The Senate on Thursday moved ahead with plans to make global social media companies operating in Nigeria open physical offices in the country, as most stakeholders backed the proposal during a public hearing in Abuja.
The hearing, organised by the Senate Committee on Information and Communications Technology and Cyber Security, also received strong support for another bill seeking to establish an Artificial Intelligence Academy in Omuo-Ekiti, Ekiti State.
The social media bill, sponsored by Senator Ned Nwoko (Delta North), proposes changes to the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023, to require social media companies doing business in Nigeria to have physical offices within the country. The AI Academy bill is sponsored by Senator Yemi Adaramodu (Ekiti South), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Publicity.
Opening the hearing, Chairman of the Senate Committee on ICT and Cyber Security, Senator Shuaib Salisu (Ogun Central), said both bills would help strengthen Nigeria’s digital economy and drive technology growth. He said the social media bill would improve regulation and protection of the country’s cyberspace, while the AI Academy would focus on education, research and innovation.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio, represented by Deputy Senate Leader Senator Lola Ashiru (Kwara South), described both bills as timely and important. He said the proposal was not meant to limit social media companies but to improve accountability and strengthen their relationship with Nigeria.
Defending the bill, Nwoko said: “This bill is neither punitive nor hostile to innovation. It is not designed to frustrate investment or discourage technology companies from operating in Nigeria.
“On the contrary, it seeks to deepen their engagement with Nigeria by encouraging them to become true corporate citizens of our country.”
He said countries including the United Kingdom, India, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Brazil and Ireland had attracted major technology firms by encouraging local operations.
“These offices perform diverse functions ranging from engineering and artificial intelligence research to legal and regulatory compliance, public policy, advertising, trust and safety, cloud services, sales, customer support and product development.
“These countries did not attract such investments by accident. They recognised early that the digital economy is now as important as the traditional economy.
“By encouraging global technology companies to establish local operations, they have created employment, expanded tax revenues, strengthened regulatory engagement, promoted innovation and encouraged technology transfer to their citizens,” he said.
“The question, therefore, is simple: if countries with significantly smaller populations and digital markets than Nigeria have secured these investments and benefits, why should Nigeria continue to stand on the sidelines? Why should Africa’s largest digital market not enjoy the same opportunities?”
The committee will review memoranda from stakeholders before submitting its report to the Senate for further action.
