ABUJA, (Sundiata Post) – The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has invited all affected and interested parties as well as the general public to a Stakeholder Consultation on the establishment of an Internet Industry Code of Practice.
As part of its Internet Governance functions, the Nigerian Communications Commission seeks input from stakeholders in the development of a code of practice in support of net neutrality and an open internet.
The Commission favours a multi-stakeholder model of engagement in the process of policy development for
Stakeholders are expected to submit their input (comments, concerns, feedback, and suggestions for scope and content) via this portal. Input submitted via this facility will be taken into consideration in the drafting of the Internet Industry Code of Conduct.
A message on the NCC website said a draft of the Internet Industry Code of Practice will be made available to stakeholders for feedback and change requests when ready.
Stakeholders will be invited to a presentation of the draft at a special Stakeholder Consultation Workshop where they will be expected to critique and suggest improvements to the draft.
Stakeholders will also be able to submit their critiques and suggestions via this portal up until the final draft of the code is produced.
According to the Commission, feedback received from key stakeholders via the Online Consultation Facility as well as during the Stakeholder Consultation Workshop will be factored into the transitioning of the draft into the final code of practice.
Objectives of the Internet Industry Code of Practice
The proposed Code of Practice seeks, among other things, to:
Protect the rights and interests of Internet Service Providers and consumers; Provide jointly agreed and effective solutions to the issues of discriminatory traffic management practices; Ensure adequate safeguards are put in place by service providers against abuses such as unsolicited messages;
Outline the obligations of Service Providers in relation to offensive and potentially harmful content for minors and vulnerable audiences; Promote the safe, secure and responsible use of Internet Services with due regard to provisions in existing legal instruments and Establish best practices for Internet Governance in Nigeria, in line with emerging issues and global trends;
Other objectives include to Provide transparent rules for the assessment and classification of Internet content; Increase stakeholder satisfaction through improved consumer experience online; Improve competition by addressing issues of traffic management; and Improve operational efficiency.
The NCC explained that Development of the Internet Industry Code of Practice will entail: A review of existing Internet Industry codes of practice across various jurisdictions, to determine and incorporate global best practices; A review of the relevant guidelines, regulations, and legislations currently in place in Nigeria, to ensure that the code of practice produced is in conformity; Extensive consultation of key stakeholders on scope and content of code; Publication of a draft code for review and feedback by stakeholders; Incorporation of stakeholder feedback into draft code and Production of final document.
The Internet Industry codes of practice selected from across the globe for review include examples of self-regulation, government regulation, and co-regulation. Some of the countries and regions whose codes are included in the review are as follows: Australia; Brunei; The Caribbean; Malaysia; Malta; Republic of Ireland; Singapore; South Africa; United Kingdom.
The Nigerian legislation, regulations, and guidelines to be considered include: Nigerian Communications Act 2003; Guidelines for the Provision of Internet Service (published by the NCC); Consumer Code of Practice Regulations, 2007; The Cybercrime Act 2015; National Cybersecurity Policy, 2014; Nigeria Child Online Protection Policy, 2014 and the Copyright Act 2004
Links to all the documents included in the review can be found here.
Extensive consultation of stakeholders is crucial to the success of this exercise. Key stakeholders identified include: All Internet Service Providers in Nigeria; Relevant Associations (ISPAN, CPN, ATCON, ALTON, GSMA, Nigerian Computer Society, Nigerian Internet Governance Forum, etc.)
Government Ministries, Agencies, and Departments (NCC, NITDA, NBC, CBN, Ministry of Communication, etc.) Security Agencies (Police, EFCC, ICPC, NSA, etc.) Interested multinationals (Facebook, Microsoft, Oracle, etc.) Academia and the General Public