Интеграция ибезопасность встранах Азиатского региона 47

Research Article / Научная статья

UDK 338.2.

DOI: 10.14258/SSI(2024)2-03

Digital Governance: aPathway forCombating Emerging Public

Safety andSecurity Challenges In21st Century Nigeria

Isma’il H. Mshelia1, A. G. U. Kari2

1University ofAbuja, Abuja, Nigeria,

mshelia.ismail@uniabuja.edu.ng,

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7642-709X

2 University ofAbuja, Abuja, Nigeria,

umar.kari@uniabuja.edu.ng,

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9201-8448

Abstract. edigital revolution ofthe21st century has not only positively aected all aspects

ofsocial life, but has also precipitated broad negative impacts such as cybercrimes which globally

resulted inthe loss ofabout $600 billion (0.8 percent oftheglobal GDP) in2018. As need foranew

form ofgovernance to address thedisruptive eects ofthedigital revolution arose, governments

across theglobe shied from the20th century bureaucracy-centred analogue governance model to

a21st century citizen-centred digital model. is paper examined thedigital model ofgovernance

andits application with specic focus on Nigeria. epaper utilised secondary data from dierent

sources including journal papers, national dailies andreports. us, themeaning ofdigital gov-

ernance andNigeria’s journey inthe digital landscape are examined. It isrevealed that while Nige-

ria made asignicant progress inits journey to digitalisation— with theintroduction ofNational

Identication Number (NIN) among other digital initiatives,— exclusion andinsecurity are twin

challenges that continue to inhibit theachievement oftheultimate objectives. It istherefore rec-

ommended that apolicy framework to guide theeorts aimed at solving theproblems should

be designed by navigating through e-democracy, e-administration ande-services being thecore

relationships that characterise e-governance.

Keywords: e-governance, digital society, security, Nigeria, government, technology, crime

For citation: Mshelia, I.H., Kari, A.G.U. (2024). Digital Governance: a Pathway for Combating

Emerging Public Safety andSecurity Challenges in21st Century Nigeria. Society andSecurity Insights,

7(2), 47–68. (InRuss.). doi: 10.14258/ssi(2024)2-03.

Society andSecurity Insights № 2 2024 48

Цифровое управление:

путь для борьбы сновыми вызовами

общественной безопасности вНигерии вXXI веке

Исмаил Мшелиа1,

А. Г. Умар Кари2

1Университет Абуджа, Абуджа, Нигерия,

mshelia.ismail@uniabuja.edu.ng,

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7642-709X

2 Университет Абуджа, Абуджа, Нигерия,

umar.kari@uniabuja.edu.ng,

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9201-8448

Аннотация.  ,  XXI .,   -

    ,    , -

, , ,     2018.

 $600  (0,8%  ).     

        -

,        -

   .   XXI .,  . -

         

 .      

,   ,    .

 ,      -

  . , ,     -

   —    -

 ()     ,  

 -    , 

   .     -

    ,   , 

   ,  

  ,    ,  -

 .

Ключевые слова:  ,  , , -

, , , 

Для цитирования: Мшелиа, И., Кари, А.Г.У. (2024). Цифровое управление: путь для борьбы

сновыми вызовами общественной безопасности вНигерии вXXI веке. Society andSecurity

Insights, 7(2), 47–68. (InRuss.). doi: 10.14258/ssi(2024)2-03.

INTRODUCTION

With regards to thenew year (2) that would usher ina new millennium (2nd mil-

lennium) andanew century (21st century), theTimes Magazine ofApril 2 1991 inFreitag

(222) reveals that “a hotel, theconstruction ofwhich had not yet begun, was already

Интеграция ибезопасность встранах Азиатского региона 49

fully booked forthat date, andpoints out that ying Concorde westward would ena-

ble revelers to ring inthe New Year inseveral widely separated cities” (quote 23). On

theeve oftheday, one oftherevelers was quoted as saying, “tonight we’re gonna party

like it’s 1999. You won’t need an excuse to celebrate thegreatest New Year’s Eve ofall”

(quote 232). Such was thefrenzy with which the21st century, believed to have much to

oer humanity, was welcomed— ayear before it actually begun.

Sooner than expected, the21st century delivered its most expected promise: thedig-

ital revolution. Consequently, governments across theglobe become more reliant on “a

large digital presence andcomplex network oflarge-scale information systems forad-

ministrative operations andpolicy-making” (Dunleavy & Margetts, 215: 1). Informa-

tion communications technology (ICT) and articial intelligence (AI) are few areas

ofthedigital revolution having profound impact on social realities andhow societies

function. ough these are breakthroughs with signicant positive impacts, they also

pose serious threats to individuals, public safety andnational security (Kavanagh, 219).

Inthis vein, Lindsey (219) reported that cyber criminals have turned social media cy-

bercrime into a$3 billion business.

