The event, which was held at the Jerome Udorji Secretariat, Awka, provided a platform to recognize the dedication and resilience of civil servants, underscoring their pivotal role in advancing public service.

Mr. Agbata, in a message to the state workforce, expressed gratitude to Governor Chukwuma Soludo for his vision of establishing a liveable and prosperous Smart Mega City and shared insights into the agency’s commitment to digitization, aligning with the Governor’s ambitious goal of transforming Anambra into a technologically-advanced state.

According to Agbata, the theme, “Digitization of Work Processes in the Public Service: A Gateway to Efficient Resource Utilization and National Development,” emphasizes the transformative potential of integrating technology into public service operations.

He explained that the agency’s comprehensive digital transformation journey began with a survey of available digital work tools, revealing a digital gap.

“In response, a phased distribution of 200 state-of-the-art computers and laptops was initiated, with ongoing digital literacy training for select civil servants.

“Other milestones included the adoption of the second-level domain (2LD.ng) for official state emails (@anambrastate.gov.ng), facilitating seamless communication, and the launch of the E-ID card for civil servants on June 2nd, 2023, aimed at strengthening identity management and streamlining recognition.

“The introduction of the Anambra Cloud, a robust cloud infrastructure, addressed the critical need for a centralized data repository. Collaborating with the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, the agency initiated an automated budget process for efficiency and transparency.

“Governor Soludo’s initiatives, including zero charges on Right-of-Way (RoW) and the ongoing efforts towards the establishment of an Internet Exchange Point, further demonstrate a commitment to enhancing digital access and fostering high-speed broadband internet connection for all,” he said.

Mr. Agbata concluded his speech with a passionate call to action, urging civil servants to actively participate in the digital evolution, emphasizing the need for collective efforts, collaboration, and a shared commitment to drive Anambra State to new heights of technological excellence.

The event held at the ASUU hall of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University in Awka, Anambra State on September 29, 2023, provided a platform for secondary school students to showcase their innovative ideas and entrepreneurial projects.

He commended the young entrepreneurs for their courage in presenting their ideas and products to the audience.

Noting that entrepreneurship is not for the faint-hearted, CFA highlighted the challenges faced by entrepreneurs, noting that a staggering 90% of new businesses fail in their first year.

He however, encouraged the participants not to be disheartened if their schools didn’t emerge as winners, emphasizing that success stories often stem from perseverance and resilience.

He stressed the importance of learning from the experience and building upon the knowledge gained at such events, emphasizing that the world eagerly awaits the contributions of these budding entrepreneurs.

“Many people go to their graves afraid to try,” he said, urging the students to seize the opportunities before them

“There is never a special time to start a business—it’s your business, and the time is now.”

CFA also acknowledged the presentations made by the students, particularly those who pitched tech solutions.

He announced that the Anambra ICT Agency is open to partnering with secondary schools to develop solution-oriented apps and technologies. He encouraged interested schools to reach out to the agency for collaboration.

CFA applauded the organizers of the BossLadyLaw Challenge for their dedication to nurturing young talent and promoting innovation in Anambra State.

He urged the students to pursue their dreams and emphasized that skills in the tech industry are in high demand, presenting numerous opportunities for those willing to explore the field.

The event concluded with a resounding round of applause for the young entrepreneurs, who left the stage inspired and motivated to continue their entrepreneurial journeys.

There are high hopes for the possibility of Anambra citizens having access to the St​ate Laws and other legislative instruments digitally, as the Anambra State ICT Agency on Friday took its digitization drive to the State House of Assembly.

The ICT Agency’s delegation led by Chukwuemeka Fred Agbata, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, met with Mr. Somto Udeze, the Speaker of the House, and Mr. Ikenna Ofodeme the majority leader.

The strategic meeting provided the platform for the ICT agency to unveil its plans for the digitization of the State legislative processes and to seek the collaboration of the House to bring them to fruition.

Addressing the legislators, the MD/CEO of Anambra ICT Agency, congratulated Udeze on his emergence as the speaker of the 8th Assembly in the state, adding that the visit aimed to express the support of the agency for his regime as speaker and to seek new areas of collaboration.

He said since Mr Governor, Prof Chukwuma Soludo, assumed office and kick-started the ‘Everything Technology and Technology Everywhere’ vision, the ICT agency had taken various initiatives aimed at bringing all arms of the government on board the vision.

CFA explained that the visit to the House is critical because of how strategic its entire processes are to the effective functioning of the machinery of governance in the state. 

“As an agency with the mandate of government to drive the governor’s digitization vision, we have identified areas of improvement in the online presence of the House. We want to see how we can ensure that proceedings of the House are digitized to enable constituents of the various members of the House, have a feel of the efforts of their representatives here at the floor of the House.

