The Federal Government on Wednesday unveiled plans to deploy artificial intelligence and expand fibre connectivity to police stations nationwide, following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy and the Nigeria Police Trust Fund in Abuja.
The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, said the initiative would focus on connecting police facilities to the national fibre backbone while introducing data-driven tools to improve policing outcomes.
Tijani said the project would begin with the mapping of police stations across the country to determine their proximity to fibre infrastructure and identify connectivity gaps.
“With this partnership, we will end up doing something that I really like, which is to map all the police stations in the country and be able to see how far they are from the point of presence of the fibre optic network,” Tijani said.
According to him, the exercise would allow the government to maximize existing investments in fibre infrastructure and prioritize police stations in future network expansion.
“Most of the time, these resources exist, but we don’t know that they exist. You may find a significant number of police stations are within reach of fibre-based connectivity,” he added.
The minister noted that the Federal Government had already committed to laying about 90,000 kilometres of fibre optic cable nationwide, with points of presence expected in over 7,000 wards, adding that aligning the rollout with police infrastructure would strengthen security operations.
He also disclosed that the government, with support from the European Commission, was developing a national data exchange system to enable seamless information sharing across agencies, with the police identified as a priority use case.
“We’ve gotten the support of the European Commission to design and develop a data exchange system that will allow government agencies to seamlessly exchange data,” he said.
Tijani emphasized that artificial intelligence would be integrated into policing processes, particularly in areas such as incident reporting, analytics, and digital evidence management.
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“The bad people are using AI to do bad things. The good people are using this as well. I think our police should also be brought to a point where we can say they’re using it,” he said.
He explained that AI tools could help eliminate distortions in statements made at police stations by enabling real-time transcription and verification.
“With artificial intelligence… you go to a police station, you want to give your report, you just pick the machine that captures what you say… and it can then play it back to you so that you actually hear what you said before you then sign,” he added.
The minister stressed that a modern and well-resourced police system was critical to economic growth, investor confidence, and public trust.
“If we’re able to support enough and make sure that the police force is much more modern and well-resourced, it will help benefit from security… Businesses also trust more, and citizens also then have trust,” he said.
Also speaking, the Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Police Trust Fund, Mohammed Sheidu, described the agreement as a long-awaited partnership aimed at building a digitally enabled police force.
“This is not just the signing of an MoU, but a long-awaited partnership… we are trying to modernize the Nigerian police force, and there’s no way possible for us to achieve this without your inputs,” he said.
Sheidu added that the collaboration would support the transition to “smart police stations” and improve operational efficiency across the country.
“We see that we’re trying to move towards smart police stations, and there’s no way we could achieve this without this partnership,” he said.
The PUNCH further learnt that the initiative is anchored on the National Anchor Institutions Connectivity Program and aligns with ongoing digital infrastructure efforts under Project BRIDGE, which seek to connect critical public institutions to Nigeria’s national fibre backbone.
Under the plan, the government will develop a national geospatial database of police stations, assess infrastructure gaps, and design last-mile connectivity solutions linking facilities to nearby fibre points of presence.
The program will also explore the integration of police systems with the National Data Exchange Platform to enable secure data sharing, case management, and inter-agency collaboration.
Also, authorities are expected to roll out AI-enabled policing tools, establish a capacity-building framework for police personnel on digital skills, and implement a phased investment and governance structure to guide execution.
Earlier in May 2025, The PUNCH reported that the Federal Government reaffirmed its commitment to improving internal security and enhancing grassroots policing with the inauguration of a state-of-the-art smart police station in Katampe, Abuja.
The facility, constructed by the Nigeria Police Trust Fund and officially handed over to the Nigeria Police Force, was designed to improve operational efficiency and foster stronger police-community relations within the Federal Capital Territory.
PUNCH
