By Paul Chimodo
A proposed bill titled “A Bill for an Act to Alter the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023, LFN,” that seeks to mandate the establishment of physical offices for social media platforms and data processors has passed its first reading. The new bill, sponsored at the Senate level, is set to broaden the security of global data protection and improve the Nigerian economy.
While addressing the matter, Senator Ned Nwoko (PDP-Delta), who sponsored the bill expressed that the move is targeted towards strengthening stakeholder confidence and enhancing swift resolution of complaints.
He pointed out that he proposed in the bill that ‘Section 5 of the NDPC Act 2023’ be altered by the addition of a new article ‘P’.
“It shall read that the commission shall mandate all data controllers, data processors, or operators of social media platforms to establish and maintain a physical office situated within the territorial boundaries of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
“Failure to comply with this requirement for a continuous period of 30 days shall render the entity liable to a prohibition from conducting operations within the jurisdiction of Nigeria’’, he noted.
woko emphasized that data processors in the bill referred to entities that process personal data on behalf of a data controller. He said these groups make use of certain instructions without autonomy over the purposes or means of processing. He added that Physical Offices as referred to in the proposed bill means a fixed operational base that serves as a business location within the country.
Furthermore, he said they should be staffed and authorized to engage with regulators, stakeholders, and the public for the purpose of fulfilling legally bound and operational obligations.
“Operators of Social Media Platforms means legal persons or entities responsible for owning, managing, or controlling digital platforms that facilitate user interaction, content sharing, or communication,” he added.
He then proposed that Section 65 of the Principal Act be altered by the addition of new terms and their interpretations.
“They shall read that Data Controllers means entities that determine the purposes and means of processing personal data and bear legal responsibility for compliance with data protection laws”, he said.
The new bill, if passed into law, could create employment and investment opportunities through the establishment of local infrastructures. The bill has now moved to subsequent reading in the Senate for further modifications.
Likewise, this bill seeks to build on the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023 signed into law by President Bola Tinubu in June 2023.