By MKPE ABANG
President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed erstwhile Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, as Minister of Communications.
Dr. Isa Ali Pantami, who was appointed chief executive officer of NITDA in September 2016, hails from Pantami District of Gombe State.
Prior to his appointment as the DG/CEO of NITDA, according to his profile, Dr. Pantami worked as an academic in various capacities.
He lectured at the Federal University of Technology Bauchi (ATBU), Nigeria for over a decade where he taught courses such as Multimedia, Software Engineering, Hardware Technology, Software Technology, Fundamentals of Software Engineering, Advance Programming languages, Management Information Systems, and Geographic Information Systems, among others.
He also supervised over eight postgraduate and over 100 undergraduate students. Furthermore, he held many positions in the Faculty and was a member of 4 major University committees constituted by the University Council.
Dr. Pantami attended Federal University of Technology Bauchi (popularly known as Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University) where he obtained his first degree of BTech in Computer Science in 2003.
He also obtained an MSc in Computer Science 2008/2009 session and MBA in Technology Management 2010/2011 session from the same University. In addition, he obtained his PhD in Computer Information Systems and Post Graduate Certificate in Research Methods from Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, Scotland, and United Kingdom. He is a CCNA certified professional
Before joining formal school he spent over four years in Tsangaya Traditional School learning the Qur’an. He later attended and completed both his Primary and Secondary Education in Gombe State with excellent results. After secondary education he spent almost 3 more years learning advanced Religious knowledge.
Furthermore, Dr Isa moved to the International Islamic University of Madinah where he served as an Associate Professor and Head of Technical Writing. He also taught courses such as Operations Research, Software Engineering, Information Systems Application and Principles of Marketing.
He was also the Secretary and member of three major committees: University Accreditation Committee, Staff Training and Development Committee, and Information Technology Committee.
Dr. Pantami has attended various capacity building programmes such as “Driving Strategic Innovation and Achieving High Performance throughout the Value Chain” at the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) Switzerland in collaboration with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, USA. In addition, he also attended special training on “Digital Transformation in Government: Innovating Public Policy & Service, at Harvard University, USA.
His outstanding professionalism and integrity earned him the highest recognition in the global IT industry: The Fellowship of the British Computer Society (FBCS). He previously served as an IT consultant to many national industries. Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami is also a fellow of the Institute of Information Management (FIIM). In addition, Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami has been conferred with the award of Professional Fellowship of Nigerian Computer Society (FNCS).