By Aaron Ukodie
Telecommunication operators in Nigeria, under the auspices of the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), are protesting the recent bid by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) to control and manage Nigeria’s data.
ALTON said the bid, which is now being enforced by a legal instrument enacted recently by the IT regulation body “border somewhat on communications matters within the regulatory purview of the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC)”
In a letter dated July 30, signed by ALTON chairman, Gbenga Adebayo, sent to the NCC, the telecom association said the NITDA legal instrument, on Data Protection in Nigeria, sets out rules for the provision of Public Internet Access without regard to the powers of the Commission and extant competition considerations.
Adebayo said that the framework empowering NITDA to license a Public Internet Access Provider (PIAP), which technically is a provider of data services and prescribes minimum quality of service for such providers, puts NITDA in the role of a parallel regulator for data services.
He said NITDA wrote to some of its members in July 2019 stating it has commenced registration of Data Centre facilities in Nigeria and requested that they initiate the registration of their Data Centre facilities with NITDA.
In the letter written to telecos NITDA said its request for registration was in furtherance of Presidential Executive Orders 003 and 005 on local content development.
Adebayo pointed out, however, that a careful review of the Executive Orders cited by NITDA do not reveal anything specific to the operation of data centres.
“Additionally, the promotion of local content in the industry which is the bedrock of NITDA’s position is not the Agency’s exclusive preserve, as the Commission is also well positioned to address same for the communications industry”. Adebayo pointed out.
Adebayo pointed out that the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation 2019 defines the rules governing the processing of data and it contains far-reaching provisions on personal data which includes communications identifiers such as IP address, IMEI number, IMSI number, SIM and Personal Identifiable Information, etc., as well as the procedure for procuring consent from customers and the transfer of data outside of Nigeria, and by implication, it will appear that NITDA has assumed the role of a Data Protection Agency in Nigeria and its Regulation overrides the Commission’s existing provision on data processing in the industry.
“In this regard, we note NITDA recently announced in the print media that it has commenced investigation of alleged breach of data security of customers by telecommunications companies and Banks.
“The foregoing developments bring to light the dreaded multiple regulation which has been a reoccurring challenge for the industry. We recall with delight that the Commission successfully tackled the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) in the past, when the Agency attempted to regulate the infrastructure deployment in the industry without recourse to the Commission”, ALTON queries.
ALTON has therefore called for an urgent intervention of the NCC to safeguard the interest of market players and preserve the powers of the Commission, and in a bid to avoid a situation where members are caught in the crossfire of multiple regulation, “we respectfully request the Commission’s guidance on how to proceed with the NITDA on the aforementioned Frameworks and Regulation.
The NCC’s guidance, ALTON said will provide the much-needed clarity for the industry moving forward.
