Hentavirus warning: Nigeria’s data law may slow pandemic research - Olatunde
A health law researcher and CEO of Bioclinix Medical Diagnostic Centre, Isaac Olatunde, has warned that provisions of the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 could unintentionally slow down pandemic-related research
A health law researcher and CEO of Bioclinix Medical Diagnostic Centre, Isaac Olatunde, has warned that provisions of the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 could unintentionally slow down pandemic-related research at a time when speed is critical to saving lives.
The Act, which came into force to regulate the processing of personal data in Nigeria, is widely regarded as a major step in strengthening privacy rights and aligning the country with global standards such as the General Data Protection Regulation.
However, Olatunde argued that its emergency provisions create a structural imbalance between government authorities and independent researchers.
Under the Act, “competent authorities” are granted exemptions that allow them to process personal data during public health emergencies with reduced compliance requirements. These provisions are intended to enable swift governmental response in crisis situations.
Independent researchers, however, are not explicitly granted equivalent emergency flexibility, even when working on approved clinical or public health studies.
According to Olatunde, this gap could have serious consequences during outbreaks.
“In a public health emergency, delays in accessing data translate directly into delays in analysis and response,” he said. “When independent researchers are slowed down by legal constraints while government agencies are not, the overall scientific response becomes fragmented and less effective.”
He noted that Nigeria’s experience during the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the importance of independent scientific contributions to national response efforts, including epidemiological modelling, diagnostics, and clinical research support. However, he said data access challenges often limited the speed and scale of such contributions.
Public health and research experts have also raised concerns that modern epidemic response depends on coordinated action between government institutions and independent scientific actors. Any regulatory framework that restricts one part of this ecosystem, they warn, risks reducing overall efficiency during emergencies.
The issue, Olatunde added, is not opposition to data protection itself, but the need for balance between privacy safeguards and scientific urgency.
He argued that while emergency exemptions for government authorities are justified, similar controlled exemptions should be extended to independent researchers operating under strict ethical oversight.
Such safeguards, he said, should include prior ethical approval, strict data minimisation, anonymisation where possible, and clear time limits tied to the duration of a declared public health emergency.
The Nigeria Data Protection Commission, established under the Act, is expected to play a central role in interpreting and enforcing these provisions during emergencies.
Stakeholders are now calling for a clearer emergency research framework to prevent regulatory delays from undermining outbreak response while maintaining strong protections for personal data.
Although Hentavirus has not been identified as an immediate public health threat in Nigeria, experts say the growing global attention to emerging infections highlights the importance of ensuring that both legal and scientific systems are prepared for rapid response.
For Olatunde, the core concern is simple: Nigeria’s ability to respond to the next pandemic will depend not only on hospitals and surveillance systems, but also on whether its laws allow science to move fast enough when it matters most
