AfICTA Nigeria National Coordinator, Mr. Inye Kemabonta was accompanied by other members of AfICTA residing in Abuja on Tuesday 27th February 2024 to pay a courtesy visit to the National Commissioner, Nigeria Data Protection Commission - NDPC, Dr. Vincent Olatunji purposely to discuss ways to foster collaboration towards the realization of the commission's national objectives and AfICTA's vision.
The delegation seized the opportunity to congratulate Dr. Vincent Olatunji for his recent deserving appointment as the National Commissioner of the Commission, hence gave an assurance of their readiness to support his wonderful initiatives which are found to be in tandem with AfICTA's objectives towards fulfilling the promise of the digital age for everyone in Nigeria and Africa at large.
Mr. Inye Kemabonta in his introductory message shared with the commissioner a few of AfICTA's milestones of achievement since its formation in 2012 and also enlisted some of AfICTA's initiatives such as Quarterly eConferences and Annual Summit as platforms available to the commission to further build capacity and create awareness of its action plans and mandates.
Sharing his experience as a business owner who was in the public sector. Mr. Inye Kemabonta said, "It recently became clearer to him how businesses are directly impacted by government policies and as an advocacy group, AfICTA owes it to the business ecosystem to closely engage government in terms of policy formulation that further encourages the ecosystem to thrive". He believed such an effort would help drive socio-economic development and fast-track the realization of the national digital agenda.
While responding, Dr Vincent Olatunji congratulated AfICTA for its achievements and impact made in Africa's digital landscape. He welcomed AfICTA's delegates among which were Mr. Inye Kemabonta, AfICTA Nigeria Coordinator & CEO TechLaw Devlopment Service; Mr. Timilehin Ambali, Board Member & COO DotEngee; Omolosho Segun, Programme Officer; Oyeyemi Kayode, Snr. Programme Officer; Mr. Segun Olugbile, AfICTA Past Board Member. He described Mr. Segun Olugbile as one of the individuals from the business community whose contributions brought about the establishment of the commission.
He said the data privacy ecosystem in Nigeria is barely scratched, however, it creates a lot of opportunities for the business community to explore. He therefore reiterated his solid support to handshake AfICTA on its initiatives and looks forward to proposals from the alliance that will aid the commission in its efforts to ensure data privacy compliance, develop capacity, and create awareness among the populace.
He finally mentioned just a few of the interventions of the commission which include webinars to create awareness among the data subjects of their fundamental right to usage, transfer, and portability of their data; direct engagement with the MDAs; and certification of Data Protection Officers - DPOs. As part of its objectives, the commission would continue to work with the business ecosystem as the government needs all other stakeholder groups to deliver their mandates.
The National Coordinator highlighted that the courtesy visit is an act of felicitation with Dr. Vincent Olatunji for his appointment as the National Commissioner and aims to initiate a formal relationship with the commission. Additionally, it was emphasized by the commissioner that the door for partnership and collaboration is open, prompting the suggestion for AfICTA to draft a strategic partnership document aligned with the commission's objectives.
In conclusion, Mr. Segun Olugbile invited NDPC to take ownership of the AfICTA Annual Summit, a platform to showcase their efforts. A copy of AfICTA's presentation was handed over to the National Commissioner. The meeting lasted for 30 minutes and concluded with group photographs.
