The Federal Government has said Nigeria is set to deploy the latest Internet Protocol version (IPv6) for easy identification and numbering of internet users and their devices.
Dr Bosun Tijani, Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, said this on Tuesday at a one-day IPv6-Driven Digital Infrastructure summit organised by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) in Abuja.
The summit, on the theme “Bringing Net 5.5G Into Reality: Inspiring New Growth”, was in collaboration with Huawei, IPv6 Forum and IPv6 Council, Nigeria,
According to Tijani, the IPv6 will also track internet transactions within the country.
“The IPV6 is the latest protocol responsible for ensuring that online transactions and activities allow authorities to identify users, both for security purposes and ensuring appropriate usage of the internet space.
“This is the standard used globally but only a few countries like the U.S., France, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates are on IPv6; others are trying to catch up.
“Nigeria is now one of the first countries in Africa to migrate from IPv4 to IPv6, which means network providers can offer better services and ensure their systems are not easily hacked.
“Network providers will make sure the services they provide are always available by identifying where the traffic is coming from.”
The minister also said that the IPv6 would impact cyber security by unmasking cyber criminals who masquerade themselves to carry out their nefarious activities.
“IPv6 will improve the country’s capability to track traffic and ensure our citizens are safe,” Tijani said.
For his part, the Director-General of NITDA, Malam Kashifu Inuwa said that the investment needed to implement the IPv6 would be minimal as most of the devices already deployed by the country were IPv6 compatible.
Inuwa explained that the country would only require the strategy and clear policy to ensure that operators complied with migrating to the latest version.
According to him, the agency’s proposed white paper for the deployment and implementation of IPv6 seeks to open the discussions for broader contributions from industry stakeholders.
“This paper is just to spark the conversation and awareness so people can embrace IPv6.cAs a nation, we should have a broad market and strategy to migrate from IPv4 to IPv6.
“This migration can lead to great economic activities and ensure the security of our cyberspace,” the D-G said, adding that IPv6 would also open up new markets for the country.
Referencing research by Roland Berger, a global consultancy firm, Inuwa said that adopting IPv6 would open a 10-trillion U.S. dollar market globally.
He noted that with the country’s high population and multiple devices, cyber security was a huge challenge, but the IPv6 could address it.
“I have two mobile phones, a smart watch, laptops and other devices connected to the internet but, because of the scarcity of IPv6, all these devices are masked and cannot be directly identified.
“With IPv6, every person in the world can have billions of Internet Protocol (IP) devices available for use and this will help address our cyber security challenges,” Inuwa said.
In his presentation, the President of IPv6 Forum, Mr Latif Ladid said Nigeria was already leading in Africa in terms of internet usage and is the seventh in the world, hence the need to upgrade from IPv4 to IPv6.
Ladid stressed that the IPv6 would enable the country to experience a more productive internet space and easier communication.