from the EU, Estonia, Finland, Germany, to France, are on board. But awareness of what this infrastructure actually makes possible, among the government officials, CIOs, and executives who will ultimately implement it, remains uneven.
Dr. Michael Oyedele
Dr. Michael Oyedele Arowosegbe
Deputy Director ICT , NITDA - National Information Technology Development Agency
10:20 AM - 10:40 AM
Keynote
AI Vs AI: Governing And Defending Against Autonomous Cyber Threats
AI is no longer just a tool, it is becoming an attacker. AI-powered cyber threats are transforming attacks from human-paced to machine-speed operations, leaving traditional security and response models ineffective. Attackers increasingly use AI to create deepfakes and synthetic identities, making it difficult to distinguish legitimate communication from malicious activity. Ultimately, AI introduces a critical shift for CIOs from managing IT risk to addressing enterprise-wide risks to trust, control, and resilience in a rapidly evolving threat landscape.
Christopher
Christopher Odutola
Solutions Engineer, Sophos West Africa
10:40 AM - 11:00 AM
Expert Presentation
Case Study: 36 Republics: What Subnational Fragmentation Is Actually Costing Nigeria
A federal e-portal means nothing if 36 states are running offline. One state shares what it took to try to connect. This is a candid single-state case study of trying to align digital infrastructure with federal mandates. What worked, what didn't, and what was structurally impossible without policy change from above. Specific failures must be named along with the political economy behind them.
Michael
Michael Segun Popoola
Director – Information & Communication Technology (ICT), National Pension Commission (PenCom)
11:00 AM - 11:40 AM
Networking Coffee Break
11:40 AM - 12:20 PM
Panel Discussion
The Permanent Secretary Problem: Digital Capability In The Civil Service
Nigeria keeps buying systems it cannot run. The problem is not the software. A frank panel on the civil service skills deficit: what a digitally capable civil service looks like at senior levels, why AI and digital training remain low-investment and low-priority, and why procured technologies are consistently poorly adapted to organisational needs.
Ahmed
Ahmed Atere
MD/CEO, Meed Networks
moderator
Wumi
Wumi Oghoetuoma
Founder & Managing Director,, Crown Interactive
panelist
Vivian
Vivian Nnamdi
Lecturer & Ag. Head of Department, Cybersecurity , Margaret Lawrence University Abuja
panelist
Charity
Charity Nuhu
Head of ICT,, Court of Appeal, Nigeria
panelist
12:20 PM - 1:10 PM
Fireside Chat
Left Behind By Design: The Northern Digital Divide As A Governance Failure
A 70% broadband penetration that leaves out the North is not a coverage gap. It is a legitimacy gap. One grounded voice speaking to what digital exclusion looks like from inside northern Nigeria: the compounding crises of literacy, security, Quranic education systems invisible to federal statistics, and the gender equation that makes this most acute for women and girls.
Maryam Aminu
Maryam Aminu Abubakar
Country Representative, Nigeria, CIO Africa by dx5
moderator
Zainab Buba
Zainab Buba Galadima
Consultant & Social Change Advocate , ,
panelist
Mr. Aliyu
Mr. Aliyu Tahir
Managing Director, Intelcode Solutions, LTD Nigeria
panelist
Sadeeq Usman
Sadeeq Usman Omar
Retired Director, Planning, Research and Statistics, National Centre for Women Development
panelist
1:10 PM - 2:00 PM
Networking Lunch
2:00 PM - 2:40 PM
Panel Discussion
Running On Generators: How The Power Crisis Is The Silent Ceiling On Digital Government
Government data centres run on diesel. Civil servants' laptops run on diesel. E-kiosks run on diesel. It is not infrastructure. Let’s call it what it is. A constraint that nothing else can leapfrog. A challenge that gets omitted from most digital transformation agendas because it feels too basic, this panel forces the room to confront it directly: unreliable power is a hard physical ceiling that no app, broadband plan, or digital skills programme can bypass. Move from diagnosis to design. What does solar-first, off-grid government infrastructure actually look like?
Ellen
Ellen Magembe
Community Engagement Lead - Africa, dx5
moderator
Dr Nasir A.
Dr Nasir A. Shinkafi
Group Head/Technical Services (GH/TS), Galaxy Backbone Limited
panelist
2:40 PM - 3:00 PM
Keynote
Shelf-Ware Republic: The Procurement Trap In Government Digital Projects
Serious vendors price Nigeria's public sector as a risk. Is this a market or a policy failure? A candid session on the procurement-execution gap: agencies that award contracts without available funds, vendors who never receive payment, and the downstream effect of crowding out capable technology partners. Must include a voice that can speak to what it actually costs to work with Nigerian government.
Aliyu Edogi
Aliyu Edogi Aliyu
Engineering Consultant , ,
3:00 PM - 3:40 PM
Panel Discussion
The Trust Transaction: Can Government Earn Citizens' Confidence In Digital Services?
Citizens have rational reasons over trusting government with their data. But is that a design problem, or a communications problem? Biometric enrolment, digital ID, and e-services all depend on citizens choosing to participate. Is their scepticism rational, or is it informed by past data breaches, opaque enrolment, and the perception that they are being surveilled? And what role can governance, design, and accountability structures play in helping rebuild trust?
Hannatu-Favour
Hannatu-Favour Asheolge
Reseacher, Tech Safari
moderator
Christopher
Christopher Odutola
Solutions Engineer, Sophos West Africa
panelist
Francis
Francis Ugbodaga
Executive Chairman, Ganttworks Business Development Services Ltd
panelist
Dr. Michael Oyedele
Dr. Michael Oyedele Arowosegbe
Deputy Director ICT , NITDA - National Information Technology Development Agency
panelist
Mal Nasirudeen
Mal Nasirudeen Yakubu
Managing Partner, 3logy Limited
panelist
3:40 PM - 4:00 PM
Closing Remarks
Ahmed
Ahmed Atere
MD/CEO, Meed Networks
sponsors

Join us as a sponsor and connect with a vibrant community of industry leaders and experts in government and public sector. Gain unparalleled visibility, engage with top-tier attendees, and showcase your brand as a leader in those spaces. With customizable sponsorship tiers, tailored marketing opportunities, and prime networking access, this is your chance to amplify your reach and align your brand with innovation and excellence.

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Sophos
Partners

Become a trusted partner at the Smart Government Summit - Abuja and collaborate with global leaders to co-design solutions, advance digital governance, and drive transformative civic impact. Together, we can build bridges between policy, technology, and society — explore partnership opportunities and pioneer a smarter future for governance.

African eDevelopment Resource Centre
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