Kenya passes data protection law crucial for tech investments

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Mucheru said it complies with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation which came into effect in May 2018 and said an independent office will investigate data infringements. Companies such as Kenya Airways and tourist hotels will have to comply when handling personal data from clients, Mucheru said, as will phone-based lenders such as Safaricom, which amasses personal data through services offered jointly with local banks. Amazon Web Services, part of the Amazon group, said on Friday it will set up part of its cloud infrastructure in Kenya, adding it was encouraged by the new law. It did not give a value for the new investment.For More of This and Other Stories, Grab Your Copy of the Standard Newspaper.
Teresa Carlson, vice president of Amazon Web Services, said the new law paves the way for the company’s investment in Nairobi, according to a government news release. Those violating the law face a maximum fine of Sh3 million or two years in jail, a copy of the law seen by Reuters showed.SEE ALSO :Uncertainty grips telecoms sector as CA board nullified
“It will come down to implementation and enforcement but, we have been waiting on this for seven years so it is a start,” said Nanjira Sambuli, a senior policy manager at the World Wide Web Foundation, a web access advocacy group. A lack of data protection legislation has also hampered the government’s efforts to digitise identity records for citizens.Do not miss out on the latest news. Join the Standard Digital Telegram channel HERE.