Among these crimes are illegal trades, phishing anddata breaches. As anecessary

response to thedisruptive eects ofthedigital revolution, there isashi among gov-

ernments from theanalogue andobsolete bureaucracy-centred governance model, to

adigital citizen-centred model which oers thegovernment an avenue formore eective

communication, service delivery, intelligence gathering and policy execution. Digital

transformation has therefore “become akey objective inpolitical agendas andgovern-

mental strategic programmes as acentral part ofmodernizing public administration,

which has raised theneed forgovernments to adapt their modus operandi urgently”

(Ravšelj et al., 222: 2). Infact, it isregarded as an essential driver inthe eorts ofgov-

ernments to address 21st century most pressing challenges andachieve thesustainable

development goals (SDGs) (European Commission, 22). eoutbreak ofCOVID-19

pandemic in22 further underlines thenecessity ofadopting digital governance inall

countries around theworld (Milankovich, 222).

Prior to thepandemic, theprogress ofadopting digital governance inmany coun-

tries was disappointing “with the digital elements of government still an add-on or

peripheral to government operations” (Dunleavy and Margetts (215: 5). As theUN

(22) observed, some ofthediculties faced by governments inadopting digital gov-

ernance emanate from their unfamiliarity with therapidly changing technology land-

scape coupled with thelack ofcompetencies needed to harness ICT fornational devel-

opment. InNigeria, while respective governments have over theyears fairly invested

invarious digital initiatives, their respective targets have not yet been achieved partly

due to theforegoing reason andpartly due to other challenges militating against their

implementation. Insurgency, banditry, cybercrimes andother security challenges most

ofwhich are fuelled by unemployment, poverty andilliteracy are on therise inthe coun-

try. ere istherefore adire need forappropriate policy pathway that will guide thegov-

ernment towards curbing these challenge, while more signicant investment isneeded

to facilitate theadoption ofdigital governance.

Society andSecurity Insights № 2 2024 50

is paper analyses theconcept ofdigital governance as apathway forcombating

the 21st century emerging public safety andsecurity challenges inNigeria. Data from

various secondary sources (including journal articles, reports, textbooks andwebsites)

selected on thebasis ofstrict relevance to thesubject matter informed theanalysis.

CONCEPTUAL ANALYSIS

e following concepts form the bedrock of this paper and are therefore ana-

lysed inthis section: (1) governance, e-governance anddigital governance, (2) security

andpublic safety, and(3) digital technology.

Governance, E-governance andDigital Governance

e terms ‘e-governance’ and‘digital governance’ are oshoots oftheterm ‘govern-

ance’ which ingeneral term refers to theexercise ofpolitical power to manage anddi-

rect state’s aairs (George et al., 221). It isdivided into “demand politics” and“sup-

ply politics” with theformer encompassing theexpectations ofthepeople directed to

thegovernment, andthelatter, thesum ofthegovernment’s eorts towards addressing

theexpectations (Peters & Pierre, 216: 8). As Furuholt andWahid (28: 8) observed,

“literature analysis shows that strong political leadership isone ofthemost important

success criteria fore-government projects ingeneral andindeveloping countries inpar-

ticular, even pointed to as themost important criteria by some”.

E-governance refers to “the public sector’s use ofinformation andcommunication

technologies with theaim ofimproving information andservice delivery, encouraging

citizen participation inthe decision-making process andmaking government more ac-

countable, transparent andeective” (UNESCO, 211, cited inMilakovich, 214: 11).

E-governance isawider concept than e-government because it isnot only about theim-

provement ofthenature ofservice delivery but also therelationship between thecitizens

andpublic administrators (Onuigbo & Innocent, 215). Signicant progress towards its

implementation birth digital governance (Milakovich, 214). us, digital governance

“provide government services that don’t simply t within aread-only paradigm ofinter-

actions between citizens, government ocials andgovernment sources ofinformation,

but to allow aparadigm that achieves more interactive, process-oriented dissemination

andviewing ofgovernment information” (McIver andElmagarmid, 22: 1). Put dif-

ferently, it isabout not just electronic service delivery but also transforming, streamlin-

ing andenhancing citizens’ involvement ingovernance anddecision-making process.

Security andPublic Safety

Having originated from the Latin words ‘se’ (without) and ‘curus’ (anxiety),

theterm ‘security’ literally means freedom from anxiety. Inthewords ofKalat (22:

413), “once people have satised their physiological needs, they seek to satisfy their safe-

ty needs such as security from attack andavoidance ofpain”. Technically, security isde-

ned as thesum ofactions andmeasures, including legislative andoperational proce-

dures adopted to ensure peace, stability andthegeneral well-being ofanation andits

citizens (Shinkaiye, 24).

e United Nations Development Programme (UNDP, 1994), has identied sev-

en dimensions ofhuman security from themajor components ofhuman development.

Интеграция ибезопасность встранах Азиатского региона 51

ey are economic, food, health, environmental, personal, community andpolitical se-

curity. It isinthe light ofthese that themeaning ofpublic safety can best be understood.

According to Abubakar (213: 43), it “refers to theabsence ofthose tendencies that are

capable ofputting thelives andproperties ofpeople at risk or danger to thepoint that

thepeople are unable to pursue their legitimate business”.

