Facebook, TikTok and other global social media companies operating in Nigeria may soon be forced to establish physical offices in the country as the Senate moves to pass a bill aimed at beefing up regulatory oversight and deepening their engagement with Africa’s largest digital market.
The proposal received broad support on Thursday at a public hearing held by the Senate Committee on Information and Communications Technology and Cyber Security in Abuja. The committee also looked into another bill seeking the establishment of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Academy in Omuo-Ekiti, Ekiti State.
The bill on social media platforms sponsored by Senator Ned Nwoko (Delta North) seeks to amend the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023, to make it mandatory for social media companies operating in Nigeria to have physical offices within the country’s territorial boundaries.
The bill, which was sponsored by Senator Yemi Adaramodu (Ekiti South), is meant to promote artificial intelligence education, research and innovation in Nigeria.
At the hearing, Chairman, Senate Committee on ICT and Cyber Security, Senator Shuaib Salisu (Ogun Central), said the two proposals are aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s digital economy and positioning the country for more technological advancement.
Represented by Deputy Senate Leader, Lola Ashiru (Kwara South), the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, said the two bills were strategic initiatives that would facilitate national development.
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He said the move to compel social media companies to establish offices in Nigeria was not to impede their operations but to improve accountability, regulatory engagement and their contribution to the economy of the country.
Nwoko defended the proposal, rejecting suggestions the legislation was hostile to technology companies or foreign investment.
“This Bill is not punitive and it is not hostile to innovation. “It is not meant to frustrate investment or to discourage technology companies from operating in Nigeria,” he said.
Instead, it aims to deepen their engagement with Nigeria by encouraging them to become true corporate citizens of our country.”
The lawmaker said countries like United Kingdom, India, United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Brazil and Ireland have benefited from hosting regional offices of global technology firms through increased employment, tax revenues, innovation and technology transfer.
“Major technology companies have set up headquarters, regional offices, engineering centres and operational hubs in countries such as the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Spain, Singapore, India, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Brazil, Australia and Japan globally,” he said.
“These offices perform a variety of functions including engineering and artificial intelligence research, legal and regulatory compliance, public policy, advertising, trust and safety, cloud services, sales, customer support, and product development.
Such investments did not come to these countries by accident. They understood early on that the digital economy is now as important as the traditional economy. “We have brought jobs, increased tax revenues, increased regulatory engagement, spurred innovation and encouraged technology transfer to our citizens,” he said by encouraging global technology companies to set up shop locally.
He said Nigeria, having one of the largest digital markets in Africa, should not be left behind in attracting similar investments.
The Senate committee is expected to review memoranda submitted by stakeholders following the public hearing before presenting its recommendations to the Senate for further legislative consideration.