Warning: Undefined array key 1 in /home4/ireplibc/public_html/liberianewsnetwork/wp-content/plugins/featured-image-from-url/includes/jetpack.php on line 12
Warning: Undefined array key 1 in /home4/ireplibc/public_html/liberianewsnetwork/wp-content/plugins/featured-image-from-url/includes/jetpack.php on line 12
Warning: Undefined array key 1 in /home4/ireplibc/public_html/liberianewsnetwork/wp-content/plugins/featured-image-from-url/includes/jetpack.php on line 12
Warning: Undefined array key 1 in /home4/ireplibc/public_html/liberianewsnetwork/wp-content/plugins/featured-image-from-url/includes/jetpack.php on line 12
Warning: Undefined array key 1 in /home4/ireplibc/public_html/liberianewsnetwork/wp-content/plugins/featured-image-from-url/includes/jetpack.php on line 12
Warning: Undefined array key 1 in /home4/ireplibc/public_html/liberianewsnetwork/wp-content/plugins/featured-image-from-url/includes/jetpack.php on line 12
Warning: Undefined array key 1 in /home4/ireplibc/public_html/liberianewsnetwork/wp-content/plugins/featured-image-from-url/includes/jetpack.php on line 12
Warning: Undefined array key 1 in /home4/ireplibc/public_html/liberianewsnetwork/wp-content/plugins/featured-image-from-url/includes/jetpack.php on line 12
Warning: Undefined array key 1 in /home4/ireplibc/public_html/liberianewsnetwork/wp-content/plugins/featured-image-from-url/includes/jetpack.php on line 12
Warning: Undefined array key 1 in /home4/ireplibc/public_html/liberianewsnetwork/wp-content/plugins/featured-image-from-url/includes/jetpack.php on line 12
Warning: Undefined array key 1 in /home4/ireplibc/public_html/liberianewsnetwork/wp-content/plugins/featured-image-from-url/includes/jetpack.php on line 12
Monrovia, Liberia – Stakeholders will on Tuesday, December 17, 2024, converge to discuss, review and validate a draft legislation on personal data privacy and protection, a standalone comprehensive instrument designed to provide guidance for the collection, processing, transmission, storage, protection, and use of personal information in Liberia.
The draft legislation, titled ‘Personal Data Protection and Privacy Act of 2024,’ was developed by the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications (MoPT), with support from Internews under the Liberia Media Empowerment Project (LMEP), funded by the European Union.
Currently, Liberia does not have a standalone legislation on personal data protection. Once enacted, all other laws, decrees, executive orders, proclamations, and administrative regulations or parts thereof inconsistent with the Act shall be repealed or modified accordingly.
The new law will establish a legal framework for safeguarding and ensuring the privacy of information related to the collection, processing, transmission, storage, and use of personal data, without compromising the general interest of the State. It will also impose necessary penalties for unauthorized access, processing, and use, including the concealment of breaches and other malicious disclosures of personal information held by individuals and institutions that collect, hold, process, use, transfer, or disclose such data.
Liberia’s minister of posts and telecommunications, Sekou Kromah and European Union ambassador to Liberia, Nona Deprez will address the opening session of the forum, which brings together key stakeholders in the personal data protection value chain.
Last week, a similar forum was held in Ganta, Nimba County. The gathering brought together over 40 stakeholders from ten of Liberia’s fifteen counties, representing county council authorities, county health teams, civil society organizations, county education teams, youth community, among others.
Assistant posts and telecommunications minister for technical services, Nicholas Johnson, addressing the Ganta forum, says the world is gravitating towards the digital era, and with the introduction of artificial intelligence, the necessity for a legal framework to protect personal data cannot be overstated. However, he acknowledged that such measures cannot be undertaken without consulting the people for whom the initiative is intended. “There’s no way we can have an act passed without the inputs of stakeholders across the country,” Min. Johnson stated. “As we are pushing forward with the Cybercrime Act, we also need the Data Protection Act,” he continued.
Internews’ journalism program officer, Rita Jlogbe, reiterated LMEP’s commitment to supporting the legislation, which she says aligns with the project’s objectives. “We are collaborating with the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications to ensure there’s a law that protects personal data because we believe that the violation of personal privacy is a human rights issue.”
Participants at the gathering validated the document for further advancement, hence, paving the way for the second phase of the process. They applauded the MoPT, Internews, and other partners for their foresight. However, they expressed hope that the draft, once enacted into law, will not suffer the same fate as many other unenforced laws in Liberia.
“In Liberia we are good at making laws, but implementation is a major problem. You have invited us here to validate this document for further actions, what is our reliance that this is not one of those many failed laws we have in Liberia?” Peter George, chief surgeon and county health officer, Gbarpolu County.
Musa Rogers, paramount chief of Margibi County, made a recommendation. “I see doctors, CSOs, county council members, youth representatives and what have you, but why is the media not part of this gathering? Because most of the problems we encounter are as a result of media people publishing people’s personal information without their consent,” he asserted. “I recommend that people from the media form part of the Monrovia forum,” the paramount chief noted.