Digital Technology

Technology istheart ofapplying knowledge to solve practical problems which isas

old as humanity. But digital technology isaresult ofadvancement inscience, which

started inthe 2th century andexploded inthe 21st century. It isdescribed as asystem

or hardware that makes use ofdigital data to achieve aspecic task as dened by auser

(Digital Technology Hub, n.d.). It isan umbrella term forICT, AI, cloud computing,

biotechnology, space technology andnanotechnology among many others.

ere are a wide range of areas through which these manifest. ICT and cloud

computing, forexample, birthed social media, websites andblogs which open thedoor

forvirtual interactions, video-streaming, e-books anddigital music, while AI made pos-

sible machine learning androbotics like drones andguided missiles.

THEORETICAL ANALYSIS

Since theturn ofthecentury, governments across theglobe, especially indeveloped

countries, have made series of largely successful eorts to replace the New Public

Management (NPM) model of public administration with Digital Era Governance

(DEG). eNPM was thedominant model ofpublic administration inlate 2th century

having replaced thetraditional Weberian model which was characterised by strict paper-

based communication andthehierarchy offunctions andauthority. eNPM, being

amodel forreform, had sought to disaggregate large-scale departments andpromote

competition inthe public sector. However,

in this model, digital technologies were also marginalized, aer an initial tokenistic

information technology adoption aimed at better service delivery. Infact, radical NPM

models worked against thesuccessful incorporation ofdigital technology into government,

as the IT operations ofgovernment were agencied andoutsourced to global computer

services providers along NPM lines, stripping digital expertise out ofgovernment (Dunleavy

& Margetts, 2015: 3).

Governments began to implement e-governance initiatives not only due to theever-

growing public pressure or thespread oftheInternet culture, but also theneed to confront

andtackle themost pressing challenges ofthe21st century— such as thegrowing global

nancial crises, widened inequalities, climate change andother challenges concerning

thedelivery ofservices ineducation, health andtransport among others (Kosorukov,

217). eattainment ofmaturity ine-governance then led some countries to digital

governance. As OECD (217: 15) opined,

this paradigm shi reects afocus on more ambitious objectives. Governments are

not looking to use ICTs to enhance services that were designed ina pre-digital era with

an analogue mind-set, but to fully re-engineer services to make them digital by design.

By leveraging data andtechnology as core components ofpublic sector reform, digitally-

Society andSecurity Insights № 2 2024 52

advanced governments aim to build auser-driven public administration that isbetter able

to meet citizens’ needs andtackle theimportant policy challenges ofour time.

Dunleavy & Margetts (215) among other scholars have provided a theoretical

foundation for explaining the waves of digitalization of public administration

inparticular, andthedigital age ingeneral. ey put forward “an ‘Essentially Digital’

model ofGovernance (EDGE) to navigate this changed world, amodel ofbureaucracy

where nally digital technologies take centre stage in government organisation (p.

2).” However, while most developed countries graduate from e-governance to digital

governance, “developing countries are experimenting on their own to nd an approach

that will work forthem andwill best serve their needs (Microsave Consulting, 22:

6).” Nath (23) has identied ve generic models ofdigital governance indeveloping

countries, which are: broadcasting/wider-dissemination, critical ow, comparative

analysis, mobilisation/lobbying andinteractive-service models.

Owing to its contextual variations and multifaceted nature, many researchers

have streamlined their eorts towards specic issues on thedierent aspects ofdigital

governance in various contexts. For example, Bernhard (214) examined the local

implementation ofe-government policies inSweden, Hallsworth et al. (216) examined

the role of digital technologies in modernizing healthcare system, and Nugraha et

al. (22) studied the development of SMS gateway system to online registration at

aHospital inIndonesia.

NIGERIA’S JOURNEY TOWARDS DIGITAL GOVERNANCE

In term ofthedigitalization ofpublic administration, Nigeria cannot be said to be

riding acamel ina jet age, unlike inthe purely political spectrum inwhich public aairs

analysts believe it is. Inthis section, thecountry’s digital initiatives as well as thechal-

lenges militating against their successful implementation are examined.

Digital Initiatives oftheNigerian Government

e ground was set in 21 when GSM came into thecountry with thearrival

of Econet telecommunications company (now Airtel) followed by MTN, Globacom

andEtisalat (now 9mobile). is set thestage fordigital inclusion inNigeria which grew

alongside many e-governance initiatives. At thefederal level ofgovernment, themajor

drivers ofthemulti-dimensional digital initiatives are theministry ofcommunication

anddigital technology, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), and the Na-

tional Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA). Being multi-dimen-

sional means thedigital initiatives can be broadly categorised under economic, political

andeducational spectra as subsequently discussed.

