Nigeria has introduced a new National Digital Cloud Policy that makes cloud infrastructure the default deployment model for federal government agencies, in a move expected to reshape the country’s digital economy and accelerate investment in domestic cloud and data centre infrastructure.

The policy, released by the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, requires federal ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) to design all new digital systems and services for cloud deployment from the outset.

MDAs seeking to operate outside the cloud-first framework must obtain a published, time-bound exemption assessed and approved by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).

The policy seeks to address longstanding gaps in Nigeria’s digital infrastructure and cloud adoption. More than 90 per cent of the country’s digital data and enterprise workloads are currently hosted on offshore servers, contributing to an estimated $850 million in annual capital flight.

The government had introduced the Cloud First principle for federal institutions under its 2019 Cloud Computing Policy. However, implementation was uneven because there was no single framework coordinating cloud demand, procurement, funding, security and compliance across government agencies.

The new policy introduces a government-wide approach to cloud procurement and management. It provides for aggregated procurement, a National Digital Marketplace and mandatory registration of cloud service providers, alongside stronger compliance requirements.

Galaxy Backbone Limited, which is responsible for providing digital infrastructure for government services, will aggregate cloud requirements from multiple registered providers. This will allow the government to negotiate framework agreements collectively rather than having individual agencies negotiate separately.

The policy also establishes a four-level data classification framework based on the sensitivity of information.

Level 4 data, covering national security, defence and critical infrastructure, must be hosted exclusively on infrastructure physically located within Nigeria.

Level 3 data, which includes financial, health, biometric and identity information, must be stored at rest in Nigeria, although processing may take place outside the country subject to strict regulatory safeguards.

Level 2 data can be deployed in hybrid environments with prior authorisation, while Level 1 public data can be hosted anywhere without data residency restrictions.

Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, said the policy reflects Nigeria’s ambition to become more than a consumer of global cloud infrastructure.

“Nigeria must move from being primarily a consumer of global cloud infrastructure to becoming a competitive location for the infrastructure, investment, skills and digital services that will define the next phase of the global digital economy,” Tijani said.

The government has established a 24-month implementation roadmap, with specific investment targets for the domestic cloud and data infrastructure market.

The policy aims to attract $250 million in private investment within its first 12 months and increase that figure to $750 million within 24 months.

The initiative will also operate alongside the $1.6 billion BRIDGE Project, which aims to deploy 90,000 kilometres of open-access fibre across Nigeria. The fibre network is expected to provide critical connectivity infrastructure for the expansion of the country’s domestic cloud ecosystem.

Nigeria’s cloud and data centre market is projected to reach $782 million by 2031, highlighting the potential commercial impact of the new policy.

With government demand now being positioned as a major driver of domestic cloud adoption, the policy could create new opportunities for data centre operators, cloud service providers, telecommunications companies, technology firms and investors, while strengthening Nigeria’s control over critical digital infrastructure.

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