The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, has called on the Office of the Head of the Civil Service to make capacity-building for ministers and civil servants a priority, saying it is critical to the success of Nigeria’s transition to a fully digital public service.
Speaking on Wednesday in Abuja at the launch of the Enterprise Content Management System at the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Lokpobiri cautioned that many public officials still work in an “analogue” manner despite the Federal Government’s ongoing digitalisation efforts.
His remarks came hours after the Minister of Works, David Umahi, admitted at a press briefing on Tuesday that he was still adjusting to the new digital processes and would need further training to function effectively within the system.
“There are a lot of analogue civil servants. There are also a lot of analogue ministers that you need to train so that this thing will be used by everyone,” he said. “Some people are not technology-savvy, so you need to train everybody to maximise the opportunities available.”
The ECMS, hosted on the 1Gov Cloud platform, is intended to eliminate manual, paper-based procedures by introducing electronic approvals, automated workflows, and secure digital records, thereby cutting delays caused by the physical movement of files across offices.
Lokpobiri described the project as transformative, saying Nigeria had for too long depended on cumbersome manual systems that hindered decision-making and drove up operating costs.
“One of our major challenges has been the analogue way of doing things. Sometimes, to get simple documentation approved, people have to travel physically, even outside the country, just to sign papers. Sometimes it takes weeks,” he said. “This initiative changes that narrative and aligns Nigeria with global best practices.”
He praised the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation for spearheading the reform, emphasising that digital systems would strengthen institutions, enhance resource utilisation, and unlock greater value across the oil and gas sector through improved information management and record-keeping.
In her remarks, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Esther Walson-Jack, said the rollout of the ECMS positions the Ministry of Petroleum Resources to meet the Federal Government’s deadline for the full digitalisation of work processes by December 31, 2025.
She said the initiative aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s public service reform agenda, aimed at creating an efficient, accountable, and digitally enabled civil service capable of turning policy into tangible results.
“This initiative strengthens the effectiveness of the public service by enabling faster work processes, secure record management, and reduced reliance on paper,” Walson-Jack said. “For a ministry that plays a strategic role in Nigeria’s economic stability and energy security, this milestone is both timely and significant.”
She noted that the efficiency of the petroleum ministry has a direct bearing on revenue generation, investor confidence, and national planning, stressing that manual processes can no longer meet the demands of a sector that constantly engages with regulators, operators, and other ministries, departments, and agencies.
She said the ECMS will provide secure records, clear audit trails, streamlined workflows, and dependable institutional memory across the Federal Civil Service.
Walson-Jack added that the rollout supports Pillar Five of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 2021–2025, which places digitalisation at the centre of operations across MDAs.
“Digital transformation does not end with the launch of a system. Its success depends on consistent use, adherence to established processes, and sustained digital discipline,” she said, urging officials to embrace paperless operations and route official correspondence through designated digital channels.
Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Patience Oyekunle, said the launch marked a decisive transition from manual processes to a modern digital platform that would enhance efficiency, transparency, and service delivery.
