Professional Assessment of Data Governance Maturity in Nigerian Federal Ministries

Data governance frameworks determine the quality, security, and strategic value of government data assets, and professional assessment of their maturity across Nigerian federal ministries provides evidence for reform and capacity building investment. This study professionally assessed data governance maturity across eight federal ministries in Abuja using the DAMA DMBOK data management maturity model adapted for Nigerian public sector contexts. A structured maturity assessment was conducted with data officers and IT directors at each ministry (n = 40 respondents), complemented by documentation review of data policies, NITDA compliance records, and data management practice observations. Average maturity across all ministries was 1.8 out of 5.0, indicating early-stage governance. Data quality management and metadata management were the weakest dimensions across all assessed ministries, with mean scores below 1.5. Only two ministries had appointed a formally designated Data Protection Officer as required under NDPA 2023. Master data management and data architecture functions were absent in six of eight ministries. Ministries that had undergone NITDA audits in the preceding two years showed marginally higher maturity scores. The study identifies specific governance gaps by ministry type and recommends a differentiated capacity building programme. Recommendations include OHCSF issuing a mandatory data governance policy template for all MDAs, establishing a cross-ministry Chief Data Officer network, and NITDA developing a simplified public sector data management assessment toolkit with accompanying training materials.

Keywords: data governance maturity, federal ministries, DAMA DMBOK, Nigeria, public sector data management