The Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) has publicly affirmed its support for the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) directive mandating banks and fintech companies to retain payment transaction data within the country. This endorsement signals a significant alignment between the telecommunications sector and regulatory efforts to bolster national data sovereignty.
ALTON Chairman, Mr. Gbenga Adebayo, articulated this position in a recent interview, following the CBN’s issuance of a directive requiring all banks, fintechs, and other payment service providers to store payment transaction data generated in Nigeria on local servers, effective January 1, 2027. This regulatory move is a cornerstone of the CBN’s strategy to enhance oversight of Nigeria’s rapidly expanding digital payments ecosystem.
Mr. Adebayo underscored that data sovereignty necessitates nations assuming full responsibility for their data value chain, encompassing collection, management, storage, and integrity assurance. He stated, “We cannot continue to outsource that to other jurisdictions. The more we host our data locally, the better for us.” This local hosting approach, he explained, will empower Nigeria to manage data end-to-end, thereby guaranteeing the integrity of critical financial information.
The ALTON chairman highlighted the operational and economic inefficiencies associated with hosting data abroad. He noted that offshore data hosting escalates communication requirements, introduces latency, and increases data retrieval costs. “For every transaction involving data hosted outside our shores, communication has to take place from your location to the host and back. It increases latency and also increases the cost of data retrieval,” Adebayo elaborated. He described the CBN’s directive as a crucial initial stride towards achieving comprehensive national data sovereignty.
Addressing potential concerns regarding infrastructure readiness, Adebayo confidently asserted that Nigeria possesses substantial data centre capacity. He pointed out that numerous Nigerian-owned facilities are already hosting data for international organisations operating within the country. “I’m happy to say that we have a lot of data centres owned and managed by Nigerians that are hosting data from other jurisdictions. If people overseas can host their data here, why can’t we host our own data here?” he questioned, emphasizing the inherent capability within the nation.
Furthermore, Adebayo argued that local hosting would diminish reliance on foreign infrastructure, thereby enhancing national control over data security. He dismissed apprehensions about security and reliability as insufficient justifications for continued dependence on foreign hosting providers. “No one can protect your house better than yourself. You have more at stake in terms of security and safety than somebody else hosting your data,” he asserted, drawing a clear parallel to the importance of self-governance in data protection.
The economic implications of local hosting were also a key point of discussion. Adebayo indicated that organisations would benefit from paying for services in local currency, thereby mitigating exposure to foreign exchange rate volatility and potentially lowering long-term operational expenditures. Nigeria currently boasts approximately six Tier III data centres, with additional facilities in various stages of development. However, Adebayo stressed that the capacity of these centres, rather than their sheer number, is the more critical metric. “It’s not just about the numbers; it’s about the capacity of what they are able to host. So far, we are able to,” he confirmed.
Concluding his remarks, Adebayo urged all stakeholders to accelerate their efforts towards domesticating data hosting and management practices. “The earlier we begin to domesticate our data hosting and data management, the better for us,” he concluded.
... ALTON Endorses CBN’s Data Localisation Mandate, Citing Nigeria’s Robust Infrastructure Capacity ... Naijaonpoint.