Nigerian govt seeks tighter control on TikTok to curb youth “distraction”

Nigeria’s top technology official has called for sweeping local oversight of TikTok, saying the Chinese-owned video app has become a distraction for the country’s youth and must be governed by homegrown digital rules rather than global standards.

In an interview with France 24’s Tech 24, Kashifu Abdullahi, Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), said TikTok’s popularity in Nigeria – where it counts an estimated 37 million adult users – is undermining digital productivity.

“We want to see people using it to promote digital safety, to promote content that will build a stronger nation,” Abdullahi said. “But mostly we use it for entertainment, which eats our youth’s time. People are not focusing on building the skills they need to succeed for tomorrow.”

Abdullahi said Nigeria should not rely on content moderation systems designed abroad, arguing that platforms often ignore local cultural and legal contexts. He praised moves by the United States to assert control over TikTok’s domestic operations, suggesting that digital sovereignty — the ability to set national rules for global tech firms — should be a shared priority for Africa.

“Sometimes platforms don’t listen to us when designing their own policies,” he said. “They don’t take into consideration our laws. But when we have that self-determination, we should be the ones to tell them: this is how we want this platform to operate in Nigeria.”

Heavy-handed approach

Nigeria has already laid groundwork for closer regulation. Under NITDA’s Code of Practice for Interactive Computer Service Platforms, social media companies must remove flagged content within 24 hours of being notified by authorities – a rule some critics say leaves little room for appeal or due process.

The policy mirrors aspects of the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA), though with weaker enforcement mechanisms. Still, platforms like TikTok have increased compliance: the company deleted more than 7.5 million videos in Nigeria in the first half of 2025, nearly twice the number removed during the same period a year earlier.

Civil society groups warn that a heavy-handed approach could entrench government control over online speech. But Abdullahi insists that greater regulation is about protecting citizens and national identity, not stifling creativity.

“We should determine what is good for our citizens and what is not good for our citizens,” he said. “Nobody will just come and dominate the digital space on their own terms. Anyone coming here will operate on ours — we must be in the driver’s seat as a sovereign nation.”

Nigeria’s call for stronger digital control comes amid a broader global reckoning with social media governance. Across Africa, governments are drafting local data protection laws, online safety frameworks, and content moderation codes to counter the dominance of Western and Chinese tech platforms.