Accountability Lab Nigeria, a non-governmental organisation (NGO), has embarked on an aggressive campaign to enlighten Nigerians on the need to safeguard their rights and data in the digital system.
The group has appealed for the full implementation of the Nigeria Data Protection Act to guarantee individuals’ rights and data to build trust in Nigeria’s digital economy.
Speaking at a one-day Digital Roundtable Engagement for journalists and civil society organizations (CSOs) on Friday in Lafia, Alfred Ijeloesa Agu, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Associate of Accountability Lab Nigeria, harps on the urgent need to increase awareness campaigns to all Nigerians on their digital rights to curtail abuses and violations.
Agu called on the participants to amplify and educate the citizenry to speak up where their digital rights are violated.
He said the training session was anchored on bridging the gaps in understanding the legal framework on data privacy, freedom of expression, data security, and data protection with the advent of artificial intelligence (AI).
Agu disclosed that the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA) has the regulatory power to protect individual data, preventing critical information from being corrupted, compromised, or lost. He called on citizens to acquaint themselves with knowledge of the act.
“The NDPA establishes the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), which mandates consent for data collection and processing. The commission penalises breaches with fines up to N10 million or imprisonment,” he said.
Agu highlighted the significance of data privacy, noting that it prevents identity theft, facilitates regulatory compliance, reduces breach impacts, supports consumer protection, and realises full human rights.
The roundtable, aimed at equipping participants with the knowledge and skills to grasp Nigeria’s data privacy, digital rights, and freedom of expression laws, also sought to help them effectively identify, respond to, and report digital rights abuses, enhance media reporting on digital rights issues, and highlight data privacy breaches and accountability gaps.
Participants, at the end of the roundtable, volunteered to champion the awareness campaign to enlighten members of their families, associates, and communities to know their data protection rights to avoid violations and abuses.
