The Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NPDC) has warned states that fail to establish strong data protection and privacy systems risk weakening investor confidence and losing investment opportunities as economic activities in the country and globally are becoming increasingly techno-powered.
The National Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer of the commission, Dr. Vincent Olatunji, made this remark at a Data Privacy Implementation Workshop organised by the NDPC in collaboration with the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and held in Abuja for state governments.
He maintained that effective protection of personal data could improve the credibility of states, strengthen public trust and make them more attractive to foreign investors.
According to him, the growing movement of personal and commercial information across national borders has made data protection an important consideration for businesses seeking to invest or enter partnerships.
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Olatunji explained that no party would be ready to do business with countries that don’t have a data protection law because if there is no possibility to transfer data, how are they going to ensure that data is protected?
He stressed that effective implementation of the Nigeria Data Protection Act at the state level will build investor trust and confidence to be doing with the state since they are sure of the security of their investments
Noting that stronger compliance could boost foreign direct investment by assuring investors that their information would be protected, the NPDC boss explained that states were major data controllers because their ministries, departments and agencies collect large volumes of information in providing public services and employing workers.
In view of the potential investment benefits to their states, he advised the state governments to move beyond discussions and establish frameworks, policies and institutional structures for implementing the national law rather than enact separate state data protection laws.
He said Nigeria’s privacy ecosystem had expanded considerably, with more than 38,000 organisations registered with the commission as of last year and 346 licensed data protection compliance organisations, adding that the number of people working in the ecosystem has also risen from less than 1,000 to more than 27,000 within three years, including over 10,000 certified data protection officers.
Olatunji clarified: “From less than 1,000, in three years, we have over 27,000 people working within this ecosystem. It speaks to the benefit that states can even achieve in terms of job creation, in terms of revenue.”
In his keynote address at the forum, the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, cautioned that inadequate privacy protection could slow investment and Nigeria’s digital development.
Represented by the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Nadungu Gagare, at the forum, the minister said: “Trust is the bedrock currency that powers it all. Without a secure and privacy-compliant environment, citizen engagement stalls, investment slows, and digital progress is compromised.”
He maintained that the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 provided the legal foundation while the General Application and Implementation Directive 2025 provided an operational framework for data governance across different levels of government.
Tijani charged the state governments to align their regulatory systems with the national framework as doing so would provide the legal clarity necessary to attract private capital and foster innovation.
Speaking at the workshop, the Director-General of NGF, Abdulateef Shittu, said states were indispensable to the creation of a credible national data protection system.
He said: “As government becomes increasingly digital, citizens must remain confident that innovation will not come at the expense of their privacy, security, or trust.”
Shittu, who was represented by the Forum’s General Counsel, Chijioke Chuku, said the NGF-NDPC partnership was aimed at providing states with a common implementation platform, improving institutional understanding and promoting consistency in compliance with the enabling Act.
