By Godwin Felix
The second phase of the Legal Basis Project, an initiative to protect data subjects’ fundamental rights and promote secure, privacy-focused data processing has been launched.
The project was unveiled on Friday at a Regulatory Engagement Session in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Regulators and other stakeholders in the digital economy ecosystem were in attendance.
The Legal Basis Project is a pioneering data protection initiative created and executed by Tech Hive Advisory with support from Meta.
The first phase was launched on Oct. 13, 2025.
It was established to make the six lawful bases in the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA) 2023 clear and actionable for organisations, regulators, and everyday users.
The six legal bases identified under the NDP Act include Consent, Contract Necessity, Legal Obligation, Legitimate Interest, Vital Interest, and Public Interest.
Stakeholders at the event included technology and legal experts, as well as representatives of key regulators in the digital economy sector, including the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).
Other participants included representatives of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Medical Laboratory and Science Council of Nigeria, Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS),National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The Federal Ministry of Justice and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) were also represented at the event, among other stakeholders.
While pledging their support for the project, the stakeholders emphasised the need to establish a robust protection framework to ensure that both regulators and data processors honour individuals’ rights and privacy.
Following the successful completion of phase one, they reaffirmed their commitment to accountability for data processors and regulators, and to putting in place safeguards that protect data subjects beyond just obtaining consent.
Ridwan Oloyede, Emerging Technologies and Policy Lead and Co-founder of Tech Hive Advisory Africa, said the second phase of the project was been launched in accordance with the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDP Act) 2023.
According to him, the phase two is to effectively narrow the gap between policy aspirations and actual compliance, while highlighting the need to transition from understanding the law to implementing it.
He said the project emerged amid a global discourse on the limitations of consent as a mechanism for data protection, compelling Nigerian organisations to confront issues that the rest of the world had already started to address.
Oloyede said the project aimed to bridge knowledge gaps, align Nigerian data protection laws with international best practices, and enhance understanding across the ecosystem regarding how the law applies.
“The first phase revealed a tangible demand for accessible compliance infrastructure in Nigeria.
“Looking ahead, Legal Basis 2.0 is focused on advancing from awareness to execution through the development of comprehensive compliance documents, guided assessments, quality scoring of consent, audit tools, and a structured engagement programme with Nigeria’s key data protection bodies.
“With adequate support, this project has the potential to effectively close existing knowledge gaps and align understanding of data protection regulations with international standards,” he said.
According to him, to help organisations navigate these tightening regulatory demands, the platform has launched an automated suite of compliance tools tailored to the NDP Act and GAID frameworks.
“The newly unveiled updates include a Legal Basis Audit Tool to identify compliance gaps and generate structured reports, a guided RoPA Builder to map data workflows, and an LIA Builder to conduct Legitimate Interest Assessments.
“To address complex operational changes, the upgrade also introduces a Basis Switching Checker and a Privacy Notice Generator, supported by an interactive Legal Basis Finder and a conversational Chatbot named Paddy.
“Paddy is designed to provide teams with instant, on-demand compliance guidance, he said.
Earlier in her remarks, Dr Ololade Shyllon, Meta’s Director of Privacy & Data Policy for Africa, the Middle East, and Turkey, highlighted the importance of collaboration with regulators for the Legal Basis Project.
While celebrating the project’s impact, she commended stakeholders for their involvement, and stressed the need to move forward with implementing the recommendations from the first-phase survey.
She noted that within six months of its launch, the platform attracted 4,360 unique visitors from 72 countries, generated over 1.58 million video views, and reached approximately 1.6 million individuals across digital channels.
“Phase one was critical as it demonstrates that having accessible and compliant infrastructure in Nigeria is both achievable and measurable, though it also exposes significant gaps.
“The survey findings indicate that awareness does not equate to action.
“Users identified key legal bases but often failed to document their use or comply with the required framework, halting their journey toward compliance just as it was beginning,” she said.(NAN)
Edited by Joshua Olomu