BY DELISA THWALA
MBABANE – The process of safeguarding important data from corruption, compromise, or loss has been officially launched in the country.
The Data Protection Act of 2022 has been officially launched since its enactment in March 2022.
The launch, which was held simultaneously with the commemoration of the Data Protection Day.
According to the internet, Data Protection assures that data is not corrupted, is accessible for authorized purposes only, and is in compliance with applicable legal or regulatory requirements. Protected data should be available when needed and usable for its intended purpose
The scope of data protection, however, goes beyond the notion of data availability and usability to cover areas such as data immutability, preservation, and deletion/destruction.
The said Act seeks to provide for the collection, processing, disclosure, and protection of personal data; balancing competing values of personal information privacy and sector-specific laws and other related matters.
The launch was attended by different stakeholders, who included officials from the Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology (ICT), Members of the Parliament (MPs) and senators, captains of the ICT Industry, and many others.
Eswatini Communication Commission (ESCCOM) Chief Executive (CE) Mvilawemphi Dlamini noted that stakeholders might have been conscious of the protection of personal data or oblivious to the demands of protecting such data.
Meanwhile, Minister of ICT Princess Sikhanyiso said they were still yet to draft the necessary regulatory frameworks for the Data Protection Act of 2022.
The minister was represented by the Principal Secretary (PS) in the ministry, Phesheya Dube. Princess Sikhanyiso said input from key stakeholders would be required. She said while the ministry was working on these frameworks, ESCCOM as the Data Protection Authority, had the powers to issue advisory guidelines, directives, decisions, or any other instrument it may deem necessary to give effect to the provisions of the Act.
