NiTA 2022: Public Sector Innovation Category Highlights Nigeria’s Most Competitive Tech Recognition

By: Oluchi Chibuzor – THISDAY Business & Innovation,

The 8th Nigeria Technology Awards (NiTA) concluded in Lagos with renewed emphasis on merit, transparency, and measurable impact — reaffirming its position as top tier Nigeria’s most credible recognition platforms for technology excellence.

Organised by Beta Media Group, the 2022 edition recorded over 420 nationwide nominations spanning private enterprises, public-sector agencies, and academic institutions. Following three evaluation stages — internal vetting, expert panel review, and verified public voting — only 30 honours were conferred, representing less than seven percent of total entries.

“We remain committed to a process that rewards innovation, evidence, and execution,” said Event Director Felix C. Nnuji. “Our independence from sponsorship or commercial influence is what sustains NiTA’s credibility.”

The 12-member judging panel featured recognised figures in Nigeria’s technology ecosystem, including Prof. Charles Uwadia (CPN), Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi (NITDA), and Dr. Olubunmi Odedeyi (University of Lagos). Entries were scored across NiTA’s five-point rubric — innovation (25 %), execution (20 %), scalability (15 %), measurable impact (25 %), and policy alignment (15 %) — with expert scores weighted at 70 percent and verified public voting at 30 percent.

In high-competition categories such as Technology Professional of the Year (Public Sector Innovation), more than thirty nominations were evaluated through NiTA’s five-point rubric, yielding only six finalists and a single eventual winner — an acceptance rate of roughly three percent. NiTA officials confirmed that finalists were required to submit verifiable documentation of project outcomes before advancing to the public vote.

Independent media coverage — including TechEconomy.ng, The Guardian, and BusinessDay Intelligence — has commended NiTA for institutionalizing merit-based recognition within Nigeria’s technology landscape. Since inception, NiTA has celebrated over 1,000 corporate and individual awardees, and in recent editions, the Awards now maintain a strict single-winner-per-category rule, underscoring their growing selectivity.

“By combining expert judgment with transparent metrics, NiTA ensures every honoree represents genuine excellence, not visibility,” said Prof. Uwadia. “This is what distinguishes it as Nigeria’s most competitive technology award.”