Nigeria is moving towards establishing a locally controlled cloud infrastructure, with government-owned Galaxy Backbone Limited (GBB) holding partnership talks with two technology companies to develop the facility.
The proposed sovereign cloud project is expected to strengthen the country's control over government and citizens' data by ensuring that sensitive information is stored within Nigeria and subject to domestic laws.
GBB disclosed the ongoing negotiations in its third-quarter 2026 performance report, although it did not identify the companies involved or provide details of the proposed agreement.
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The initiative marks a step towards turning Nigeria's data sovereignty ambitions into infrastructure investment, as governments across Africa increasingly seek to reduce reliance on foreign-controlled data storage and cloud services.
A sovereign cloud allows governments and other institutions to store and manage sensitive information within their national borders, ensuring that such data remains under local legal and regulatory control.
GBB, which provides shared information technology infrastructure and services to federal ministries, departments and agencies, is expected to play a central role in the proposed arrangement.
The agency's decision to pursue a public-private partnership (PPP) suggests that it intends to combine government oversight with private sector expertise and investment in developing the infrastructure.
The approach could also reduce the financial and technical burden of building and operating a sovereign cloud entirely with public resources.
However, GBB has yet to disclose the project's implementation timeline, financial commitments, technical scope or the identities of the prospective partners.
It is also unclear whether the companies involved are Nigerian technology providers, international firms or a combination of both.
The development comes amid growing interest in data localisation across Africa, with countries including Kenya and South Africa pursuing policies to strengthen domestic control over digital infrastructure.
GBB's report indicates that discussions are ongoing, with further details expected as negotiations advance.
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