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GridCodes, a technology for digital addressing invented and globally patented by Squadron Leader Adefola Amoo (rtd), is the focus of the recently inaugurated Inter-Ministerial Technical Committee on the adoption of Gridcodes by the federal government.
The GridCodes, which allows users to generate codes similar to post codes and zip codes for home and business addresses, and is already patented in Nigeria and in the US Patent Office, was the subject of racour between its developer Amoo and the Nigeria Postal Service (NIPOST) last year. But it appears the controversy has been resolved.
With the GridCodes technology, government plans to rework the entire addressing system in the country for a more efficient and dynamic means of situating individuals and corporate entities within specific identifiable spaces.
The Chairman of the Nigerian Digital Addressing Council, Vice President Prof. Yemi Osibanjo, had tasked the inter-ministerial committee to review the GridCodes Technology for national adoption by the Nigerian government.
“Government sees immense benefits in the GridCodes and is particularly interested in it because it advances the national objectives for promotion of local content,” said Prof. Osibanjo.
Inaugurated by the immediate past Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, part of the committee’s assignments is to see how Nigeria could effectively improve governance, boost commerce, fight crime and better manage intelligence through the adoption of GridCodes.
Onu had asserted that President Muhammadu Buhari remained committed to encouraging the adoption of indigenously built technology as contained in Executive Order No 5.
The digital addressing technology leverages Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to provide citizens an address that makes it extremely easy to navigate to homes, offices, social gatherings, places of entertainment and trade even if such places have no physical addresses. Such a system is accurate, reliable and error free.
The GridCodes digital addressing technology is delivered to the end user via a mobile app and an associated Website. The mobile app has been in use and available on the Google Play Store and iOS Stores since 2017.
When adopted GridCodes will facilitate revolutionary expansion of many verticals in commerce, regulation and governance. It will also support last mile delivery, logistics, transportation as well as all businesses that revolve around being able to navigate reliably to where people are.
