Africa must standardize personal Data Privacy as a social norm
As early as the 17th Century, Arthur Schopenhauer posited that a man can be himself only so long as he is alone for it is only when he is alone that he is free. Freedom of thought and speech have always been at the core of a robust society and to uphold these rights is to protect the right to personal data privacy. The diversity and depth of thought in a society hangs in the balance if our people lose trust in the digital realm; the fear that their personal data and opinions could be used — disadvantageously- against them.
In a Tedtalk, Glenn Greenwald has expressed this concern by stating that to be a fulfilled human being is to have a place we can go free of the judgmental eyes of other people. When we are in a place where we are being watched, our behaviour changes dramatically. People demonstrate conformist and compliant behaviour when they know they are being watched — essentially removing all authenticity that makes a robust society. We must then consider the duty to protect personal data as a social norm; a value that should be weaved in every aspect of our lives — an ethical culture that must propagate our private and public lifestyle.
On the one hand, when we speak about the legalities of personal data privacy and the requirements under the various and I mean innumerable laws and regulations, we tend to lose sight of the very essence of protecting personal data. On the other hand, we may attribute the casual and lax approach to a lack of understanding of the magnitude of the issue at hand. Our African people continue to fall prey to a lot of misconception that has been carefully choreographed by technology companies — “Who needs privacy in the 21st Century?”. But we do need privacy in this century as much as we did in the previous centuries and beyond.
Africa is home to the youngest population, a population that is gradually onboarding different forms of technology. A trajectory that is on the rise as prices of mobile smartphones gradually slump and a commitment to enhancing access to electricity and internet connection. These efforts are evidenced by some government’s efforts. For instance, the government of Uganda under the Ministry of Information Communications Technology through the National Information Technology Authority of Uganda launched the National Data Transmission Backbone Infrastructure and e-Government Infrastructure Project (NBI/EGI) whose goal is to connect all major towns to the Optical Fibre Cable based Network.
As a continent, we still have the opportunity to build and cultivate an ethical and privacy compliant digital realm. A realm that leverages data as a strategic business asset but more importantly on an ethical and data privacy compliant ecosystem. An opportunity that will become more profound as we usher in the African Continental Free Trade Area; a time when transborder data transfers will be prevalent.
It, therefore, behooves us to take the initiative to determine the society and business ecosystem that is pegged on trust, certainty, credence and upholds our rights to freedom of speech, freedom of thought among others. Building such a system will require governments to take on the responsibility of carefully crafting, infusing and standardizing personal data privacy as a social norm.
The Author is the Co-founder of ANJ Data Management Solutions Africa Ltd