The Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023 (“NDPA”) was signed into law on June 12, 2023, by
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Prior to the enactment of the Act, the Nigeria Data
Protection Regulation of 2019 regulated data protection in Nigeria.
Technological advancements have created an increased need for the security and protection
of personal data. The main objective of the Act is to safeguard the fundamental rights,
freedom and the interest of data subjects as guaranteed under the Constitution of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria, 1999
1
. The Act further establishes the Nigeria Data Protection
Commission
2 with functions geared towards effecting implementation, enforcement and
actualization of the objectives of the Act. This article presents an overview of the salient
provisions of the Act.
