Digital rights incomplete until every Nigerian is connected, says Accountability Lab

Accountability Lab, a civil society organisation (CSO), says Nigeria’s digital rights will remain “uneven and incomplete” until access to the internet is widened for all citizens.

Odeh Friday, country director, Accountability Lab Nigeria, spoke on Thursday at the Rights and Rhythm concert, an event organised to advocate for safer digital rights spaces and freedom of expression through music and creative arts.

The director underlined that digital platforms are now central to civic participation, democracy, and governance, but millions remain excluded due to the digital divide.

“My aunty in the village is still offline, cut off from the conversations that shape policies and the opportunities technology creates,” he said.

“Until access is widened, until every Nigerian can connect meaningfully, our digital rights will remain uneven and incomplete.”

He expressed concerns about the shrinking civic space in Nigeria, noting that constitutional freedoms of expression, association, and participation are constantly tested by laws and practices “that shrink the very space they are meant to protect”.

The director added that platforms like X were created to nurture democratic dialogue and connection but are often treated with suspicion or restricted by government.

He also warned that social media companies “are not innocent actors”, profiting through “opaque algorithms and data extraction, sometimes at the expense of human dignity and safety”.

“Nothing is truly free — we pay with our data. Every MTN bundle we burn, every government ID we upload, every fintech app we log into, feeds an economy of information that is rarely transparent,” he said.

The Accountability Lab also welcomed the new Data Protection Act, urging Nigerians to take advantage of its provisions.

While acknowledging that regulation is necessary, the speech cautioned against weaponising laws to stifle dissent.

“Political criticism should never determine who enjoys freedom after speech. The heart of this is trust — trust that when we press ‘send’ on WhatsApp, the message will arrive, and trust that our data will not be misused,” he said.

“We affirm that the right to speak, to associate, to critique, and to dream belongs to us all. Protecting civic space — online and offline — is the heartbeat of any real democracy.”