Nigeria issues new guidelines for social media firms

Keisha Gitari

BBC News, Lagos

The Nigerian government has issued new guidelines for the operations of social media corporations in the country.

The new regulations from the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) will affect popular platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp among others.

The code will require the companies to meet certain conditions including registering with the Corporate Affairs Commission and providing the authorities with information about harmful accounts.

The NITDA says the aim of the guidelines is to set out best practices expected of interactive platforms, making digital platforms systems safer for users in Nigeria as well as combatting disinformation.

A date for the implementation of the new code has not been announced but the new rules come five months after the government lifted a seven-month ban on Twitter.

This article originally appeared in BBC News

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