The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has expressed its readiness to safeguard the nation’s cyberspace through policy and other regulatory measures to ensure credible outcomes of the 2023 general elections.
The commission’s Executive Vice Chairman, Prof. Umar Danbatta, who gave this assurance at a two-day symposium focused on Internet Governance and Safeguarding the Cyberspace on Monday in Abuja, pointed out that harnessing the outcome of legal framework for combating cybercrime in the country remained critical to achieving the objectives of data protection and ensuring that citizens enjoy the dividends of digital economy.
The EVC said: “As we learn to live our lives on this cyberspace, there is the concomitant need to avert malicious actors and to bolster defensive capabilities that ward off threats to cybersecurity.
“This calls for holistic engagement of all stakeholders, including government and regulators, law enforcement agents and advocacy groups, the private sector and individual members of the public.
“Several policy and regulatory initiatives of government in Nigeria are focused on harnessing the cyberspace and ensuring that the dividends of digital economy cascade to the citizens.
“Not resting on its oars, the commission has, through the instrumentality of consultation and international best practices, made tremendous milestones in the areas of Standards, Information Security, Consumer Protection and Regulatory Excellence generally”, Danbatta stressed.
According to the telecom industry regulator, Internet governance is a journey and not a destination which requires that Nigeria should continue to do more to promote ICT innovation opportunities and facilitate strategic collaborations.
Danbatta explained that for NCC, the journey remained towards the promotion of ICT innovation/investment opportunities and facilitation of strategic collaboration/partnerships.
In addition, he hinted that the commission also intended to establish a society characterized by the guarantee of safety and privacy, and low levels of cybercrimes to ultimately facilitate Nigeria’s aspiration to economic prosperity.
Speaking at the forum, which was organized by Attorneys General Alliance-Africa (AGA|Africa) in collaboration with NCC, the representative of the CEO, AGA|Africa, Barrister Anthony Idigbe, listed some guidelines needed to accelerate institutional capacity to combat cybercrime and guarantee effective justice delivery.
He maintained that the role of Internet governance could be achieved through capital development.
According to the organizers of the two-day workshop, the outcome from the discussions will provide effective strategies to curb transnational cybercrimes, using necessary legal instruments.
