ABUJA — The Federal Government of Nigeria has officially banned the use of personal email accounts, such as Yahoo Mail, for all official public-sector transactions. The directive, aimed at bolstering cybersecurity and ensuring the integrity of government data, mandates that all civil servants transition to secure, institutional digital platforms.

A Digital Mandate for the Civil Service

The declaration was made by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HoSF), Didi Walson-Jack, during the Digital Transformation Summit 2026, held in Abuja to mark the 20th anniversary of Galaxy Backbone.

According to the HoSF, over 115,000 active official "GovMail" accounts have already been activated to provide a secure, traceable, and professional communication channel across federal ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs).

"Government business cannot continue to depend on personal email addresses, informal channels, and scattered records," Walson-Jack stated. "Thanks to Galaxy Backbone, the days of Yahoo Mail are over for transacting government business. When an officer leaves a desk, government information must not leave with that officer; institutional memory must remain within government."

Milestone in Digital Transformation

The HoSF highlighted that the Federal Government successfully achieved a major digital milestone by fully digitizing the work processes of all 38 federal ministries and extra-ministerial departments by the end of December 2025.

Reflecting on the shift, Walson-Jack emphasized that the digitalization agenda supported by Galaxy Backbone’s iGovernment cloud and high-speed internet infrastructure is a practical reform designed to:

  • Increase Efficiency: Removing bureaucratic bottlenecks and paper-based delays.

  • Enhance Transparency: Ensuring government work is traceable, accountable, and measurable.

  • Strengthen Institutional Memory: Securing sensitive data within government-controlled systems.

"For us in the Federal Civil Service, digitalization is not a slogan or a ceremonial project but a practical reform aimed at improving the way government works," she added.

Supporting Governance

Galaxy Backbone’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Prof. Ibrahim Adeyanju, underscored the importance of this infrastructure, noting that in the modern economy, digital data has surpassed crude oil in global economic value. He urged the Federal Government to continue accelerating its digital transformation policies to maintain national competitiveness.

The government's move marks a significant step in the administration’s ongoing efforts to modernize Nigeria's public sector and ensure that the civil service operates as a connected, secure, and efficient system.