The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the Nigerian Data Protection Commission (NDPC) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen the enforcement of data privacy and protection within Nigeria’s telecommunications sector, amid the country’s accelerating digital transformation.
By Emma Ogbuehi
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the Nigerian Data Protection Commission (NDPC) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen the enforcement of data privacy and protection within Nigeria’s telecommunications sector, amid the country’s accelerating digital transformation.
The agreement establishes a formal framework for regulatory collaboration between the two agencies, aimed at improving data governance and protecting the privacy rights of Nigerians across the digital ecosystem.
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Speaking at the signing ceremony, the NCC Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Aminu Maida, said data protection has become central to the future of the communications industry, stressing that effective regulation is critical to sustaining trust, innovation, and growth as Nigeria advances deeper into the digital and artificial intelligence era.
Maida highlighted the sector’s expansion from about 500,000 connected telephone lines to over 170 million active connections, noting that the next phase of growth will be driven by data-dependent technologies such as artificial intelligence.
He emphasised that data belongs to individuals and warned that without adequate awareness and safeguards, personal data could be monetised without users’ consent, potentially undermining national sovereignty.
Also speaking, the NDPC National Commissioner, Dr. Vincent Olatunji, described the MoU as vital to effective data protection in the telecom sector, noting that collaboration with sector regulators is essential to fulfilling the commission’s mandate. He said the NDPC does not seek to replace the NCC’s role but to complement it, adding that both agencies would immediately begin implementing the agreement.
Both commissions said the partnership would help streamline regulatory processes, avoid overlaps in their statutory mandates, promote clarity in data regulation within the communications sector, and strengthen Nigeria’s overall data protection and privacy framework.
