By Akinwande Soji-Ojo and Emmanuel Adeleke
Grassroot Addressing and Identity Network (GAIN) has partnered with Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) to digitalise the addressing system in South West region of the country.
Speaking at a presentation on Accelerated Integrated Development through Digital Address System, facilitated by the Grassroot Addressing and Identity Network (GAIN), at the DAWN Commission headquarters in Ibadan, on Tuesday, the immediate Postmaster General of the Federation/Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Postal Services (NIPOST), Asiwaju Bisi Adegbuyi, said it is important for Nigeria to leverage on technology to revolutionise addressing system in the country.
According to Adegbuyi, the future of the world rests on technology and Nigeria, especially the South West need to seize the opportunity of its youthful population to digitalise her addressing system and post code. Â
“Nigeria is undergoing stress, Federal Government is biting more than it can chew; it is important for states and local governments to ramp up efforts and begin to come up with solutions that can engender development in terms of security and economy.
“We will use law and technology to empower local governments to have a proper adressing system in Nigeria because it is purely the function of local governments,” he said.
Adegbuyi, who is the founder of GAIN and visioner for the project, explained that GAIN is partnering with DAWN Commission because the South West is the pilot scheme for the project.
“Let us show people that civilisation started from this region and we are enacting it. It is all about how we solve the problems of Nigeria,” he said.
He noted that the digitalised addressing system being championed by GAIN will have local government, state, unique identifier for the area and figures from individual’s phone numbers.
Adegbuyi stressed that the digitalised addressing system will provide employment opportunities for the teeming youths and improve the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the local governments and states in general.
“We will start with the addressing system and in few years, the multiplier effect of the value chain will generate employment, increase IGR at the local and state level and enhance security.Businesses will blossom, e-commerce will grow exponentially,” he stated.
In his presentation, the Project Manager of GAIN, Ayoola Olaniyi, said digitalising the addressing system of the country will give access to the grassroots.
He said it will eliminate stress in describing the address of a place and improve visibility for all and sundry.
“The South West has been divided into 3 by 3m grid. After the division, we now have about 30 billion grid in the South West. We didn’t just embark on the project, we have done our homework and the possibilities with creating verifiable digital address is endless,” Olaniyi said.
In his remarks, the Director- General of DAWN Commission, Mr Seye Oyeleye, commended GAIN for the initiative.
He said the initiative if properly implemented can fast track the development of the South West region.
“Our job is to midwife epochal changes and revolutionise how we live. We have a committee working on digital literacy and education. Most times we underestimate the power of technology. The banking sector in Nigeria shows that we have moved ahead of US and UK in terms of using technology to drive financial services. We can be innovators and we have the capacity to do things. We will guide the proceas for our region to do it and it will be to our benefit to adopt it,” Oyeleye said.
Contributing, the Commissioner for Local Government ans Chieftaincy Affairs in Ogun State, Mr Afolabi Afuwape, commended GAIN for coming up with the idea, saying: “It is a right step in the right direction. Without adequate data, there can’t be proper planning. The initiative will solve insecurity problem and a whole lot of issues.”
All the South West states were represented at the event.
