Abstract:
The right to personal data protection is, without doubt, an important right in the
jurisprudence of rights in the contemporary information society. It is becoming as crucial as
other orthodox human rights and also attracting significant attention from academics, lawyers,
human rights activists and policy makers. In spite of the growing attention data protection
receives at international and regional levels, Nigeria is still lagging behind many competitor
states like South Africa in establishing an effective legal framework to protect personal data.
Individuals‟ personal data is being collected and used without any serious form of control to
check against abuse. This paper reflects on opportunities, option and challenges to legal reforms
on data protection in Nigeria. It contends that certain legislative and practical challenges stand in
the way of an effective legal regime on personal data protection. The paper suggests appropriate
legal reforms that are needed to enable prevent the increasing risks of violating the right to data
protection in a country that is making rapid advances in Information and Communication
Technology but hamstrung by an outdated regulatory framework.
