16th November, 2023
By Taiwo Okanlawon
A bill to establish a Federal Data Bank in the country has scaled through its first reading before the upper chamber of the National Assembly.
The Senate also commended the move of the bill which was sponsored by Senator Jimoh Ibrahim (APC – Ondo South).
The bill titled: “A Bill for an Act for the establishment of a Federal Data Bank would cover every sector of the economy and provide data for development for the public and private sectors during plenary.
The objectives of the bill, according to Senator Ibrahim was to provide for an Act, for the establishment of Federal Data Bank that would cover every sector of the economy and provide data for development for both the public and private sectors.
According to him, “data is critical to economic planning and development, making the need for Data Bank very important in any vibrant economy for in-depth insights into customer behaviour, the state of internal processes, and external risks, which will give room for variety, volume, velocity and value.
“There is a need for the Federal Government and stakeholders to invest in a data bank that will drive the growth agenda.
“Centralised data bases make managing and accessing information for national development easier.
“This is especially important for countries with a large amount of data, or that need to store data for an extended period.”
He added that all levels of government can also benefit from the federal to local government level with access to information.