Buhari Failed To Sign Data Protection Bill Despite W’Bank Funding
The former President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, failed to sign the Nigeria Data Protection Bill again despite World Bank’s funding and stakeholders’ support.
In September last year, the Project Coordinator, Nigeria Digital Identification for Development, Solomon Odole, disclosed that the financiers of the Nigeria Digital ID4D Project made the enactment of the data protection law a prerequisite for the release of identity funds.The financiers for this project include the World Bank, the French Development Agency and the European Investment Bank.
He made this disclosure during a workshop on the draft Data Protection Bill for members of the ICT and Cybersecurity Committee of the National Assembly in Abuja.
He said, “One of the major tasks of the project is to strengthen the legal and institutional framework, which has to do with our laws and regulations, in which data protection is actually key.
“The data protection law or enactment is a disbursement condition of the project. It simply means we cannot do certain things, like explore the area of identity, until the data protection law is enacted. It is as a result of this that our financiers, the donors to this project, the World Bank, French Development Agency and the European Investment Bank have made data protection as a disbursement condition. So, it is a condition that has to be fulfilled before the release of funds for identity.
“That is why we have been working with the Nigeria Data Protection Bureau to see how we can work together to ensure the enactment of this bill.”
He further stressed the need for collaboration among all relevant stakeholders to ensure seamless enactment of the data protection law.
In February 2020, it was reported that Nigeria’s digital identity ecosystem project, along with five others, had been approved by the World Bank.
The approved projects, valued at $2.2bn, were aimed at assisting the country to empower citizens, especially marginalised groups, to access welfare-enhancing services.
The national digital identity ecosystem project was designed to enhance the national Identity system’s legal and technical safeguards to protect personal data and privacy.
Among the projects approved was the Nigeria Digital Identification for Development Project.
This project was to be financed through the World Bank’s International Development Association credit of $115m alongside co-financing of $100m from the French Agency for Development and $215m from the European Investment Bank.
The sum of $23,000 was released for consultancy services to facilitate policy discussions related to the Data Protection Bill.