Tijani, who said the approval represented an important shift in Nigeria’s digital strategy, pointed out that the country currently stands out in West Africa for lacking active communication satellites, a gap; he said the new assets were expected to address. This, he said, was attributable to stricter regulation following the enactment of the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023. He said compliance oversight now cuts across the public and private sectors, with 38,677 Data Controllers and Data Processors of Major Importance registered under the law, alongside 307 licensed Data Protection Compliance Organisations. According to him, Nigeria’s strengthening data protection framework had improved the country’s appeal to foreign investors, with independent data protection authorities now a key requirement for cross-border business partnerships. These, he said, include sanctions against erring organisations in the area of compliance, and elaborate nationwide awareness to deepen public understanding of data protection and privacy.