The Chairman, Senate Committee on ICT and Cyber Security, Sen. Afolabi Salisu (APC, Ogun), on Tuesday, disclosed that efforts were ongoing to review the National Data Protection Act (2023) to meet emerging threats associated with technological advancement.
He made this disclosure in Abuja at the opening of a three-day workshop on Data Protection Awareness Promotion organised for the Joint National Assembly Committee on ICT by the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) and Ampersand Development Partners.
He said that since the enactment of the Act in 2023, there have been new developments, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the United Nations Convention on Cybercrimes.
The lawmaker said that there is a nexus between data governance and cybercrimes, hence the need to look at the Act and strengthen the handshakes where necessary.
According to him, we need to ensure the security of our country, particularly in cyberspace, and our data governance, as well as technology advancement like AI.
“As legislators, we need to have knowledge of 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 allows us to build our capacity to understand modern principles of data protection and to be in a position to review the National Data Protection Act.
“It has been three years down the line, how has this law addressed the needs of the nation, particularly given the emerging technologies, and how does it compare with other countries.
“At the end of this exercise, we would be able to come up with a roadmap, a timeline, with a view to reviewing the National Data Protection Act,” he said.
The lawmaker tasked all Nigerians with private data protection, saying that it is the duty of all citizens to ensure the safety of their data.
He said that many free public Wi-Fi and Apps are not always free, as users pay with their data and adverts without knowing it.
While speaking, the Chairman, House Committee on ICT and Cyber Security, Rep. Stanley Olajide (APC- Oyo) said that data is gold and Nigeria’s next prosperity was not going to be oil but data.
He said that no investor would bring foreign funds or capital into Nigeria without making sure that the right data protection law is in place, which Nigeria 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 the data, once bridged, you can actually hold entities, corporations, and the countries responsible when they breach your data law.
“In the U.S., they have their data law; if you put anything in their cloud, it is owned by the United States. So we also have to have something here.
“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 said.
