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Benin

Summary

Law: Law No. 2009-09 of May 22, 2009 Dealing with the Protection of Personally Identifiable Information ('Law No. 2009-09'), which has been supplemented by the Fifth Book of the Digital Code (only available in French here)

Regulator: Beninese data protection authority ('APDP')

Summary: Law No. 2009-09 provides a relatively general framework for personal data protection and establishes, among other things, individuals' rights, consent requirements, restrictions on data processing, as well as establishing the APDP as the supervisory authority. This broad approach to data protection was then supplemented by the more detailed Digital Code in 2018. The Digital Code addresses a range of topics across seven books, including, among other things, cybersecurity, e-commerce, electronic advertising, and personal data. The Fifth Book of the Digital Code, on personal data protection, is directly influenced by the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679) ('GDPR'). It regulates and clarifies several matters, such as joint controllership of data, conditions for consent, data breach notifications, processing for research and other purposes, and impact assessments. The Digital Code is one of the most comprehensive efforts to regulate data protection, and related matters, within the region.

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