UK–Nigeria Cybersecurity Partnership Reaches Major Milestone

The United Kingdom and Nigeria have reached a major milestone in cybersecurity partnership as the National Cybersecurity Coordination Centre (NCCC) has completed the UK‑funded TAG–Africa Cyber Programme Phase 2 training series in Abuja.

A statement issued on Friday by senior communications officer at the British High Commission in Abuja Onyinye Madu  ,  said this milestone represents a major boost to Nigeria’s national cyber preparedness.

Nigeria was recognised as the top performing country across all partner nations in the FCDO Africa Cyber Programme, an achievement attributed to the strong leadership of the NCCC and implementing partner TAG International.

Speaking at the closing ceremony, the British Deputy High Commissioner in Abuja, Mrs Gill Lever hailed Nigeria’s continued leadership in cybersecurity as the National Cybersecurity Coordination Centre (NCCC) successfully concluded the TAG–Africa Cyber Programme Phase 2 training series.

Mrs Lever described the partnership as “a testament to the strength, trust, and strategic alignment” underpinning bilateral cooperation, which we look forward to strengthening further during President Tinubu’s upcoming State Visit to the UK”.

Key achievements celebrated include; Training NCCC experts through the Certified Threat Intelligence Manager course; Certification of four NCCC professionals as among the first SIM3 certified cybersecurity auditors in Africa; Development of standards and cyber maturity frameworks for protecting critical national information infrastructure; A comprehensive review of the National Incident Response Plan and  Foundational work supporting Nigeria’s National Digital Forensics Policies and Operational Frameworks

Technical assistant to the national coordinator, National Cybersecurity Coordination Center, NCCC, Abuja, Salawu Sheriff said  , “These milestones strengthen not only Nigeria’s cyber readiness but also the wider regional and global digital ecosystem reaffirming the UK’s commitment to deepening cooperation as the renewal of the UK–Nigeria Cyber Memorandum of Understanding approaches.

Nigeria also ranked as the top‑performing country among all participating nations in the programme. The training enhanced NCCC’s technical capacity, including advanced threat‑intelligence and cybersecurity auditing skills.

Four NCCC experts are now among the first SIM3‑certified cybersecurity auditors in Africa, strengthening the country’s ability to assess and improve cyber maturity. The programme’s outcomes further deepen UK–Nigeria collaboration in building a safer and more resilient digital ecosystem regionally and globally.