The Minister of Communications, Barrister Abdur-Raheem Adebayo Shittu last weekend played host to the newly-appointed Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, in company with Malam Nafiu Baba-Ahmed and Alhaji Shehu B. Umar.
NITDA, an agency under the Ministry Communications, was established to foster the development and growth of information technology in Nigeria.
Following the suspension of the former DG, Mr Peter Jack on January 20, 2016, and his eventual sack by the Federal Government, one of the directors in the agency, Dr Vincent Olatunji was appointed the acting DG pending the appointment of a substantive DG.
As part of its efforts to re-energise the MDAs, the Federal Government last week announced a new DG for NITDA and 12 others MDAs.
An Associate Professor of Computer Information System at the Islamic University of Madinah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Dr Pantami is the first Nigerian ever to teach in the university of more than 63 years of existence.
He was born and bred in Gombe State, Nigeria, where he obtained his basic education. He completed his first degree in Computer Science in 2002 at Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi (ATBA); Master of Science (MSC), Computer Science 2008; Master of Business Admin (MBA), Technology in 2010 from the same university and he obtained his PhD in the United Kingdom.
He was a lecturer at ATBU, Bauchi, for more than a decade before joining Islamic University Madina as Assistant Professor in Computing Systems & Information Technology. He has authored many books on ICT, STEM, Technology, Politics & Community Reconciliation & Religion.
The new NITDA boss has taken over from Dr. Vincent Olatunji, the Acting Director General of the agency.