INFRASTRUCTURAL DEFICIT AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: THE PROSPECT OF ENHANCING DIGITAL GOVERNANCE THROUGH PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP

Abstract

The appreciable effects of information technology have ingeniously transformed conventional global practices in all walks of human endeavor. Nevertheless, Nigeria is yet to fully embrace the efficacy of digital governance toward enhancing effective service delivery in its public sector. This has been attributed to numerous challenges such as; digital divide, infrastructural deficit, and digital illiteracy, lack of viable database, and porosity of the cyberspace, among others. The aforementioned have alluded to government involvement in various sectors of the economy, which consequently prevent the government from prioritizing the Information Communication sector. Thus, the study examines the possibility of minimizing the infrastructural gap through public-private partnerships, towards ensuring the serviceability and effectuality of digital technologies in Nigeria's public sector. The paper relied essentially on secondary sources of data, using an ex-post-facto research design. The paper recommended engagement of corporate organizations, religious institutions, professional and trade associations, non-governmental organizations, and government at all levels in minimizing the infrastructural gap militating against the efficacy of digital governance in Nigeria's public sector.