The second meeting of the West Africa Digital Governance Forum (WADGov Forum) concluded in Abuja, Nigeria, following two days of high-level exchanges among the region’s official focal points for digital governance.
Organized by the United Nations University - Operating Unit on Policy-driven Electronic Governance (UNU-EGOV), in collaboration with the Division for Public Institutions and Digital Government of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), and supported by GIZ, the event demonstrate that the Forum continues to provide a unique platform for sharing experiences, identifying opportunities, and fostering new bilateral and regional synergies.
Since the launch of the WADGov Forum in 2023, in Banjul, The Gambia, West Africa’s digital journey has accelerated along multiple paths. Delegates noted steady progress but also significant differences between countries, both in the roll-out of foundational digital services and in the maturity of enabling policy frameworks.
Throughout the discussions, participants explored core questions for the coming years: What should be the region’s digital policy priorities, and how do accomplishments, opportunities, and challenges vary across contexts? How are these priorities reflected in national digital strategies and, crucially, how can they be advanced at an integrated regional level? Equally pressing was the issue of global voice: how can West African digital perspectives be strengthened in international fora so that regional priorities are advanced and interests protected?
In the Abuja Statement, delegates underscored the centrality of collaboration:
Regional cooperation towards an effective interoperability between countries and shared digital solutions and best practices emerges as a major challenge for the future of digital governance in West Africa. The WADGov Forum, which brings together the corresponding governmental agencies of all 16 countries in West Africa, can act as a catalyst for change and cooperation.
The closing session was addressed by Tshilidzi Marwala, Rector of the United Nations University. Earlier, Arpine Korekyan, Governance and Public Administration Officer at UN DESA’s Digital Government Branch, delivered the closing remarks. The meeting also featured the participation of Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, Director-General of Nigeria’s National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), as host, as well as Eva Scholtes from GIZ, Delfina Soares, Director of UNU-EGOV, and Luis Soares Barbosa, Deputy Director of UNU-EGOV.
The WADGov Forum is one of three regional fora established by UNU-EGOV under the Global Fora on Digital Governance initiative, alongside the CADGov Forum (Central Asia Digital Governance Forum) and the SEADGov (South and East Africa Digital Governance Forum). Together, they promote dialogue on digital governance and regional cooperation across the Global South.
