The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has earmarked N35 million in its 2025 budget proposal for “Capacity Building on Cybersecurity and Data Centre Management,” following a cyberattack that compromised its website on December 18, 2024.
The breach, disclosed via the bureau’s official X (formerly Twitter) account, led to warnings for the public to disregard information on the platform, raising concerns about the agency’s digital infrastructure. As Nigeria’s primary source of statistical data, the NBS’s vulnerability underscores the critical need for cybersecurity enhancements.
In addition to cybersecurity, the NBS has outlined several initiatives in its N9.85 billion budget aimed at modernizing operations and improving service delivery. Among these are N500 million for the Labour Force Survey, N80 million for the Consumer Price Index production, and N60 million for quarterly GDP compilations.
Other allocations include N55 million for the National Agricultural Sample Survey, N50 million for tracking the 8-Point Agenda, and N45 million for service delivery capacity building. Notable projects also feature N15 million for demographic statistics and N9 million for the Annual Abstract of Statistics.
The bureau’s personnel costs account for the majority of the budget at N6.65 billion. However, the website hack, which lasted about a week, may delay critical government reports, underscoring the urgency of the proposed cybersecurity investments.
Nigeria faces escalating cyber threats, with organisations averaging 3,759 attacks weekly, according to Check Point Software Technologies’ 2024 African Perspectives on Cyber Security Report. Public sector entities alone experience 1,791 attacks weekly, dominated by ransomware and botnet activities, revealing the critical vulnerability of government institutions as the nation accelerates digitalisation.
(Business Day)
