Ethiopia digitalizes gov’t services; Nigeria goes paperless

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The two most populous African nations—Nigeria and Ethiopia—are ramping up their digitalization efforts to boost access to government services and curb corruption. While Nigeria targets paperless governance, Ethiopia’s government says it has now digitalized over 900 government services.

Ethiopia’s digital revolution

Ethiopia has set out one of the most ambitious digitalization targets in Africa across government services, digital ID uptake and Internet penetration. According to the Ministry of Innovation and Technology, the East African country is gradually marching toward its goals and has now digitized over 900 government services.

Seyoum Mengesha, who heads the digital economy division at the ministry, told local outlet ENA that the government is investing heavily in the Digital Ethiopia 2025 strategy, which it launched in 2022. This includes expanding access to electricity and the Internet for its citizens and constructing world-class data centers.

One sector that the government is keen on digitalizing is procurement and property administration. For decades, corrupt officials have relied on the opaque, tedious, and paper-heavy outdated systems to embezzle billions of dollars, says Meseret Meskele, who heads the country’s Federal Public Procurement and Property Authority.

The digitalization of the procurement system has increased the speed and efficiency of the entire process, she told ENA. Even more importantly, it’s curbing graft in what was previously one of the most corrupt government departments.

Ethiopia’s digitalization is built on digital IDs, which the government has been pushing aggressively in recent years. A month ago, Yodahe Zemichael, the director of the National ID Program (NIDP), revealed that the government has an ambitious target of 90 million IDs in two years. So far, it has enrolled nearly 17 million Ethiopians onto its Fayda Number digital ID.

Gabriella Abraham, a legal advisor at the NIDP, reiterated that the digital ID program is the foundation of Ethiopia’s digitalization journey. She revealed that its rollout has drastically cut down reliance on paper-based processes in government offices, which has boosted efficiency and access.

Nigeria goes paperless

In West Africa, the region’s largest economy—Nigeria—is digitalizing core government operations as it seeks to go paperless.

According to Ibrahim Adeyanju, the managing director of Galaxy Backbone, the government has prioritized digitalization, harnessing the latest technologies, from artificial intelligence (AI) to the Internet of Things (IoT).

“We are ensuring that we move from a manual file system to a paperless office, wherein anywhere you are in the world or within Nigeria, directors are able to do their work, even on the go,” he told local outlets.

Galaxy Backbone is a state-owned company that provides connectivity services to government agencies and institutions. Adeyanju took over at the helm in February last year.

Home to over 230 million citizens, Nigeria has been investing in digital transformation to boost access to government services in recent years. Its digital ID program, known as ID4D, targets 180 million IDs by the end of next year, boosted by $430 million in funding from the World Bank.

In addition to boosting access and efficiency, Adeyanju says paperless services will curb the rampant corruption in government offices. Nigeria ranked 140 out of 180 countries on the Corruption Perceptions Index, with nearly half of all respondents claiming to have paid a bribe to access a public service in the previous 12 months.

“Once things are digitalized, there is less of the human factor … from end to end, if it’s digital, then you are sure people will do their work and citizens will get more value,” commented Adeyanju.

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