Digital Sovereignty, Cloud Records, and the National Security Implications of Government Data Outsourcing in Nigeria

This study conducts an interdisciplinary theoretical and empirical examination of digital sovereignty, cloud-based government records, and the national security implications of data outsourcing by Nigerian government institutions. As Nigerian federal and state governments increasingly adopt commercial cloud platforms for administrative records management, critical questions arise about data sovereignty, jurisdictional vulnerability, and the national security risks of government records residing on foreign-owned cloud infrastructure outside Nigerian territorial and legal jurisdiction. The research employs a critical security studies methodology integrating legal analysis, policy document examination, and empirical data collection. Phase One systematically analyses Nigeria's cloud data governance legal framework including the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023, the National Digital Economy Policy, and CBN cloud risk guidelines. Phase Two surveys 185 chief information officers, government IT directors, and national security information advisers, and conducts forty-five in-depth interviews with cybersecurity experts, international law scholars, and senior civil servants. Phase Three develops a Digital Sovereignty Risk Framework for Nigerian Government Cloud Records through expert Delphi validation. The Digital Sovereignty Theory, the Critical Infrastructure Protection Framework, and the Information Sovereignty Doctrine provide the theoretical architecture, with literature from 2020 to 2024 on cloud governance and state sovereignty supporting the analysis. Recommendations target NITDA, the National Cybersecurity Council, and the Office of the National Security Adviser. Keywords: digital sovereignty, cloud records, national security, government data, Nigeria