“Lagos State House of Assembly has a portal for the House, with pages for the members, where their works, the Bills they have sponsored and things like that are captured for easy access by the constituents. This is a positive model we can borrow as a forward-looking state.

“We also want to get the members of the State House a dormain name and email addresses, to ease communication among the legislators. In the state civil service, what the agency has done is to move all civil servants under the same domain name; anambra.gov.ng.

“That is what we want to do here as a way of ensuring data on the state are centralized so that we end the era of data loss as a result of hiring of private consultants to do the work of data collection and processing.

“We are also looking to see how we can work with the House to reproduce all the laws and bye-laws of the state in digital formats, so that in the event of any mishap, we will not be losing so much, as they must have been backed up in the cloud.

“We are also doing citizens’ engagement, working on series of platforms to see that Anambra people are in the know as to all the projects the government is doing and be able to verify that. We are seeing how we can interface with Google map to give real time data on some of the projects.

“We are also working with the Budget and Economic Planning to automate the 2024 Budget and we are hoping that the next budget will be an automated one, albeit with a physical copy.

“These are all we want to see how we can collaborate with the House to ensure their realization. It’s one Anambra and Mr Governor has that vision of a liveable and prosperous smart city and as an agency, we are playing our part effectively but we need every support we can get,” Agbata explained.

On his part, the Tech Partnership and Digital Investment Lead in the State ICT, Jude Emesim emphasized the Citizens’ engagement initiative, which he said, will allow constituents’ inputs in the legislative processes is unfettered.

This he also pointed out, will help bridge the gap between the elected members and the constituents.

Responding, the Speaker of the House, Right Hon Udeze said the 8th Assembly under his watch is committed to doing things differently in line with the governor’s vision for the state.

According to him, Mr Governor’s vision of disruptive change is what is driving his exploits at the House, because he strongly believes that things must change, if the state must progress.

The speaker acknowledged that the ICT Agency’s plans to bring ICT into the state legislative processes is what the House has been yearning for.

“We are however, constrained by a major challenge to the digitization process- finance.

“It is regrettable that everything done in the House is still in the analogue compared to other states nearby. I also recognize the fact that it is not the fault of the assembly but the system of governance adopted by previous administrations.

“That is why I want to assure you that the 8th Assembly will embrace technology to ease its processes and ensure it is effective in fulfilling its obligations as an arm of government,” he said.

Right Hon Udeze opined that documentation of the state laws in digital format will give the people access, reduce duplication of legislative efforts and ensure absence of conflict of motions and laws.

He said; “I will write to the Commissioner for justice to know where the state stopped in terms of gazetting laws so that it can be followed up.

“Also, inability to automate the state budgetary processes has caused so much problems for the state, especially during the last administration of Governor Willie Obiano.

“I therefore endorse that the Executive, Legislature and the Judiciary needs to deploy technology to manage its operations.

“This should also reflect in the revenue collection processes of the state to ensure that government monies come into the coffers of the state government.”

Contributing, the majority leader of the House, Hon Ofodeme commended the MD/CEO of the State ICT Agency, saying “I know he always project things that are very hard but they are quite gainful things.

“We are open to innovations and technology and the area your agency is handling will touch all aspects of the state economy.

“I am happy we have Mr Speaker who is very thorough about everything and will think things through and I assure you that he will endorse any positive engagement that will yield in the best interest of Anambra people.

“I also encourage you to look deep into how we can use technology to address the security challenges in the state, to see how the government can start helping the security agents in the area of tracking.”

Speaking to newsmen in Awka, Mr. Chukwuemeka Fred Agbata, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Anambra State ICT Agency, said that the aims of the workshop would be to assemble key stakeholders from diverse fields to share from their wealth of experience, knowledge and ideas, towards the development and subsequent validation of the State ICT Policy framework. 

Such frameworks include the developed a Draft ICT Policy as a road map to the implementation of ‘Everything Technology and Technology Everywhere’ in the state.

“This landmark engagement signposts Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo’s innovative leadership and goal to make Anambra the digital and creative capital of Nigeria, by creating an environment that is suitable for the growth and development of the ICT sector,” Agbata said.

He said that the policy was intended to serve as a compass for all ICT-related initiatives, following Mr. Governor’s approval, providing a clear blueprint to building a digitally inclusive, innovative, and smart Anambra. 

According to him, “The event would take place on Thursday, 6th July 2023 by 10am, saying that the event would feature the official presentation of the Draft policy, as well as reviews and comments from stakeholders. 

“For more enquiries, please send email to ict@anambrastate.gov.ng,” he concluded.