Economic Sector

e rst public sector inNigeria to receive acommendable eort towards digitali-

sation isthebanking sector. is began with thebanking reform of24 which aimed at

transforming thesector inkeeping with 21st century trend. erst phase ofthereform

was consolidation programme in24 which, according to thethen Central Bank ofNi-

geria (CBN) governor, was aproactive measure to “strategically position Nigerian banks

to be active players andnot spectators inthe emerging world” (Soludo, 24: 4). Prior

Интеграция ибезопасность встранах Азиатского региона 53

to theconsolidation, thecapital base ofmost commercial banks inthe country was less

than $1 million. But aer, “banks were consolidated through mergers andacquisitions,

raising thecapital base from N2 billion to aminimum ofN25 billion, which reduced

thenumber ofbanks from 89 to 25 in25” (Sanusi, 212: 117).

e CBN subsequently issued guidelines for the introduction of e-banking. is

paved way forcommercial banks to install Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) forcash

withdrawals, andto issue e-money products such as credit cards, debit cards anddigital

cash among others. is reduced delays inclearing ofpayment instruments, reduced cash

transactions andenhanced monetary policy transmission mechanism (Ojong et al., 214).

Inresponse to the28 global nancial crisis andmany challenges confronting theNige-

rian banking industry, there was another banking reform in29 which solidied thedig-

italisation ofthesector by rst, introducing auniform 1-digit account number called

theNigerian Uniform Bank Account Number (NUBAN). Sequel to mandating all Federal

Government Ministries, Departments andAgencies (MDAs) to replace all cheques pay-

ments with electronic payments inJanuary 29, theCBN on August 19th 21 mandated

all commercial banks to replace non-uniform account numbers with theNUBAN.

is, according to the CBN (21), would not only proer lasting solution to

the many of the electronic payment problems being experienced but is also in line

with global best practice such as the International Bank Account Number (IBAN),

andisincompliant with theNigeria Cheque Standard andtheWest Africa Monetary

Institute required 1-digit Account Number structure which aimed to foster economic

integration among themembers oftheEconomic Community ofWest African States

(ECOWAS). escheme was ahuge success andin218, theCBN issued an exposure

dra forrevised standard oftheNUBAN. According to theCBN (218a: 2) “in view

ofthesuccess oftheNUBAN scheme across DMBs andtheincreasing role oftheOFIs

inthe Electronic Payments System, it isimperative that thescope ofthescheme be ex-

panded to include theOFIs”.

e introduction ofagent banking scheme in213 was another giant stride inthe

banking sector. It refers to theprovision ofnancial services by athird party (agent)

on behalf ofaprincipal— alicensed deposit taking nancial institution andmobile

banking operator (CBN, 213). It allowed theoperators oer banking services including

cash deposits, withdrawals, transfers andbills collection (Nwankwo & Nwankwo, 214).

is oered access to basic nancial services to asignicant proportion ofNigerians,

especially those inrural areas who were hitherto nancially excluded. epractice was

already ourishing across theglobe to service aclient segment underserviced by conven-

tional banking coverage (Afande & Mbugua, 215).

Again, in February 214, the CBN launched Bank Verication Number (BVN)

inorder to create adatabase that captures thebiometrics ofall bank customers andgive

each aunique veriable identity, thereby enhancing thesecurity ofelectronic payment

system (CBN, 217). eBVN was solidied with yet another unique digital identity,

thenational identication number (NIN)— aproduct ofthenewcomputerized nation-

al identity card launched by theNational Identity Management Commission (NIMC)

inAugust 214. Being equipped with amicroprocessor to store thepersonal andbiome-

Society andSecurity Insights № 2 2024 54

tric data as well as keys, certicates, andother data ofthecardholder, theNational iden-

tity card isinthe long term meant to provide not just unique electronic NIN foriden-

tity verication but to also serve as atool forvarious e-services such as e-Transport,

e-Voting, e-Health ande-Banking. With regards to its potential role inthe economic

transformation ofthecountry, ales (n.d.) reiterates that: with thenew e ID program,

thecountry isalso signallingthe broadest nancial inclusion program on theconti-

nent… It will oer millions ofNigerians— most ofwhom have never had access to

abanking service— thesecurity, convenience, andreliability ofelectronic payments

with 13 applications, including MasterCard’s prepaid payment technology.

ough cashless economy, being theultimate objectives oftheforgoing digital initi-

atives has not yet been achieved, there has been asignicant progress towards it. Accord-

ing to NIBSS (222a), atotal ofN38.9 trillion electronic transactions through theNIBSS

Instant Payment platform (NIP) was recorded inNovember 222 alone, which brought

thetotal value ofNIP deals in222 to N345 trillion with theNIP volume rising to 492.2

million— a53.8% increase over 319.9 million recorded inthe same period theprevious

year (see Figure 1).

Figure 1— Values ofNIP Transactions (NGN Billions).

Source: Adapted from NIBSS (222).

 1—   NIP ( NGN).

:   NIBSS (222).

Both thevolume andvalue oftheNIP transactions are expected to signicantly

increase insubsequent years due to thenew CBN policy that comes inthe wake ofrede-

signing N1,, N2, andN5 notes inDecember 222. epolicy, which comes into

eect on January 9, 223, limits weekly cash withdrawal by an individual andcorporate

organisation to N1, andN5, respectively. As NIBSS (222) emphasised,

while thecashless policy oftheCentral Bank ofNigeria (CBN) isalready gaining trac-

tion with many Nigerians embracing theuse ofthevarious e-payment channels fortrans-

actions, therevised cashless policy, which isfurther limiting theamount ofcash that can

be withdrawn by individuals andcorporate organisations will further drive asurge inelec-

tronic transactions across thecountry.

