Nigeria’s government lifted its ban on Twitter at midnight after securing assurances from the social media company, ending a seven-month blockade of the platform.
Twitter was blocked in Nigeria on 4th June 2021 after the platform removed a post by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari issuing a threat of punishment to regional secessionists. Telecom providers were thereafter ordered to prevent users from accessing the service.
Reuters reported that Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, director general of the National Information Technology Development Agency, had now confirmed that Buhari had approved lifting the ban after Twitter agreed to comply with certain orders, including opening a local office in Nigeria with a representative to work with the government.
In his statement, Abdullahi said: “Twitter has agreed to act with a respectful acknowledgement of Nigerian laws and the national culture and history on which such legislation has been built. Therefore, the [federal government] lifts the suspension of the Twitter operations in Nigeria from midnight of 13th January 2022.”
In addition to meeting its tax obligations in Nigeria, Twitter also pledged to work with Nigerian authorities and the telecoms sector “to develop a Code of Conduct in line with global best practices, applicable in almost all developed countries.”
