Nigeria Hosts Workshop to Lead in Data Protection

Nigeria has emerged as a global reference point for data protection, as stated by Dr. Vincent Olatunji, the head of the National Data Protection Commission (NDPC). The country hosted a cross-regional peer exchange workshop in Abuja from May 4 to May 5, 2026, involving nine African nations: Gambia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ethiopia, Burundi, Somalia, Malawi, Zambia, and Kenya.

This workshop is part of a continent-wide initiative aimed at building functional data protection ecosystems. The event, organized in partnership with the World Bank and Smart Africa, aims to connect regulators across East and West Africa to share achievements and challenges.

Dr. Olatunji acknowledged that while there has been significant growth in data protection laws, challenges remain in effective implementation, including low awareness, weak institutional capacity, and limited collaboration, which hinder enforcement efforts across the continent.