Интеграция ибезопасность встранах Азиатского региона 55

Built upon theforegoing digital initiatives are other technologically driven eco-

nomic programs. ese include theTreasury Single Account (TSA) andIntegrated Per-

sonnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS) both ofwhich aim to curb corruption among

thefederal government MDAs, andto harmonise the federal accounts foreciency.

Economic empowerment programs such as Conditional Cash Transfer andTrader Mon-

ie have also been built upon thedigital initiatives ofthebanking sector. ebenets

associated with these are numerous. ey positively impact on earnings, market shares,

nancial inclusion, customers’ satisfaction and banks protability (Chude & Chude,

214). Economic growth is, however, theultimate benet (See Figure 2).

Figure 2— eImpact ofBanking Reforms on Nigerian Economy.

Source: Adapted from Akpansung andGidigbi, (214: 95).

 2—     .

:     (214: 95).

Political Sector

Digitalization in the Nigerian political subsystem can be looked at from two

prisms: electoral system andpolitical communication. efoundation fordigitalizing

theelectoral system was laid inthe 27 electoral reform which introduced thePermanent

Voter’s Card (PVC) andtheSmart Card Reader (SCR) fortheverication ofvoters. Both

were used in the 211 and subsequent general elections. is innovation has proven

Society andSecurity Insights № 2 2024 56

amajor leap andenhanced thecredibility oftheelections having drastically reduced

impersonation andmultiple voting experienced inprevious elections (Kazeem, 219).

And, ina bid to drive towards full digitalization oftheelectoral system, thegovernment

enacted anew electoral law to guide theconduct of223 andsubsequent general elections.

e new law “comes with alot ofinnovations andistechnologically driven, ostensibly

revolutionising elections process inthe country to increase its integrity (Ojedele, 222: para.

6).” For example, it introduces Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), acompact

electronic device designed not only to verify thegenuineness ofPVCs andauthenticate

voters but also to be directly uploading each polling unit results to the INEC Result

Viewing Portal (IReV), while also serving as theINEC Voter Enrolment Device (IVED)

during voter registration. Inthelight ofthis, theINEC chairman was quoted as saying:

it is our hope that the 2019 general elections will be the last generally manual

elections…… already, the Commission has an electronic register of voters. Similarly,

voter accreditation has also gone electronic. It istime foranew legislation to remove all

encumbrances to further deployment of technology in the electoral process, especially

inthe accreditation ofvoters andtransmission ofelection results (INEC, n.d., para. 1–4).

Interm ofpolitical communication in21st century Nigeria, there isheavy reliance on

digital technologies (Inobemhe, Isah, & Abu, 221). Governments andindividual leaders

at all level inthe country are taking advantage ofdigital technologies ingovernance

process. is, they achieve, by utilising theinternet inalmost all formal communications

with the citizens, thus reducing overreliance on manual communication or print

andbroadcasting media. Inthis vein, virtually all MDAs now have websites through

which they announce new policies, advertise vacancies and conduct recruitment

assessment andscreening exercises among other things.

ey also directly communicate with thepeople through their respective social

media handles such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram andX (formerly Twitter) on

which many Nigerians are active. is enables them to directly interact with thepeople,

carry out sensitization campaigns andother things, consequently enhancing political

participation in the country (Omotayo & Folorunsho, 22). Ahead of elections,

forexample, INEC has been using various social media platforms to sensitise voters

on thebenets oftheir participation, as well as theneed to shun any form ofelectoral

misdeed towards free andfair elections (Paul, 219).

Education Sector

e Nigerian federal ministry ofeducation andother MDAs have also recognised

therelevance ofICT inthe education sector. Owing to this, United Tertiary Matriculation

Examination (UTME) was introduced by the Joint Admission and Matriculation

Board (JAMB) in 214. e UTME is a computer based standardised examination

forprospective undergraduates, which unied andreplaced thepen-on-paper University

Matriculation Examination (UME) andothers.

However, thegateway to theUTME— thesenior school certicate examination

(SSCE) conducted by the West Africa Examination Council (WAEC) and National

Examination Council (NECO)— have remained intheir pen-on-paper format. ere

are simply no many universal digital initiatives inthe Nigerian education sector. is

Интеграция ибезопасность встранах Азиатского региона 57

isbecause, primary andsecondary schools as well as state owned tertiary institutions

are largely being controlled by their respective state governments who are responsible

fordesigning their modes ofoperation. And while thefederal government owns andfund

its tertiary institutions across thestates, thestatutory autonomy granted to each ofthem

means they are at liberty to design their modes ofoperations.

Dierent institutions across thecountry have adopted various electronic payment

platforms forthepayment offees andother school charges. is made theprocess seam-

less forstudents while also helping theschools to reduce or eliminate fraud altogether.

ee-payment system was designed by schools incollaboration with CBN licensed Pay-

ment Service Solution Providers (PSSPs).

