By Stellamaris Ashinze

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) says only 59 per cent of financial institutions surveyed are expected to meet the Jan. 1, 2027 deadline for local storage of critical financial data.

Dr Muhammad Lawal, Special Assistant on Policy to the Director-General of NITDA, made this known in a joint regulatory survey presented at the CBN–NITDA Executive Regulatory Dialogue in Lagos.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the findings focused on the implementation of the Nigerian Sovereign Cloud Initiative and compliance with regulatory requirements for local data storage.

Lawal highlighted the gaps in the financial sector’s preparedness for the data localisation deadline.

He said the survey showed that 26 of the 44 financial institutions that responded to the readiness question had completed or were likely to complete the required actions before the deadline.

He said 15 institutions said completion was unlikely or very unlikely, while three could not assess their readiness.

‘’The survey also revealed that 22 of the 44 institutions had yet to begin implementation, with budgeting, contract negotiations and system migration among the outstanding tasks.

“79 per cent of digital infrastructure providers surveyed were ready to accommodate new workloads from the financial sector.

‘’Which means that the challenge extends beyond infrastructure availability to deployment, contracting and migration’’, he said.

According to him, the initiative seeks to strengthen Nigeria’s control over critical digital infrastructure, improve data security and expand domestic capacity for hosting essential services.

Lawal said that respondents also called for stronger coordination among CBN, NITDA and the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), alongside access to reliable local infrastructure.

He said the survey, conducted between Oct. 13 and Oct. 27, received responses from 47 financial institutions and 42 digital infrastructure providers, although the number of responses varied across individual questions.

He said the findings were self-reported, anonymised and aggregated and did not amount to a compliance assessment.

In her keynote address, Dr Rakiya Yusuf, Deputy Governor, Financial System Stability, CBN, said financial institutions must ensure that critical payment transaction data was stored and managed within Nigeria in line with applicable regulatory requirements.

She said that the Jan. 1, 2027 deadline was intended to strengthen regulatory visibility, improve resilience and safeguard critical financial data.

The deputy governor, however, cautioned that data localisation alone would not guarantee security.

She said there was the need for robust cybersecurity, business continuity, disaster recovery and risk-management arrangements.

According to her, financial institutions will remain accountable for risks arising from their relationships with cloud and other third-party technology providers.

The CBN official called for collaboration among regulators, financial institutions and technology providers to address implementation challenges without undermining innovation or the competitiveness of Nigeria’s financial sector.

Earlier, Mr Kashifu Inuwa, Director-General of NITDA,  said that the Nigerian Sovereign Cloud Initiative was designed to strengthen the country’s digital self-determination by developing domestic capacity for critical technologies and infrastructure.

He said Nigerian companies spent more than 850 million dollars annually on cloud services, adding that developing local capacity could create jobs, retain more economic value within the country and reduce exposure to external disruptions.

Inuwa said the initiative aligned with the Federal Government’s Nigeria First policy, which prioritises local capacity development and value creation, rather than isolating the country from global technology.

He also cited the 2024 submarine cable disruptions as an example of the vulnerabilities associated with dependence on digital infrastructure beyond Nigeria’s control.

NAN also reports that the survey further showed that financial institutions wanted clearer regulatory guidance, phased or risk-based implementation milestones and a defined process for exceptions and approvals.

The dialogue brought together regulators, financial institutions and technology providers to identify practical solutions ahead of the January 2027 implementation deadline. (NAN)

Edited by Folasade Adeniran