The National Commissioner/CEO of the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), Dr Vincent Olatunji, delivered the keynote address at the September edition of Developers in Government (DevsInGov), an event initiated by the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, with the edition hosted by the NDPC.

In his address, Dr Olatunji noted that government digital services must be simple, moral, accountable, responsive, and transparent. He highlighted the benefits of government digital services, as well as the challenges faced in deploying these services. He urged participants to prioritise data protection and privacy to gain citizens’ trust, emphasising that safeguarding personal information is essential for building public confidence and maintaining long-term credibility.

The DevsInGov also featured a panel discussion on the topic, “Innovating with Privacy: Building Trust in Government Digital Services,” with panelists including the Head of Legal, Enforcement and Regulation at the NDPC, Barrister Babatunde Bamigboye; the Chair of the African Union Cybersecurity Expert Group, Alhaji Hakeem Ajijola; the Executive Director of Digital Jewels Africa, Tokunbo Taiwo; the Data Protection Officer of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Agwu David Nwaze; and the Data Protection Officer of the National Information Technology Development Agency, Salisu Abba Abdulrazaq.

Other speakers at the event were the Commission Manager of GIZ/Digital Transformation Centre (DTC), Dr Thuweba Noor Diwani; the Group Chief Information Security Officer/Data Protection Officer of Access Banking Group, Dr Favour Femi-Oyewole; and the Chief Executive Officer of Quadcare Technologies Limited, Deji Olajide.