In thearea ofknowledge delivery andevaluation, various schools have embraced

ICT with each growing at their pace. is was accelerated by theoutbreak ofCOVID-19

pandemic in22 which led to theclosure ofall schools inthe country forabout ayear,

thus reiterating theneed to reduce overreliance on face-to-face mode ofteaching.

Challenges Confronting Digital initiatives inNigeria

ere are numerous challenges militating against thesuccess ofthedigital initi-

atives oftheNigerian government, most ofwhich are fuelled by endemic public sector

corruption. ey can however be broadly classied as: exclusion andinsecurity.

Exclusion

Nigeria has a population size of 221,279,177 (World Population Review, 223)

andmajority ofthem are educationally, digitally andnancially excluded. Interm ofed-

ucation, being thekey to all sorts ofinclusion andempowerment, it isreported that 31%

oftheadult population inNigeria are illiterates (Suleiman, 222).

GSM isthegateway to digital inclusion inNigeria andthere are only 28.6 million

active GSM lines inthe country (Adepetun, 222). Given that most Nigerians use dual

sim phones while many others use more than one phone, this implies that at an average

ofthree lines per subscriber there are about 7 million GSM users inthe country. is

means over 68% ofNigerians are digitally inactive. Indeed, inan investigative report,

Ramon & Azubuike (221: para.1) revealed that there are millions ofpeople inthe coun-

try “who have never communicated via amobile phone.”

Financially, theNational Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS) launched in212 re-

vealed that 46.3% ofNigerians were nancially excluded, agap it ambitiously sought to

reduce to 2% by 22 albeit unsuccessfully (CBN, 218b). And ina study on thegender

dimension ofnancial inclusion inNigeria, CBN & EFInA (219: 6–7) revealed that nan-

cial exclusion was higher among women standing at 36% against the24% formen, while

“progress towards nancial inclusion has been adversely aected by unforeseen socioec-

onomic factors such as theeconomic recession, theprecarious security situation inparts

ofnorthern Nigeria, andother factors such as theslow uptake ofdigital nancial services”.

In this vein, thetotal number ofBVN enrolment as of April 1, 222 was just

54million (NIBSS, 222b) which means less than 25% ofNigerians have bank accounts.

According to the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC, 221), almost

thesame number ofenrolments has been recorded inthe NIN scheme as ofMay 221.

Inorder to boost theNIN enrolment, thegovernment had since 215 statutorily man-

Society andSecurity Insights № 2 2024 58

dated all public andprivate institutions inthe country to demand fortheNIN intrans-

actions requiring theidentity ofan individual, andhad in22 received aloan of$433

million from World Bank andothers to enhance thescheme (ales, n.d.).

Insecurity

Security isarequisite forhigh level growth anddevelopment. Insecurity isthere-

fore themost devastating challenge confronting Nigeria andits quest forparadigm shi

inthe digital landscape. It encompasses all forms ofcrime, insurgency, violent seces-

sionist agitations andarmed banditry across thelength andbreadth ofthecountry, all

ofwhich continue to undermine not only thecountry’s quest fordigitalisation andeco-

nomic development but also its sovereignty (Mshelia, Otakey, & Salami, 222). Public

safety inthe country isso jeopardised that seven out of1 members ofthepublic are

afraid ofvictimisation (Oluwaleye, 221). With internal security so jeopardised by spi-

ralling crime, public disorder andinternal crisis, thecountry isstruggling to provide

astable platform forlong-term growth, even as it somnambulates inits journey to digital

governance (Abubakar, 213). Beyond this, however, digital technology itself provides

aplatform forthephenomenon ofinsecurity generally referred to as cybercrimes.

e foremost impact ofcybercrime isdirect nancial loss to individuals, organ-

isations andgovernments. A global survey consisting of1,63 individuals in1 dif-

ferent countries showed that more than one third oftherespondents reported being

victims ofcybercrime between 218 and219 (NortonLifeLock 22). Also, according to

McAfee (218), due to cybercrimes, theworld’s economy lost about $6 billion, or .8%

ofglobal GDP. Intheir words:

to put thelatest statistic inperspective, it amounts to more than theincome ofalmost

all but afew countries. When you look at thecost ofcybercrime inrelation to theworld-

wide internet economy— $4.2 trillion in2016— cybercrime can be viewed as a14% tax

on growth (p. 1).

In Nigeria, estimated $8,, was reportedly lost to cybercrimes in 218

(Azeez 219), while areport in219 put theaverage annual costs ofcybercrime inthe

country at $328,842,878 (Ohwovoriole, 219). Indeed, CBN (25) had envisaged that

cybercrimes by unscrupulous elements would pose aserious challenge to thebanking

system inparticular, andthesociety ingeneral. In221, thegovernment had to shut

down Twitter forseven months due to ‘the persistent use oftheplatform foractivities

that are capable ofundermining Nigeria’s corporate existence’ (Akinwotu, 222). As

synthesis ofevidence shows, social media isparticularly “an environment that facili-

tates violent radicalization” (Alava, Frau-Meigs, & Hassan, 217: 6). Inaddition, Mshana

(215) found that child sexual exploitation, harassment, digital piracy, hacking, damag-

ing andspam are other threats internet users are most frequently exposed to.

