The Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has revealed a critical shortage of data protection officers in the country, estimating the need for an additional 500,000 professionals. Dr. Vincent Olatunji, the NDPC’s National Commissioner, emphasized the growing demand for expertise in data protection, citing the current count of certified officers in the country at less than 10,000.
The National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) has responded to this demand by directing the unbundling of the HND Computer Science course into specialized areas. These areas include Artificial Intelligence, Networking and Cloud Computing, Software and Web Development, as well as Cybersecurity and Data Protection.
Dr. Olatunji sees this move as an acknowledgment of the areas that require focused attention and skill development. Expressing optimism about the timely nature of these developments, Dr. Olatunji highlighted the deficit in manpower in crucial sectors like data protection.
He emphasized the necessity of training more professionals to bridge the skills gap and meet the increasing demand for data protection officers. To address this shortage, the NDPC is actively working to establish a collaborative platform where trainers can identify specific institutions for training data protection officers.
Additionally, Dr. Olatunji recognized the alignment of the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy’s strategic pillars, with a major focus on artificial intelligence development.
While welcoming the collaboration with the NBTE, Dr. Olatunji stressed the importance of updating existing curriculums to reflect these changes, ensuring that educational programs remain globally competitive and in line with best practices. The NDPC looks forward to working in tandem with the NBTE to achieve these essential outcomes for the country’s digital landscape.
