Nigerian data protection law: The effectiveness of the Nigerian data protection bill as a tool for fostering data protection compliance in Nigeria

In Nigeria, the interpretation of the right to privacy has been expanded by some Courts to include the right to data protection as the latter right is not listed in the Nigerian constitution. As at the time of writing this article, the Nigerian data protection bill is currently pending before the legislative arm of the Nigerian government. While efforts to enact the said bill are very laudable, this article is aimed at examining its effectiveness in the light of basic principles of data protection law. In order to achieve this objective, this article reviews the Nigerian data protection bill and thereafter examines the effectiveness of the said Bill through the lens of the privacy policy of a multinational telecommunications service provider (Truecaller), operating out of Nigeria, as a use case. Where necessary, appropriate recommendations on how best to improve the bill will be made.