One implication oftheforegoing threats isthat they directly aid digital andnan-

cial exclusion as many people developed apathy towards digital initiatives. Consequent-

ly, theNigerian government deemed it necessary to re-orient theyouth by collaborating

with other stakeholders to come up with dierent programmes which led to theset-

ting up ofa pilot project ofaComputer Emergency Response Team (CERT) centre,

andtheNational Cybercrime Working Group (NCWG) among others (Ibrahim, 219).

Интеграция ибезопасность встранах Азиатского региона 59

APPLYING E-GOVERNANCE TO COMBAT SECURITY AND PUBLIC SAFETY

CHALLENGES IN NIGERIA

Achieving theobjectives ofdigital initiatives relies as much on combating thechal-

lenges inhibiting their success as on their eective implementation. is requires aholis-

tic approach that tackles theroot causes ofthephenomena theachievement ofwhich also

requires theapplication ofdigital technology. To this end, thegovernment needs adigital

governance policy frame work. Since insecurity isthemost intractable ofthechallenges,

there isaneed forpolicy framework primarily designed to guide thesecurity agencies

on theapplication ofdigital technologies incollaboration with other sectors to com-

bat insecurity inthe country. However, this will require eective navigation through

thethree core types ofrelationships that solidify e-governance (see Figure 3), andpave

way forsecurity andpublic safety (see Figure 4).

Figure 3— ree Relationships ine-government

Source: Adapted from Wihlborg (25) cited inBernhard (214: 2–21).

 3—    

:   Wihlborg (25),  Bernhard (214: 2–21).

Figure 4— eImpact ofe-governance on Security

Source: eauthors’ compilation.

 4.    .

:  .

Society andSecurity Insights № 2 2024 60

E-democracy

is implies therelationship between theelectorate andtheelected. First andfore-

most, appropriate channels ofdirect communication between thepeople andthegov-

ernment needs to be created andstrengthened. By so doing, theleaders andsecurity

agents will have rst-hand knowledge ofthesecurity andother concerns ofthemasses.

Inthis regard, theinternet, being themost used channel ofcommunication with up to

5.3 billion users inthe world isindispensable. A typical internet user with an average

ofjust 397 minutes per day, “spends more than 4% oftheir waking life online” (Kemp,

222). As Milankovich (222) observed, social media particularly are themost utilised

digital channel ofcommunication with Facebook alone having astaggering 2.6 billion

users— nearly one-third oftheworld’s population. us,

social media can be apowerful tool forgovernance. It enables new forms ofpolitical

participation— how citizens ensure that their interests are translated into policies that serve

them— because it provides means forcitizens to engage indiscussions with each other, their

elected representatives andother political ocials on how to steer society. It can also help

governments become more ecient andenhance citizen engagement (UN 2020: 90).

Social media can also facilitate anti-violence andpeace-building eorts. ey are

therefore capable ofachieving such inNigeria (Uzuegbunam & Omenugha, 218), as they

have been inIsraeli-Palestinian context (Sher & Sturn, 218). But given themisuse ofsocial

media inNigeria, eective social media policy needs necessarily be formulated to regulate

their use inorder to strengthen andnot destroy e-democracy. Inthis vein, POST method-

ology can be asuitable departure point. It emphasised thesignicance ofpeople, objectives,

strategy, andtechnology (POST), reiterating theneed to rst consider thepeople andtheir

needs, then specic objectives to achieve, andappropriate strategies to adopt, before con-

sidering what technological initiatives should be introduced (Alonso, 221). Inaddition,

a government social media policy can also benet from consulting an OECD work-

ing papers on public governance entitled ‘Social Media Use by Governments: A Policy

Primer to Discuss Trends, Identify Policy Opportunities andGuide Decision Makers’. is

document provides achecklist forpurpose-oriented use ofsocial media inthe public sec-

tor which addresses all theimportant issues ofobjectives andexpectations, governance

modes andguidelines, legal compliance, skills andresources, collaboration andcommuni-

ty building; andmanaging risks ofsocial media use (UN 2020: 127).

E-administration

E-administration, being acore component ofe-democracy, isall about theprovi-

sion ofe-services. It encompasses relationships both vertically andhorizontally, geared

towards e-service delivery. Vertically, it means therelationship among thelevels ofgov-

ernment (local, state andfederal governments) andhorizontally, it involves the rela-

tionship among various government agencies andbig businesses ineach ofthelevels.

E-administration simply reiterates theindispensability ofeective collaboration among

all government levels andagencies inproviding digital services that are responsive to

theneeds ofthesociety. Indeed, “there are some good reasons to believe that transition

towards an eective digital governance framework can be achieved by capacity building

ofgovernment departments” (Hamid, Jhajhi, & Humayun, 22).

