100,000 GovMail accounts created as core federal civil service goes paperless

Nigeria’s Federal Civil Service has completed a major phase of its digital transformation, with over 100,000 official GovMail accounts created nationwide as all core federal ministries and extra-ministerial departments transitioned fully to paperless operations by the December 31 deadline.

The milestone, achieved on December 30, marks one of the most far-reaching administrative reforms in the history of the federal public service, effectively ending decades of paper-based communication across 33 ministries and five extra-ministerial departments (MEMDs).

Announcing the development, Mrs. Didi Walson-Jack, head of the Civil Service of the Federation, said the creation of the GovMail accounts was central to enabling secure, auditable and efficient government communication under the new system.

“More than 100,000 official GovMail accounts have now been issued to civil servants across the federation. This ensures secure, traceable communication while saving billions of naira annually previously spent on paper, printing, storage and manual processing,” Walson-Jack said.

Under the new framework, all official correspondence within the federal civil service is conducted digitally through approved platforms, with physical submissions no longer accepted by the 38 ministries and MEMDs now operating on the Enterprise Content Management (ECM) system.

According to Walson-Jack, citizens and businesses can now engage federal ministries entirely through digital channels, submitting documents via official registry email addresses and tracking progress through the Federal Civil Service Paperless portal.

“This guarantees faster response times, clearer audit trails and greater transparency in government transactions,” she said.

The paperless transformation builds on reforms initiated in 2017 under former Heads of Service, Mrs. Winifred Oyo-Ita and Dr. Folasade Yemi-Esan, which introduced the ECM platform and laid the foundation for large-scale digitisation. However, the programme accelerated significantly under Walson-Jack’s leadership, expanding paperless operations from just three MEMDs in August 2024 to 38 by the end of 2025.

A statement titled “December 31 Deadline: Federal Civil Service Hits Paperless Milestone as 38 Ministries and Extra-Ministerial Departments Go Digital,” shared on Wednesday, disclosed that the transition was completed ahead of the official deadline.

Walson-Jack credited President Bola Tinubu for providing the political leadership that enabled the reforms and commended ministers, permanent secretaries and technical teams for driving implementation across government.

She also highlighted the role of Galaxy Backbone Limited in delivering the project, describing its institutional support as critical to the successful rollout of the 1Gov Enterprise Content Management system at scale. The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and other strategic partners were similarly acknowledged for strengthening implementation capacity across ministries and MEMDs.

Looking ahead, the Head of Service said a service-wide Training-of-Trainers programme, to be delivered in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), will commence in January 2026.

The initiative will train 500 officers on key digital tools, including Service-Wise GPT, GovMail and the Online Compendium of Federal Circulars, to ensure sustained adoption of the paperless system.

Walson-Jack disclosed the development during the plenary session of the 47th National Council on Establishments held in Kano from December 1 to 5, reiterating the government’s commitment to entrenching a fully digital federal civil service.

Royal Ibeh is a senior journalist with years of experience reporting on Nigeria’s technology and health sectors. She currently covers the Technology and Health beats for BusinessDay newspaper, where she writes in-depth stories on digital innovation, telecom infrastructure, healthcare systems, and public health policies.

Join BusinessDay whatsapp Channel, to stay up to date