@GovernorIkpeazu among the newly inaugurated National Addressing System (NAS) members.

Nigeria’s Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, on Thursday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja inaugurated the National Addressing System (NAS) Council which is mandated to make guidelines and provide strategic direction for the National Addressing System” and to “ensure that the Policy is revised as at when due, to align with the new technologies, Policy objectives and socio-economic realities.

The NAS Council comprises 18 members, with the Vice President as the Chairman.

Other members of the Council are: Minister of Communications; Minister of Works, Power and Housing; Minister of Finance; Minister of National Planning; Minister of Interior; Minister of Justice/Attorney-General of the Federation; Minister, Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; and National Security Adviser,

Others include representatives of the Governors of the six Geo-political Zones by Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State – South-East; Governor Mohammed Abubakar of Bauchi State – North-East; Governor Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna State – North-West; Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State – North-Central; Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State – South-west jobs; Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State – South-South; Chairman of ALGON; Two (2) members from the Organized Private Sector; and The Postmaster-General/CEO of NIPOST.

All the governors were in attendance, except Bauchi State Governor; and Rivers State Governor, who was, however, represented at the inauguration by the state Deputy Governor; Dr. Ipalibo Banigo.

In his opening address, Osinbajo said, the inauguration offered added proof of the administration’s commitment to putting in place an enabling environment for business in Nigeria, enabling the digital economy, and achieving sustainable and diversified economic growth.

“Every step like this that we take to improve national infrastructure – whether it is hard infrastructure like roads, rail and power, or soft infrastructure like a National Addressing System – is a giant leap forward in terms of unlocking additional economic potential across multiple sectors of the economy,” he said.

“With the National Addressing System in place, we will be able to identify every building and every household using a distinct and easy-to-interpret address.

“The implications is that from everything such as efficient mail delivery, to the facilitation of e-commerce, to disaster management and national security and also to all of the other functions that may come as a result of properly identifying buildings, all of these are the advantages of the National Addressing System.”

He said a functional addressing system would provide a much needed backbone of the roll-out of new technology, including Global Positioning Systems (GPS), applications and equipment.

“It must also be admitted that the establishment of a National Addressing System for Nigeria is long overdue and for that reason, today’s inauguration should be seen not as an end, but a beginning - a start of a journey we should have begun long ago; which means that there is absolutely no time for dwelling on self-congratulations. Instead, we must acknowledge the amount of work that still lies ahead to implement a functioning system,” he said.

“This implementation will not happen without the active collaboration of the federal, state and local governments, and I urge all stakeholders to adopt a collaborative approach to ensure the implementation succeeds, and that Nigeria speedily partakes of the social and economic benefits of having a system in place.

“I equally enjoin all Council members to fully understand their assigned roles and to strive to fulfil them with the dedication, urgency and cooperation required.

“Your contributions will, no doubt, contribute immensely to national growth and development.”

He therefore challenged NIPOST, the key driver of the National Addressing System, not to relent in its efforts to re-position for the 21st century, saying, “I am aware of the ambitious targets you have set for yourselves, indeed, you have before you, an opportunity to make your presence felt in the lives of tens of millions of ordinary Nigerians who require efficient and cost effective postal and financial services, and to demonstrate that government agencies can be as innovative and as responsive in service delivery as the best of the private sector.

“There is no doubt that the new Nigeria we envision will be built on these new standards and ways of doing things, especially in the public sector.”

He thanked the Minister of Communications and his team, for the work they had done so far in bringing the National Addressing System to this point.