Athena Centre appointed to NGREN Board as Federal Government deepens data-driven governance

The Athena Centre for Policy and Leadership has been appointed to the Governing Board of the Nigerian Research and Education Network (NgREN)/Tertiary Education Research Applications and Services (TERAS).

NgREN – Nigeria’s national research and education backbone – provides high-speed connectivity, shared digital services, and collaboration infrastructure for universities and research institutions, while TERAS powers the digital applications that support research, data exchange, and digital learning across the tertiary system.

The new NgREN/TERAS Board was inaugurated by the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, and the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, at the Nigeria National EdTech Strategy Mid-Term Co-Creation Workshop, hosted with support from the Mastercard Foundation and World Bank Group.

The Board includes the Executive Secretaries of NUC, NBTE, NCCE, and TETFund; representatives of vice chancellors, rectors, and provosts; and major digital infrastructure stakeholders such as NCC, Galaxy Backbone, and USPF. The Athena Centre joins the Board as the civil society voice.

In his remarks, Dr Alausa acknowledged the Centre’s role in shaping national transparency reforms, noting that the Ministry’s Federal Tertiary Institutions Governance Transparency Portal (FTIGTP) drew inspiration from Athena’s research and advocacy. He expressed confidence that the reconstituted Board will deliver measurable improvements within two years to strengthen Nigeria’s research ecosystem and digital readiness.

Representing the Centre on the Board, its Chancellor, Chief Osita Chidoka, OFR, commended the Ministry’s commitment to transparency and evidence-based reform.

Reaffirming the Ministry’s digital direction, Dr Alausa stated, “For the first time, Nigeria is building a unified data architecture for basic, secondary, and tertiary institutions. You cannot reform what you cannot measure, and we are determined to measure what matters.”

Echoing the need for interoperability, Dr Tijani emphasised the importance of shared digital infrastructure, noting:

“Digital transformation fails when systems operate in silos. Our priority is a national architecture where platforms talk to each other, and every school is connected.”

Chidoka welcomed the digital innovation underway but stressed the importance of deeper inclusion of state governments, who own and manage most Nigerian schools, in planning, implementation, and financing. According to him:

“For education to succeed, states must invest, lead, and commit. The Federal Government must coordinate and support, but it cannot carry the burden of school management alone.”

The Athena Centre reaffirmed its commitment to supporting federal and state governments in strengthening education data systems, digital governance, and transparent accountability.