Data governance frameworks, structures and implementation approaches are all institutionally driven. Building an African data economy that benefits citizens and businesses requires the existence of responsible, sustainable and robust data governance institutions. From institutions that create or make relevant national and international data governance laws, regulations, standards and policies, institutions that monitor compliance and enforcement to available laws and regulations, institutions that generate evidence-based research to inform and maintain data governance mechanisms, institutions that apply data governance frameworks to their data processing pipelines to institutions that facilitate findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable (FAIR) data principles, data governance institutions define and shape data ecosystems. In Africa, there is a dearth of literature on these data governance institutions. This is mainly because robust data governance ecosystems are lacking.

This article was Written by Damian O. Eke