The Chairman of the Senate Committee on ICT and Cyber Security, Senator Afolabi Salisu (APC-Ogun), has confirmed ongoing efforts to review the National Data Protection Act (2023) to address emerging threats linked to technological advancements, including artificial intelligence (AI).
Workshop on Data Protection Awareness
Salisu made this disclosure on Tuesday during the opening of a three-day workshop on Data Protection Awareness Promotion, organized for the Joint National Assembly Committee on ICT by the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) and Ampersand Development Partners. He noted that since the Act was enacted in 2023, new developments such as AI and the United Nations Convention on Cyber Crimes have emerged, necessitating a review.
Strengthening Data Governance
The lawmaker emphasized the connection between data governance and cyber crimes, highlighting the need to examine the Act and strengthen cooperation where required. He stressed the importance of ensuring national security, especially in the cyber space, data governance, and technological advancements like AI.
“As legislators, we need to have knowledge on data privacy and protection for us to be able to effectively legislate in that area. You cannot legislate in an area that you are not sufficiently knowledgeable in; this workshop affords us the opportunity to build our capacity to understand modern principles of data protection and to be in position to review the National Data Protection Act,” Salisu stated.
He added that after three years, it is crucial to assess how the law has addressed the nation’s needs, particularly regarding emerging technologies, and how it compares with other countries. The outcome of the workshop will help produce a roadmap and timeline for reviewing the Act.
Call for Citizen Vigilance
Salisu urged all Nigerians to protect their private data, noting that many free public WiFi networks and applications are not truly free, as users unknowingly pay with their data and exposure to advertisements.
Also speaking, the Chairman of the House Committee on ICT and Cyber Security, Representative Stanley Olajide (APC-Oyo), described data as gold and predicted that Nigeria’s next prosperity will come from data, not oil. He emphasized that no investor would bring foreign funds into Nigeria without assurance of robust data protection laws, which Nigeria already has.
“Whatever data that we have is our sovereign wealth, is something that belongs to us. How do we protect it? We have to make sure that the right legal frameworks are put in place, so that those data, once bridged, you can actually hold entities, corporation, the countries responsible when they breach your data law,” Olajide said.
He drew a comparison with the United States, where data stored in their cloud is owned by the U.S., and stressed that Nigeria must have similar protections. “Anything that resides here in Nigeria and is generated here must be home and protected by our country; so we are put in the right laws and framework in place just to do that,” he concluded.
