Nigeria Launches National Data Portal as CBN Data Localisation Spurs Local Data‑Centre Growth

Nigeria's Federal Government announced the creation of a national economic data portal to replace reliance on World Bank figures. Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy Taiwo Oyedele revealed the plan at the African Emerging Markets Forum in Abuja, describing the portal as a tool for credible, timely, publicly accessible statistics that will improve transparency, policymaking and investor confidence.

Separately, the Central Bank of Nigeria's data localisation directive, requiring payment‑related data to be stored domestically by January 2027, is being hailed as a catalyst for the country's digital infrastructure. Adebola Omololu, co‑founder of GFA Technologies Group, said the policy will drive sustained demand for local data centres and sovereign cloud services, linking it to the firm's planned 200‑megawatt Abeokuta Technology Zone data centre and digital infrastructure campus.

Both initiatives are presented as steps toward greater data sovereignty, stronger institutions and long‑term economic growth in Nigeria.