Data Protection Legal Regime and Data Governance in Africa: An Overview
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Date
2023-02
Authors
Babalola, Olumide
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
African Economic Research Consortium
Abstract
In its simplest sense, Data Governance refers to the overall management of (personal
and non-personal) data to facilitate organizational goals. Data Protection, on the
other hand, predominantly regulates the management of personal data for the
overall protection of users’ privacy and other fundamental rights and freedoms. The
Fourth Industrial Revolution has greatly increased the processing of personal data
for business and social purposes in Africa, hence the imminent need to regulate
dealings with such personal information for undesirable purpose(s) by setting up
relevant legal frameworks to address the unfavourable effects on humans, whose
personal information are utilized for sundry purposes. This research paper analyses
the regional legal framework around data protection in Africa in the light of their salient
provisions, adequacy, efficiency, and enforceability in relation to data governance
on the continent. The paper makes some juxtaposition with the European Union
General Data Protection Regulation in relation to its remote or immediate impact on
the African legislation on data protection. The research exposes the inadequacies of
the data protection legal framework and the non-existent mechanism for cross border
transfers of personal data, which ought to be regulated by the existing Data Protection
Authorities (DPAs) in Africa. The paper then concludes with some incentives for data
protection within the context of data governance on the continent.
Description
Keywords
data protection, data governance, GDPR, Malabo Convention, personal data