The National Commissioner/CEO of the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), Dr Vincent Olatunji received in audience, a delegation from Cameroon, along with representatives from the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) Cameroon office. The Cameroonian delegation, which included members from various sectors such as the National Civil Status Office, Ministry of Health, and National Security, was led by Madame Nfor Catherine, the Technical Adviser to the Minister of Decentralisation and Local Development in Cameroon.
In her address, Madame Nfor expressed gratitude to Dr Olatunji for the warm reception, noting that Nigeria has advanced significantly in civil registration and identification. She conveyed their interest in learning from Nigeria’s innovations, infrastructure, and strategies that have contributed to its achievements. Madame Nfor also requested collaboration with the Commission, stating, “Nigeria should not leave us behind.”
Dr Olatunji commended the Cameroonian delegation for their eagerness to learn and emphasised that the digital economy is a space for continuous learning. He attributed Nigeria’s progress to the determination and willingness of its leaders. Dr Olatunji explained that while the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) oversees identity management, the NDPC’s mandate is to ensure the protection of Nigerian identities.
He provided an overview of the NDPC and the compliance model adopted to ensure compliance to the Nigeria Data Protection Act. Dr Olatunji highlighted the importance of Cameroon establishing a data protection law and a data protection authority, as this would enhance citizens’ trust in the country’s identity systems and bolster engagements with multinationals, free trade, and cross-border data transfers. He assured them of NDPC’s readiness to collaborate on capacity-building and knowledge-sharing initiatives with Cameroon.
