Nigeria’s digital rights protections weakened in 2025 despite rising broadband access and new technology policies, with arrests linked to online criticism, recurring personal data leaks and expanding surveillance exposing gaps in the country’s regulatory safeguards, a new report by digital rights group Paradigm Initiative shows.
Nigeria scored 35 out of 60 on the organisation’s digital rights assessment, down from 36 in 2024, according to the LONDA 2025 Digital Rights and Inclusion in Africa report, which assesses 29 African countries. Nigeria’s ranking fell to 10th from fifth place among the countries assessed.
The findings indicate a tension between Nigeria’s push to expand digital infrastructure and artificial intelligence development and concerns about how authorities handle personal data, online criticism and surveillance technology.
“In 2025, Nigeria’s digital rights landscape reflected a mix of slow recovery, persistent structural weaknesses, and emerging reforms,” the report reads.
Nigeria’s broadband penetration reached 51.97% in December 2025, according to the report’s detailed connectivity section, remaining below the government’s National Broadband Plan target of 70% by the end of 2025. The report’s executive summary gives a different figure of 49.34%.
The report’s figures are based on subscriptions rather than unique individuals, meaning multiple SIM cards held by one person can inflate the measure of connectivity.
The broader challenge extends beyond Nigeria. The GSMA’s Mobile Economy Africa 2025 report said 416 million people across Africa used mobile internet, while about 960 million people lived in areas with mobile broadband coverage but did not use it. Device costs, affordability and digital skills remain major barriers to adoption.
ONLINE SPEECH AND ACCESS TO INFORMATION
The report said overlapping laws and regulations, including provisions in the Cybercrimes Act, the Nigerian Broadcasting Code, state-level criminal defamation statutes and ambiguous false-information provisions, continued to expose online expression to restrictions.
It documented cases involving people arrested or sanctioned over social media criticism, including Mohammed Abubakar Isah, who was arrested and arraigned in Niger State in October 2025 over a post criticising the governor, and Abba Mu’azu Abiyos, who was remanded in prison in Jigawa State after criticising a local government empowerment programme.
“In effect, some rights exist in law and policy but are enforced inconsistently,” the report said.
It also cited pressure on online publishers and musicians, including the Department of State Services flagging posts by activist and publisher Omoyele Sowore and urging platforms to remove them, as well as the banning of musician Eedris Abdulkareem’s protest song.
The report said such measures contributed to self-censorship among journalists, students and human rights defenders.
Nigeria ranked 122nd out of 180 countries in the 2025 World Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders, reflecting wider concerns about pressure on journalists, harassment and restrictions on media freedom.
A positive development came in 2024, when Nigeria’s Supreme Court affirmed the applicability of the Freedom of Information Act across all levels of government following an 11-year legal battle, the report said. The ruling strengthened the legal basis for citizens and journalists seeking public records, although implementation remains a challenge.
DATA PROTECTION AND CYBERSECURITY
Nigeria’s data protection enforcement expanded in 2025. The Nigeria Data Protection Commission issued its General Application and Implementation Directive, which took effect in September, and published a list of 789 organisations it identified as non-compliant, asking them to meet the requirements.
However, recurring personal data leaks and reported non-compliance by government agencies raised questions about whether public institutions were adequately protecting information they collect, the report said.
“Still, persistent breaches and non-compliance by public institutions undermine regulatory credibility and public trust,” it said.
Nigeria’s privacy protections include Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees privacy of citizens, their homes, correspondence and telephone conversations, alongside the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
The country also amended its Cybercrimes Act in 2024 and signed the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime in October 2025, moves that could strengthen international cooperation and the handling of electronic evidence.
But the report warned that expanded cybersecurity powers must be accompanied by safeguards to prevent their use against critics and journalists.
AI GOVERNANCE AND SURVEILLANCE
Nigeria expanded its use of emerging technologies during 2025, including through the development of artificial intelligence systems and new surveillance infrastructure.
A key initiative was the launch of the Nigerian Atlas for Languages & AI at Scale, or N-ATLAS, an open-source language model developed through collaboration between the federal government and Lagos-based startup Awarri. The model is designed to support Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo and Nigerian-accented English.
The government also advanced legislative initiatives aimed at digital transformation and AI governance. But the report warned that broad regulatory powers and insufficient safeguards could create risks for privacy, freedom of expression and accountability.
“Surveillance expanded through new drone and AI-powered monitoring systems without corresponding transparency or safeguards,” the report said.
The report cited a November 2025 agreement between UrSafe and Klass Security to supply drone surveillance technology, as well as a tender for an artificial intelligence-powered surveillance system for the Corporate Affairs Commission.
It also highlighted efforts by the National Identity Management Commission to strengthen the security of its digital identity infrastructure, which holds sensitive biometric and demographic information.
The report noted that the expansion of drones, AI-powered monitoring and digital identity systems had not been accompanied by equivalent improvements in public transparency, judicial oversight or accountability.
These concerns come as governments across Africa develop AI strategies and seek to attract investment in digital infrastructure. The technology can support public services, economic activity and local-language access, but its deployment also increases the importance of safeguards governing data collection, automated monitoring and the use of personal information.
CONNECTIVITY AND AFFORDABILITY
The report’ shows broadband penetration reached 51.97% by the end of December 2025, below the National Broadband Plan target of 70%. It also said active mobile subscriptions rose to 179.64 million during the year, with 4G accounting for 52.95% of connections, 2G for 37.37%, 3G for 5.91% and 5G for 3.77%.
“However, this recovery remains fragile, affordability-constrained, and unevenly distributed,” the report said.
The continued reliance on legacy networks limits access to services that require faster and more reliable connectivity, including online education, digital finance and public services.
Telecommunications operators received regulatory approval for a tariff increase of up to 50% in January 2025, with the adjustment taking effect in February. It was the first approved increase since 2013, according to the report, which said the higher costs placed additional pressure on low-income users.
The GSMA has identified device affordability and digital skills as major obstacles to wider mobile internet adoption in Africa, despite expanding network coverage.
Nigeria’s Universal Service Provision Fund continued to plan projects aimed at extending connectivity to underserved communities. But the LONDA report said the latest full annual report available during its assessment was from 2022, limiting public scrutiny of the fund’s performance and the impact of its interventions.
The report also noted progress on digital inclusion through child online safety legislation and initiatives to improve access to assistive technologies for people with disabilities, although accessibility barriers persisted.
Faustine Ngila is the AI Editor at Impact Newswire, based in Nairobi, Kenya. He is an award-winning journalist specializing in artificial intelligence, blockchain, and emerging technologies.
He previously worked as a global technology reporter at Quartz in New York and Digital Frontier in London, where he covered innovation, startups, and the global digital economy.
With years of experience reporting on cutting-edge technologies, Faustine focuses on AI developments, industry trends, and the impact of technology on society.
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