The Institute of Information Management (IIM) has been granted permission by the Federal Government, acting through the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), to administer tests and accredit data protection specialists in order to enhance their worldwide competitiveness.
When he made this statement on Monday at the IIM in Abuja, National Commissioner of the NDPC Dr. Vincent Olatunji noted that the license’s issuance was a component of the commission’s efforts to carry out Executive Orders 003 and 005.
Olatunji continued, saying that the nation’s certification of data protection specialists would deter capital flight, generate over 500,000 new opportunities in the industry, and inspire more people to get qualified.
While a few Nigerians with expertise in data protection had their training and certification abroad, Olatunji said having an institute to train and certify Nigerians locally would boost local content in the sector.
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“We are trying to ensure the implementation of Executive Orders 003 and 005 to promote local content in Nigeria.
“Most of us who are certified data protection officers have international certifications; we paid some dollars to write exams as well as maintain the certificates. We are trying to domesticate this in Nigeria by having a national certification process.
“Looking at our population, we need over 500,000 certified data protection officers. We cannot afford to allow capital flight in this area,” he said.
The national commissioner also said that the commission is considering adopting the licensing across Africa. According to him, the Commission is working towards having a pan-African initiative, whereby data professionals have the national certification that is being offered in Nigeria and can also practice in any part of Africa.
“It is a way of creating jobs for our people, reducing capital flight, and developing global human capital in the data protection ecosystem.
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“We have also gone further to develop the training model which is unique to us and that is what all the trainers in Nigeria will be using,” Olatunji said.
He added that the licensing would also create jobs for already licensed Data Protection Compliance Organisations (DPCOs), who would be accredited to train prospective professionals to sit for data protection examinations. According to him, the national data protection certification will be a historic legacy that will transcend administrations and meet global standards.
Speaking on the licence, the President of the Institute of Information Management, Dr. Oyedokun Oyewole, recalled that the certification process commenced in 2021.
He said the licence would bridge the gap in the data protection ecosystem. Oyewole assured Nigerians of the institute’s commitment to be the best in the education system of data protection in the country.
