Nigeria is set to lift a ban on Twitter starting Jan. 13, after the social media giant agreed to certain conditions to resume operations.
Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, director general of the country’s National Information Technology Development Agency said that Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari had given approval to lift the suspension.
“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,” Abdullahi said in a statement. “Therefore, the [federal government] lifts the suspension of the Twitter operations in Nigeria from midnight of 13th January 2022.”
“Our action is a deliberate attempt to recalibrate our relationship with Twitter to achieve the maximum mutual benefits for our nation without jeopardizing the justified interests of the company,” he added. “Our engagement has been very respectful, cordial, and successful.”
Twitter did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Epoch Times.
In resuming operations, Twitter agreed to work with the Nigerian government and the broader industry “to develop a Code of Conduct in line with global best practices, applicable in almost all developed countries,” according to Abdullahi’s statement reads.
Abdullahi said Twitter also agreed to appoint a country representative to engage with Nigerian authorities and comply with local tax obligations.
Twitter furthermore agreed to set “a legal entity in Nigeria during the first quarter of 2022.” According to the statement, the move to establish a legal entity would signify Twitter’s “first step in demonstrating its long-term commitment to Nigeria.”