Gbenga Sodeinde in Ado Ekiti
Ekiti State’s long-standing recognition as Nigeria’s centre of tutorial excellence has earned it the chance to change into one of the crucial pioneer states to put into effect the government’s Nationwide Virtual Alphanumeric Postcode Mission, Governor Biodun Oyebanji has stated.
The governor stated the Nigerian Postal Carrier’s resolution to make a choice Ekiti for the pilot section of the national virtual addressing programme recognised the state’s highbrow energy, virtual readiness, and dedication to innovation-driven governance.
Talking on the stakeholder engagement and inception workshop at the macro ground-truthing of the Nationwide Virtual Alphanumeric Postcode and Endeavor Addressing Control Machine in Ado-Ekiti, Oyebanji, who used to be represented by way of the programme’s focal individual, Olusanmi Akintobi, described the initiative as some other milestone in Ekiti’s transformation right into a knowledge-based virtual economic system.
He stated the challenge would modernise public management, toughen provider supply and create a competent virtual addressing infrastructure in a position to supporting schooling, analysis, innovation, funding and financial expansion. In step with him, the prevailing postcode device has change into insufficient as it grouped hundreds of homes below a unmarried code, making it tricky for emergency responders, companies, executive companies and citizens to spot actual places.
“The Virtual Postcode is the basis upon which trendy virtual products and services thrive. Each virtual provider starts with a verifiable deal with. This challenge will liberate innovation and additional place Ekiti as a number one virtual economic system,” he stated.
The governor counseled NIPOST for opting for Ekiti as a pioneer state and praised the Ekiti State Information Centre for offering the technical beef up that made the partnership imaginable. He reaffirmed his management’s dedication to the initiative via sustained political beef up, funding in virtual infrastructure and institutional reforms designed to toughen land management and virtual governance.
Oyebanji indexed the predicted features as sooner emergency reaction, stepped forward city making plans, environment friendly tax management, social coverage, poverty mapping, electoral logistics, geo-marketing, and expanded virtual financial alternatives.
Previous, the Postmaster-Basic of the Federation and Leader Government Officer of NIPOST, Tola Odeyemi, represented by way of Abdulwakil Jamiu, stated Ekiti used to be intentionally decided on as a pioneer state on account of its broadly stated file in tutorial development, highbrow building and modern governance.
She described the Virtual Alphanumeric Postcode Mission as a transformative nationwide infrastructure that will redefine how Nigerians get right of entry to executive products and services, habits industry and take part within the virtual economic system. In step with her, the national rollout started on October 1, 2026, following Federal Government Council approval, with Ekiti a few of the first states to put into effect it on account of its readiness and confirmed institutional capability.
She instructed governments, conventional rulers, group leaders, era innovators and personal sector operators to beef up the validation of deal with knowledge to make certain that each and every construction and resident is captured within the new nationwide addressing database.
In his welcome deal with, the Government Secretary of the Ekiti State Bureau of Lands, Kayode Ojo, stated the state’s collaboration with NIPOST started in December 2025, when the Ekiti State Information Centre initiated discussions at the challenge.
He stated the partnership culminated in Ekiti’s variety as a pilot state in April 2026 after a a hit engagement with NIPOST headquarters and the Federal Government Council’s approval of the challenge.
He added that the two-day workshop would validate implementation methods, outline stakeholders’ obligations, deal with problems in relation to boulevard naming and information get right of entry to, and bring a draft Memorandum of Working out, implementation timetable, funds and operational framework forward of box deployment.