Интеграция ибезопасность встранах Азиатского региона 61

ere are many instances ofe-administration inNigeria which thesecurity sector

can benet from. For example, NIN-SIM linkage policy andtheresulting SIM blockage

ofdefaulters isan e-administration involving theNIMC, NCC andGSM service provid-

ers which thesecurity agencies can utilise to track andapprehend suspected criminals.

Similarly, thesecurity agencies can collaborate with theCBN andcommercial banks to

monitor thenancial transaction ofprime suspects.

E-service

is istheend product ofe-democracy ande-administration, representing there-

lationship between public administrators and citizens. Public administrators across

theMDAs need to utilise digital technologies to oer themasses awide range ofeective

social welfare services such as formal education andhealth care. Improving both digital

andnancial inclusions through e-services inNigeria isalso necessary as it will not only

strengthen thecountry’s e-democracy but will also go along way incurbing insecurity

since thepeople will be empowered with theessential knowledge necessary to ght pov-

erty andother harbingers ofinsecurity. As Naraya et al. (2) revealed inWorld Bank’s

“Voices ofthePoor”, access to knowledge andopportunities, rather than charity, are

what thepeople preferred intheir ght against poverty andtheconditions leading to it.

Inaddition to empowering thecitizens, eective communication andaccess to strategic

information increase thetendency oftheir participation ingovernance, which inturn

lead thesociety to achieving human andeconomic growth, as well as enhanced security

andpublic safety (see Figures 5 and6).

Figure 5— ePositive Impact ofinformation andCommunication.

Source: Modied from: Nath (23: 4).

 5—    .

: :  (23: 4).

One way to integrate all ofthese isthedevelopment ofsmart cities— amunicipali-

ty that uses ICT to enhance operational eciency, connect with its inhabitants andoer

them qualitative social welfare services (TWI, n.d). Lagos city inNigeria ison course to

becoming afully developed smart city. estate’s administrators are overseeing a3km

Society andSecurity Insights № 2 2024 62

bre metro network cables andbroadband infrastructures among other projects that will

improve e-service delivery, boost e-commerce, empower thecitizens, encourage innova-

tions andenhance security oflives andproperties (Ogunrinde, 221). Such benets are

already being derived from smart cities inmany countries. Furthermore,

many smart digital communities also facilitate citizen participation andonline de-

liberation via new IoT technology. rough enabled links, numerous municipalities across

theUnited States andelsewhere help residents to learn about and get involved incivic

organizations, churches, youth organizations, sports clubs, andother volunteer organiza-

tions (Milankovich, 2022: 23).

Figure 6— ePositive Impact ofKnowledge.

Source: Modied from: Nath (23: 5).

 6—   .

: :  (23: 5).

e need to develop more smart cities inNigeria towards combating security chal-

lenges andensuring digital governance cannot be overemphasised. Eorts inthis venture

require eective collaboration between thesecurity sector andurban planners inorder to

create adequate ‘defensible space’. eterm, as developed by city planner Oscar Newman

“encompasses propositions on therelationship between crime andphysical environment

as well as strategies ofcrime prevention andinternal security” (Mshelia, Kpada & Salami,

222). It refers to aresidential environment inwhich thebuildings, layout andsite plan

among other physical elements enable theresidents to play vital roles inmaintaining their

security (Newman, 1976). It isaproven strategy fordesigning safe housing which has been

used by security andhousing authorities inthe US, UK andother developed countries.

CONCLUSION

Digital governance isthesurest way oftackling thechallenges ofthe21st century.

eglobal COVID-19 pandemic that grinded all face-to-face activities in22 served

as a timely reminder, especially to countries that are sleepwalking in the journey to

digitalisation. ough Nigeria has set theground running inthis venture with dier-

Интеграция ибезопасность встранах Азиатского региона 63

ent digital initiatives across dierent sectors, widespread insecurity andexclusion have

continued to militate against their success. It goes without saying that digital initiatives

inan unsafe environment andwithout large concentration ofdigitally active, literate

andeconomically empowered citizens isanything but adrive towards digital govern-

ance. Security oflives andproperties as well as inclusion inall ramications need nec-

essarily be signicantly improved to achieve theobjectives ofe-governance initiatives

inthe country, anddrive towards digital governance. is can be achieved by thefor-

mulation andimplementation ofappropriate digital policies while navigating through

thethree core relationships ofe-governance as expounded above.

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ИНФОРМАЦИЯ ОБ АВТОРАх / INFORMATION ABOUT AUTHORS

Isma’il H. Mshelia— M. Sc. (Sociology), Lecturer II at theDepartment ofSociology,

University ofAbuja, Abuja, Nigeria.

  —  ,   ,

 , , 

A. G. U. Kari— Ph. D. (Sociology), Associate Professor at theDepartment ofSociology

andtheDean ofStudent Aairs, University ofAbuja, Abuja, Nigeria.

. .   — Ph. D.,   ,  ,

, .

Статья поступила вредакцию 11.05.2024;

одобрена после рецензирования 05.06.2024;

принята кпубликации 05.06.2024.

The article was submitted 11.05.2024;

approved after reviewing 05.06.2024;

accepted forpublication 05.06.2024.