E-Business
Digital Rights and Internet Freedom in Nigeria
As Nigeria becomes a more digital-driven nation, it is quite necessary and important for policy makers to come out with the necessary laws that will guaranty the rights of the users and customers, while ensuring that internet remains free for the use of all.
I recently had a chat with Gbenga Sesan, Executive Director, Paradigm Initiatives, and he shared his thoughts on internet security and data privacy in the country.
Giving his reasons for being passionate about Digital Rights, Gbenga said that setting out policy for Digital Rights is quite important to ensure that it does not lag behind or stand in the way of innovation.
He gave the analogy of earlier days when the internet first came, where security officers invade cyber cafes and arrest everyone just to extract money from the users in form of bail with no cybercrime cases to nail them.
There is, therefore, the need to have the policies and laws in place so that security operatives will not take advantage of the loopholes to exploit internet users, thus, truncating innovations.
Gbenga said he will like to see some changes in the cybercrime laws that we have on ground. He stated that there were about thirteen sections of the Cyber Crime Act of 2015 that needed to be reviewed.
The first one, he said, is Section 24, which deals with Cyber Stalking. He said that the definition of Cyber Stalking has to be re-defined because, as it is presently, bloggers and other online writers ate being arrested for expressing their opinion in writing rather than arresting and prosecuting real cyber stalkers. “Not one case if a proper cyber criminal has been taken to court”, he stated.
Gbenga also mentioned Section 38 of the Cyber Crime Act which deals with Data Retention as one that should be reviewed. He maintained that Nigeria has a data privacy problem, especially, in a situation where people sell other people’s email addresses.
He stated that in a situation where about 7 Agencies of government collect biometric data of people, the tendency is for these data to be stolen and used in crime.
He gave the example of a bank that unintentionally leaked the information from a hospital where data of HIV patients were kept and no one is punishing the bank for this. A situation where the taking of BVN without the Privacy laws in place means that, if anything goes wrong with the data, nobody will answer questions.
Gbenga believes that in order to solve these problems, there is the need to continue to engage in this type of conversations to enlighten people because they do not know. He said that many institutions that have been collecting people’s information do not need them.
He also advised people to stop writing their mobile numbers, etc., on any piece of paper that is being passed around to avoid being scammed.
All these, Gbenga stated, need to be codified in the law. He said an Internet Freedom Declaration for Nigeria has been transformed into the Data Privacy draft bill which is already in the National Assembly and this has passed through the first and second reading as well as public hearing. What remains now, he said, is for the committee report. In his opinion, he stated that most of the bad laws are quickly signed into law while good laws are not looked at.
Gbenga said that NIMC is mandated to gather a centralized biometric database of all Nigerians, but this has not been successfully done because many people want want a piece of the action by landing contracts from it.
He hopes that the President or other relevant authority will garner the political will and put their feet down to ensure that this is done.
He also stated that, maybe, by the time some of those in authority lose their data and find out that it is being used in crime in another clime or they lose money, then, they will take this seriously.
Gbenga is of the opinion that it is not possible for us to regulate the internet as some people are calling for because the problem is not with Facebook and the rest of the platforms on the internet. The problem, he identified, is that when crime is committed no one is punished for it, so, people will continue to commit more crimes.
He noted that “yahoo yahoo” crime is not an innovation that came with the internet but was in vogue before the internet came.
People, he stated, were committing “419” crimes via the use if FAX and letters. “We should not say that because water can drown us, we will not take our bath for seven days”, he stated. He also noted that the internet is a tool that can be used by bad and good people just as the sun shines on both good and bad people. We cannot stop the sun from shining on bad people. Gbenga emphasized that we need the internet more in Africa, and in Nigeria in particular, because we have lost out in many of the world’s revolutions, such as the industrial revolution.
He concluded by stating that we need the internet to be relevant in the next revolution, which is the Internet of Things and Internet Innovation.
CFA is the Founder, www.CFAtech.ng & Co-producer/Presenter,Tech Trends on Channels Television
Dr Adebowale Adedokun, director-general, Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), has reaffirmed the bureau’s commitment to data protection in Nigeria.
He disclosed this in a statement at the weekend by Zira Nagga, head of Public Relations, BPP, following a courtesy visit by a delegation from the National Data Protection Commission (NDPC).
Adedokun stressed that data protection is vital to Nigeria’s economy and development, particularly in areas such as demography, health, education, and other key sectors.
He emphasised that no country should leave its data unprotected, as it plays a crucial role in future planning and national development.
“Data governs the world. It is essential to technological progress and must be protected for a country or business to be taken seriously,” he said.
Adedokun described the visit, aimed at fostering partnership on data policy implementation and protection, as timely and aligned with national goals.
He said the BPP would collaborate closely with the NDPC to boost data development, capacity building, and enhance the procurement system.
