NIGERIA LAW AND PRACTICE Contributed by: Chinyerugo Ugoji, Tiwalola Osazuwa, Rebecca Ebokpo, Jibrin Dasun, Peretimi Akinmodun, Onyinyechi Chima and Princess Otah, ǼLEX
8. Data Protection 8.1 Applicable Regulations
Copyright subsists for the following periods: • copyright in literary, artistic and musical works: 70 years after the end of the year of the author’s death; • copyright in audiovisual works and photo - graphs: 50 years after the end of the year of the first publication of the work or after the work was created; • copyright in sound recordings: 50 years after the end of the year the recording was made available or after the work was created; and • copyright in broadcasts: 50 years after the end of the year in which the broadcast first took place. Copyright gives the owner of an eligible work the right to the exclusive use of the work. Where the right of a copyright owner is infringed, they may institute a civil action against the infringer and claim reliefs such as damages, an injunction and an account of profits. In addition, it is an offence under the law for persons to deal with infringing works, and persons found guilty may be liable to a fine or imprisonment. 7.5 Others Software (referred to as computer programs under Nigerian law), online content (pertaining to copyrightable works) and neighbouring rights (covering performers’ rights and expressions of folklore) are all protected under the Copyright Act in Nigeria. However, trade secrets are not statutorily pro - tected in Nigeria.
The primary law regulating data protection is the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023 (NDPA), which was enacted in June 2023 and is the first com - prehensive legal framework on data protection in Nigeria. It established the Nigeria Data Pro - tection Commission (NDPC) for the regulation of personal data processing. Other applicable laws and regulations on data protection in Nigeria include: • the Nigeria Data Protection Act General Appli - cation and Implementation Directive, 2025 (GAID), which will take effect from 19 Sep - tember 2025; • the Nigeria Data Protection Regulations 2019 (NDPR), which will cease to be effective on 19 September 2025; • the Nigeria Data Protection Regulations Implementation Framework 2020 (NDPR IF), which will cease to be effective on 19 Sep - tember 2025; • the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention) Act, 2015 and the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention) Amendment Act, 2024; • the Guideline for Management of Personal Data by Public Institutions in Nigeria 2020; and • the Central Bank of Nigeria Operational Guidelines for Open Banking Guidelines in Nigeria, 2023. The NDPA is the principal data protection regula - tory instrument in Nigeria and, as such, the pro - visions of the NDPA will prevail in instances of conflict between the NDPA and the provisions of any other law or enactment, insofar as they provide or relate directly or indirectly to the pro - cessing of personal data.
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