Nigeria Needs 400,000 DPOs For Data Protection Compliance–FG

The federal government through the Nigeria Data Protection Bureau (NDPB) has said Nigeria will need over 400,000 Data Protection Officers (DPOs), to ensure that the 500,000 companies regulated by the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), comply with the Data Protection Act.

The national commissioner, Nigeria Data Protection Bureau (NDPB), Dr Vincent Olatunji, who disclosed this at a capacity building on Data Protection and Privacy for the Nigeria Information Technology Reporters Association (NITRA), on Tuesday, in Lagos, averred that, within nine months of 2020, fraudsters made 46,126 attempts to breach data-based systems in Nigeria, with 41,979, representing 91 per cent of these successful.

The national commissioner disclosed that the federal government recently launched the Data Protection Act, to strengthen cybersecurity measures, promote deployment of technological and organizational safeguards to enhance personal data protection and foster the development of personal data protection, among others.

Section 32 (1) of the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023 stated that a data controller of major importance shall designate a Data Protection Officer (DPO) with expert knowledge of data protection law and practices, and the ability to carry out the tasks prescribed under the Act and subsidiary legislation made under it.

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Section 32 (2) stated that the DPO may be an employee of a data controller or engaged by a service contract. The DPO shall advise the data controller or the data processor and their employees who carry out processing made under this Act. The DPO shall monitor compliance with the Act and related policies of the Data controller or data processor and act as the contract point for the Commission on issues relating to data processing.

“The Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) is currently regulating 500,000 companies/organizations in Nigeria. To ensure that these companies comply with the data protection Act, there is a need for them to employ DPOs. Sadly, we only have less than certified 10,000 DPOs in the country. We are currently building the capacity of stakeholders, as an effort to bridge the gap in the space,” he explained.