The Head of Nigeria’s Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack, has announced the successful completion of the full digitalisation of the country’s Federal Civil Service, marking the end of paper-based operations across all Ministries and Extra-Ministerial Departments (MEMDs).
She made the announcement on Wednesday in Abuja during a news conference held to formally confirm the implementation of the Federal Government’s directive that set December 31, 2025, as the deadline for migrating to a paperless system.
According to Walson-Jack, all 38 MEMDs, comprising 33 ministries and five extra-ministerial departments have now transitioned from legacy manual processes to a modern, accountable, and digitally enabled public service. The extra-ministerial departments include the State House, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, the Federal Civil Service Commission, and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.
She stated that the reform has effectively eliminated the long-standing challenge of missing, lost, or misplaced files, thereby improving efficiency, accountability, and service delivery to citizens.
Walson-Jack disclosed that as of December 31, 2025, over 100,000 official email accounts had been created for public servants under the GovMail platform. She explained that all civil servants now operate with official government email identities, ensuring secure, professional, and auditable communication across government institutions.
The Head of Service noted that the GovMail platform is already saving the Federal Government billions of naira annually by reducing reliance on fragmented, agency-specific external email subscriptions, while also offering better value for money.
To consolidate the gains of the reform, she announced that her office, with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), will launch a Service-wide Training-of-Trainers programme in January 2026. The initiative will train 500 master trainers who will, in turn, provide hands-on digital skills training to officers across ministries and extra-ministerial departments to ensure sustainable adoption of the new systems.
Walson-Jack further explained that all MEMDs will no longer accept paper correspondence through physical registries. Instead, all official submissions must now be sent to designated registry email addresses published on the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation’s website. Citizens can also track their correspondence through the Federal Civil Service Paperless Portal.
She emphasized that digitalisation will significantly enhance transparency, efficiency, and public trust, noting that citizens and the international community no longer need to send physical letters to engage with the Federal Civil Service.
“The days of missing, lost, or misplaced files are gone. This system provides clear audit trails, faster response times, and more convenient access to government services for citizens and businesses alike,” she said.
Walson-Jack added that the achievement represents the culmination of the 2025 “Year of Accomplishment” under the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 2021–2025 (FCSSIP25), delivered under the theme “Final Sprint – Delivering Results.”
She commended key enabling institutions and strategic partners, including the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and Galaxy Backbone Limited, for their critical roles in strengthening implementation capacity and accelerating deployment of the 1Gov Enterprise Content Management (ECM) platform.
Meanwhile, She praised Galaxy Backbone, noting that its technical and institutional support made large-scale implementation possible and ensured the successful delivery of the paperless mandate by the December 31, 2025 deadline.
