According to the Federal Government of Nigeria, in a statement signed by Mrs. Manji Yarling, the acting head of Media and Publicity, Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) on February 9, 2023, in Abuja, stated there are ongoing plans for incorporation of the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including all Foreign Missions into a unified portal. Mrs. Yarling stated that there was a proposal for the management of the unified web portal to be overseen under a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, according to the ICRC media head, confirmed the proposal when he supervised a delegation to the ICRC to request its regulatory guidance for management of the portal with the usage of the PPP model. She added that one of the major aims of the portal is provision of a platform that helps stranded Nigerians to reach out and get help. The project information was divulged by the minister and his team after being welcomed by the Director-General of the ICRC, Michael Ohiani, and the management.
Creation of a harmonized platform for the ministry & its missions.
Aside the project, Onyeama briefed the ICRC on the search for effective management by the ministry. The minister asserted that the ministry has been in search of partners, as a result, they also visited the commission to present projects for scrutiny to see the likelihood of cooperation. This is because the minister was pre-informed that the ministry’s project can be sold to the private sector. The team from the ministry explained further, stating the ministry’s attempts to achieve three goals with the project.
As stated by the ministry’s team, the goals include the Diplomatic Service Digitalization Initiative (DSDI), a Unified Website and the Nigeria Global Business Match and Citizens’ Help Desk. According to the team, there exists an alignment between the project and the priority of the current administration which is inclusive of creating a harmonized platform for the ministry and the ministry’s missions. The Citizens’ Help Desk was one of the developments of clear guidelines for protection of Nigerians abroad.
The project would provide global jobs and opportunities to Nigerians.
Additionally, the team affirmed the capability of the project to enable the provision of multiple platforms for citizens in the diaspora to reach out to the government and find resolution to their issues. It would also make business match-making platforms possible for provision of global jobs and opportunities to Nigerians and Nigerian Businesses. To support the project, the high-level infrastructure, which are needed includes a virtual private network, an active directory, an intranet, and an electronic document management system.
With these services offered by the ministry, the ministry looked forward to achievement of an integrated e-payment solution. Ohiani added that this rare kind of project would be helpful in situations like the recent earthquake that occurred in Turkey. Nigerians, through the platforms, would easily reach out to the mission to call out for help, either for themselves or other Nigerians. He stressed the laudability of the project, stating that with the management of private sector operatives, optimization would be better with employment of technology deployment.
There should be ways to help the private sector recoup their investment.
The Director-General suggested that the project could become a marketplace where people can invest in. According to him, there has to be a way for money-making to enable the private sector to recover its investment and make some returns to the ministry. To aid seamlessness of the operation, there could be deployment of artificial intelligence into the projects. Focus should also be placed on aspects that will need partial to full commercialization. The ICRC head affirmed that the ICRC was prepared to welcome a business and financial model from the private sector through the ministry concerning the management of the project.
Related Link
Fmprc: Website
Foreign missions to be unified in a portal. – The portal would help stranded Nigerians to call for and get help. – Express your point of view.
The high-level infrastructure required to support the project consists of an intranet, a virtual private network, an active directory, and an electronic document management system.
There are current proposals being worked on to include the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, together with the websites of all foreign missions, into a single, unified platform.
A public partnership model was one of the possible organizational structures that might have been used to govern the administration of the unified online portal.
There are current proposals being worked on to include the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, together with the websites of all Foreign Missions, into a single, unified platform.
The development of a platform that assists stranded Nigerians in making contact with others and obtaining assistance is one of the primary goals of the portal.
the suggestion when he was in charge of supervising a delegation that went to the ICRC to ask for its regulatory assistance about the management of the portal through the implementation of the PPP model.
Foreign missions to be unified in a portal. At list this welcome also help the stranded Nigerians
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and all diplomatic missions’ websites are currently being consolidated into a single, streamlined platform, as proposed in a number of recent initiatives.
The minister was briefed in advance on the possibility of selling the ministry’s initiative to the private sector, as well as on the ministry’s efforts to accomplish three goals with the project.
One of the initiatives that contributed to the establishment of clear rules for the safety of Nigerians living outside of the country was the Citizens’ Help Desk.
One of the main focuses of the portal is building a system that helps Nigerians who are separated from their families to reconnect with them and receive aid.
The administration of the single online portal may have been governed by a public partnership model, which was one of several potential organizational structures considered.
This will help stranded Nigerians outside the country to contact and able to call for help in the unified online portal
If the project go as planned, it will achieve the goals of of citizens in the enabling diaspora to reach out to the government and find resolution to their issues. It would also make business match-making platforms possible for provision of global jobs and opportunities to Nigerians and Nigerian Businesses etc
The Unified portals for foreign missions will be of great help to stranded Nigeria who don’t know what to do.
This would make it easier for Nigerians who are stuck outside the country to get in touch with one another and request for assistance through the unified internet platform.
With this new unification of foreign missions in a portal Nigeria will have the privilege to call for help when stranded in any part of the world.
It is a good thing the foreign missions will be united. It will help breed co-operation to ensure the Nigerian citizens abroad all live in harmony and care for one another.
There are currently plans in development to combine the websites of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and all Foreign Missions onto a single, cohesive platform.