Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has underscored the centrality of credible data and a unified identity system to effective governance, warning that development efforts will remain speculative without them.

Speaking in Umuahia at a one-day workshop on Strategic Digital Public Infrastructure and Delivery, Otti, represented by his deputy, Ikechukwu Emetu, charged stakeholders to fully embrace the state’s Unified Data Architecture initiative as a tool to track performance and deliver services with “precision and speed.”

He told participants drawn from ministries, departments and agencies that modern governance must be rooted in facts, not assumptions. “Without accurate data, planning becomes guesswork. Without a harmonised identity framework, service delivery becomes fragmented,” he said, stressing that Abia cannot afford to “operate in silos” in an era where economies are powered by information.

According to the governor, the push for a unified data system is aimed at correcting long-standing gaps in record-keeping and decision-making, while positioning Abia for “intelligent, evidence-based governance.” He said the new architecture would enable the state to allocate resources more efficiently, improve internally generated revenue, strengthen social protection, and measure the impact of government programmes.

Otti described the workshop theme, “One Data, One Identity, One Government,” as a transformational blueprint rather than a mere slogan. The initiative, he explained, seeks to integrate and harmonise data across government entities, eliminate duplication, enhance transparency, and ensure that policies are measurable and accountable.

He urged participants to treat the engagement as a working session with clear outcomes. The framework that emerges, he insisted, must be “scalable, secure, and fit-for-purpose,” supporting the strategic objectives of every agency. “The future of governance is digital, the future of planning is analytical, the future of accountability is data-based, and Abia State is ready to lead in this direction,” he said.

Secretary to the State Government, Dr Emmanuel Meribeole, reinforced the message, noting that decisions can no longer rely on “assumptions or fragmented evidence.” He argued that effective planning, accurate fund monitoring and efficient service delivery all depend on an integrated data architecture anchored on a reliable identity system.

Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Kingsley Anosike, added that a single, trusted source of data would significantly improve the state’s performance, as commissioners, advisers, permanent secretaries and planning officers took part in sector-by-sector presentations on the reform agenda.