The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has won the prestigious 2025 World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Prize for its Digital Awareness Programme (DAP) under Category C3: Access to Information and Knowledge.
This was disclosed in a statement issued by Nnenna Ukoha, Acting Head of Public Affairs at the Commission.
According to Ukoha, the DAP emerged as the top project in its category, receiving the highest number of votes among numerous other submissions made by the Commission for the 2025 WSIS Prizes competition.
The Digital Awareness Programme equips secondary schools across Nigeria with Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools and provides internet connectivity to support teaching, learning, and research. Since its inception in 2006, more than 300 schools across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones have benefited from the initiative.
Dr. Aminu Maida, Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, received the award during the WSIS Prizes 2025 Winners Ceremony held on Monday in Geneva, Switzerland. He expressed appreciation to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the WSIS organisers for recognising Nigeria’s commitment to inclusive digital access.
“This recognition is more than a celebration of past efforts—it is an encouragement to press forward. It affirms that investing in digital inclusion is investing in national development, and that Nigeria’s work is being seen and valued on the global stage,” Dr. Maida said.
In addition to the DAP, four other Nigerian initiatives were acknowledged as Champions in their respective categories during the ceremony. These include:
Women Teachers and the Advanced Digital Empowerment Programme for Tertiary Institutions (ADEPTI)- under the Capacity Building category;
Telecom- Based Research Grant Initiative – under Enabling Environment;
Digital Learning Initiative – under e-learning.
While these projects did not emerge as top-voted winners, they were recognised for their notable merit and impact.
The WSIS Prizes recognise and promote outstanding projects that leverage ICTs to drive sustainable development. The annual competition highlights how digital technologies can address global challenges and contribute to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) is a United Nations initiative aimed at building a people-centred, inclusive, and development-oriented information society. The WSIS Forum serves as a global, multi-stakeholder platform that brings together high-level representatives from governments, the private sector, civil society, academia, the technical community, and international organisations to advance the implementation of the WSIS Action Lines in alignment with the SDGs.