By Linus Aleke, Abuja
The United Kingdom, has welcomed the establishment of Nigeria’s National Cybersecurity Coordination Centre.
The United Kingdom High Commission in Abuja, in a statement, noted that the Coordination Centre, when established, would contribute to developing Nigeria’s ability to tackle and disrupt threats to Nigeria’s Critical National Infrastructure while enhancing the digital economy.
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The inaugural Nigeria – United Kingdom Cyber Dialogue reiterated the importance of developing Nigeria’s cyber security capacities.
It also stressed the benefits of close cooperation to tackle the threats faced in cyberspace.
Other areas as contained in a communique jointly signed by National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, and Director General for Africa, the Americas and British Overseas Territories Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, Harriet Mathews, include respect for international laws and norms, supporting regional, national and sectoral Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT) co-operation and tackling cybercrime.
“The United Kingdom and Nigeria agreed on the importance of working together to develop cyber resilience. The two Governments exchanged views on policies and programmes for strengthening cybercrime co-operation and combatting online fraud as well as the development of emerging technologies, international standards and cyber security. The Dialogue also addressed countering cyber threats, enhancing global governance, promoting responsible behaviour in cyberspace, and garnering international cooperation in multilateral fora including, the United Nations”.
The Memorandum of Understanding signed between the two countries affirmed the shared commitment to collaborate on cyber security and frames the objectives of our bilateral relationship.
Following the UK- Nigeria Security and Defence dialogue held in Abuja, the British High Commissioner, Dr Richard Montgomery said that as security challenges around the world grow, it has become increasingly crucial to support its allies to uphold regional and international peace.
According to him, “The UK reaffirmed our commitment to Nigeria, building on progress made since the last UK-Nigeria Security and Defence Partnership dialogue, from tackling-terrorism and countering violent extremism to defending against cyber-attacks. I extend my sincere appreciation to the Government of Nigeria for their partnership and look forward to continuing to deep our cooperation across our Security and Defence Partnership”.
