The National Information
Technology Agency, NITDA, has released new regulatory guidelines to regulate
the use of social media in Ministries, Departments and Agencies in the country.
This is in its acknowledgement of
the important role the social media plays in promoting government policies and
propagating ideas in the public.
The social media guideline is
among the five regulatory guidelines presented by NITDA on Friday, which will
be used to regulate the application of ICT in public institutions across the
country.
In a press briefing in Abuja, the
Director General of NITDA, Dr Ibrahim Isa Pantani told journalists that the
guidelines for the use of social media platforms in public institutions became
necessary following the need to maintain consistency on the information made
available to the public through the public institution’s social media platform.
According to Pantani, in so many
cases, when the handlers of public institutions social media platforms leave
office, they convert the social media accounts to their personal use, which
makes the institutions lose much of its important data.
According to him, “We all
acknowledge the dynamism and broad-reach social media offers the public sector
in reaching and communicating with citizens. However, it is also obvious how
increasingly the lines may get blurred between representing the ideas of
government and personal idea through these platforms.
“In some cases, due to the
absence of clear policies by Federal institutions, important information and
records are lost when handlers of these platforms either move from their roles
or leave the organization. This constitutes a risk to Information management
and public accountability.
“NITDA will continue to monitor
the use of social media for federal public institutions to ensure consistency
and professional use of these platforms.”
The five regulatory guidelines
presented by NITDA includes: Rulemaking Process of NITDA, Nigeria Data
Protection Regulation, Guidelines for Clearance of Information Technology
Projects, Framework and Guidelines for Public Internet Access (PIA), and
Framework and Guidelines for the Use of Social Media Platforms in Public Institutions.
Ibrahim said the five guidelines
were geared towards the development of Information technology practices in
Nigeria.
He said the agency would not
hesitate to sanction violators of the Regulatory Instrument appropriately.
The NITDA boss said the Agency’s
team painstakingly and tirelessly researched and consulted widely during the
development of these Regulatory Instruments.
“The Agency has taken its
Regulatory responsibility seriously, and in 2019 it will ensure that violators
of NITDA’s Regulatory Instruments are appropriately sanctioned. Our Standards,
Frameworks and Guidelines are regulatory policies and are issued for the sake
of being relevant.
“The IT sector cannot be
effectively developed without relevant rules and regulations creating a certain
level of uniformity, consistency and careful investments in the right type of
technology systems needed in a country such as ours.”
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