The National Information Technology Development Agency has called on Nigeria’s regulatory agencies to work together to establish a national regulatory sandbox, as the government moves to create a more coordinated framework for testing emerging technologies without weakening regulatory oversight.
NITDA Director-General, Kashifu Inuwa, said stronger collaboration among regulators would be critical to making the National Regulatory Sandbox effective and creating an environment where innovators can develop and test new technologies under appropriate supervision.
Inuwa spoke through the National Coordinator of the Office for Nigerian Digital Innovation, Ms Victoria Fabunmi, at the National Regulatory Sandbox Governance and Implementation Planning Workshop in Abuja.
The workshop marks a transition from the design phase of the initiative to implementation, with participating regulators expected to review and validate the proposed governance structure before the sandbox is rolled out.
According to Inuwa, the Office for Nigerian Digital Innovation has spent months preparing the groundwork through stakeholder consultations, ecosystem mapping, regulatory assessments and the development of a draft governance and implementation framework.
“The work completed so far provides a solid foundation, but the National Regulatory Sandbox can only achieve its objectives through collective ownership by all relevant regulatory institutions,” he said.
The proposed sandbox is intended to give innovators a structured environment in which emerging technologies can be tested with regulators while allowing authorities to identify potential risks and determine how existing rules should apply to new business models.
For Nigeria’s technology sector, the initiative could become increasingly important as startups expand beyond established areas such as financial technology into healthcare, mobility, agriculture and other industries where regulatory responsibilities are spread across multiple government agencies.
Inuwa said the Technical Working Group was established to bring together the expertise, experience and statutory mandates of participating institutions in developing a regulatory model suited to Nigeria’s rapidly changing innovation landscape.
He said regulators should view their different statutory responsibilities as complementary rather than competing interests, arguing that coordination would help create a framework capable of responding to emerging technologies while preserving regulatory integrity and public trust.
The workshop is expected to examine the proposed governance framework, test its assumptions and incorporate recommendations from regulators and other stakeholders before the final model is adopted.
The discussions are also expected to identify implementation gaps, establish institutional responsibilities and agree on priority actions required to operationalize the sandbox.
Implementing Partner at Druve, Ojonoka Yusufu, said the sandbox would provide a mechanism for innovators and regulators to work together on emerging technologies while maintaining compliance with applicable laws.
She said the workshop was designed to build a common understanding among participating agencies, develop consensus around the sandbox’s operating model and identify potential gaps before implementation.
“We do not have anything set in stone yet,” Yusufu said. “The idea is to work together to build a common understanding and ensure that all participating regulators and stakeholders are aligned on the objectives and implementation of the National Regulatory Sandbox.”
The emphasis on coordination reflects a structural challenge facing technology companies operating across multiple sectors. A startup developing a new product may have to navigate different regulators depending on whether its technology touches financial services, healthcare, telecommunications, transport or other regulated activities.
A coordinated sandbox could give regulators a common mechanism for assessing such technologies while giving innovators greater clarity about the requirements they must meet before taking products to market.
The model is designed to complement existing regulatory institutions rather than replace them.
Yusufu said the need for a coordinated regulatory approach has grown alongside Nigeria’s technology and startup ecosystem.
Nigeria’s ICT sector has become a significant contributor to economic activity, while its startup ecosystem has attracted international capital and produced companies operating across an increasingly broad range of industries.
The expansion beyond fintech, she said, means regulators need mechanisms that can respond to technologies and business models that do not fit neatly within traditional regulatory boundaries.
Nigerian startups are creating jobs and attracting investment, while the country is seeking to strengthen its position as one of Africa’s leading technology and innovation markets.
The National Regulatory Sandbox is backed by the Nigeria Startup Act, which provides a legal foundation for measures aimed at supporting startups and improving the country’s innovation environment.
Yusufu described the proposed sandbox as a multi-agency innovation governance mechanism that would allow regulators and innovators to engage earlier in the development cycle of new technologies.
That approach could reduce uncertainty for companies while allowing regulators to identify consumer, market and public-interest risks before technologies are deployed at scale.
The immediate challenge for NITDA and participating agencies is to turn the proposed framework into an operating system that regulators and innovators can use in practice.
Inuwa said the Abuja workshop would help establish clear implementation pathways, strengthen institutional partnerships and identify priority actions for operationalizing the initiative.
He urged participants to contribute practical recommendations that can shape a framework capable of supporting sustainable economic growth and improving Nigeria’s competitiveness in the global digital economy.