“The BPP will support compliance as part of the ‘Nigeria First’ Policy, although it is not a core procurement eligibility requirement,” he explained.
He suggested a hybrid training model to help build strong capacity in data protection, privacy awareness, and policy understanding.
According to him, a dynamic training approach will reduce logistics costs and improve public confidence in data safety and privacy.
Dr Vincent Olatunji, CEO, and national commissioner, NDPC, praised Adedokun and the BPP for supporting data protection initiatives.
He said the partnership supports President Bola Tinubu’s vision and will strengthen data privacy across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
“The collaboration will create awareness and train BPP staff to ensure a firm grasp of data protection principles and policies,” he stated.
Olatunji said the NDPC would establish a working group to finalise a Memorandum of Understanding beneficial to both institutions.
He added that President Tinubu signed the NDPC into law on 12 June 2023 to uphold citizens’ rights and protect national and business data.
Olatunji also noted that strict legal measures were in place to enforce data protection and ensure full compliance nationwide.
Both agencies agreed to form a team to sign the MoU and focus on capacity building and data management in procurement and beyond.
President Bola Tinubu said that his administration has initiated a project to install fibre optic cables across the country, aimed at enhancing the socio-economic development of Nigeria.
His plans were contained in a speech he delivered at a joint session of the National Assembly in commemoration of Democracy Day on Thursday, June 12.
He said the fibre optic layout is part of other projects being embarked on.
“In addition, we have embarked on an ambitious project to lay fibre optic cables across the nation, a transformative step toward bridging the digital divide and fostering greater connectivity.
“This initiative promises not only to enhance the speed and reliability of internet access but also to revolutionise how businesses operate, how students learn, and how communities stay connected,” Tinubu stated.
He maintained that by extending this critical infrastructure, his government is empowering entrepreneurs, enabling digital education, and providing the tools for our youth to compete in a globalised world.
In a most recent report on Internet connectivity, The ICIR pointed out how Nigeria has faced setbacks in its deployment of fibre optic cables and needs a transformation.
The challenges revolve around vandalism, inadequate coordination between road construction and telecom infrastructure, and varying right-of-way (RoW) charges across states.
Among industry experts, these issues impact network outages, increase repair costs, and hinder broadband expansion efforts.
It has also further threatened the digital economy, leading to slower Internet speeds, dropped calls, and unreliable connectivity among others.
African startups raised more than $345 million across 65 deals in May, more than double the amount raised in the same period of last year, according to a report by Briter, a research and business intelligence firm.
The report disclosed that both the number of deals and participating companies declined, confirming a growing trend of fewer companies raising funds in larger sizes.
It said fintech attracted the highest share of funding in May, accounting for 34 percent of the total, while cleantech followed closely, driven by a debt deal from Sun King. The company raised $80 million (in local currency) to expand clean energy access in Nigeria.
“Equity remains the primary instrument in terms of total value. There’s no doubt about it; in fact, equity deals with disclosed amounts captured more than half of the total funding volume in May.
“However, debt financing is increasingly proving its weight. Although it accounted for only 8 percent of all deals, it represented 32 percent of the total funding, highlighting the typically larger size of debt transactions. With the rise of specialised vehicles targeting early-stage businesses, debt is becoming an increasingly important part of Africa’s innovation funding landscape,” it said.
Briter’s report added that grants continued to play a vital role in early-stage support, especially in the education technology (EdTech) sector. The Mastercard Foundation led the pack in grant activity, funding a new cohort of EdTech innovators in Nigeria and Kenya. Each selected startup is set to receive $100,000 in grant funding, in addition to mentorship and business development support.
Multilaterals also made a strong showing in May, it said. The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), a World Bank Group member, issued a $179.6 million guarantee to CleanTech firm KOKO Networks. The support will help scale its clean energy solutions across Kenya.
“This deal not only demonstrates growing international confidence in African climate ventures but also signals a promising pathway for other asset-intensive startups in clean cooking, agriculture, and renewable energy,” the report said.
From a geographic perspective, Egypt emerged as the continent’s fundraising powerhouse for the month, contributing 51 percent of all funding raised. The country recorded 12 deals across equity, debt, and bond instruments. Notably, FinTech platform MNT-Halan raised $50 million through a bond issuance, further illustrating the diversification of capital-raising mechanisms in the region.
Outside Egypt, funding was distributed across Africa’s three other key markets, which are Egypt, Nigeria, and Kenya, with limited activity recorded in countries such as Ghana, Tunisia, Morocco, and Uganda, each registering between one and three deals.
In terms of exits, the African tech landscape continues to mature. Three companies—Baobab+, Qardy, and Shopa—were acquired in May, bringing the total number of exits this year to 22. This already surpasses last year’s count for the same period. Qardy was acquired by Catalyst Partners Middle East (CPME) in a disclosed deal valued at $23 million, the report added.
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