By Demilade Adeniyi
Over 150 million Nigerians have access to the internet while over 80 million can access high speed internet, the Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta said on Thursday.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the two-day Talk-To-The-Regulator (TTTR) Forum which opened in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State on Thursday, Danbatta said in line with the Nigeria National Broadband Plan (NNBP 2020 – 2025), the NCC will be providing industry leadership to facilitate the achievement of 90% Broadband penetration by year 2025, and well above 50% at the end of 2023.
Danbatta who observed that the telecoms sector has led to phenomenal growth in technology as a result of improved service delivery and creating a high and wide range expectation from all stakeholders said the NCC will continue to be at the forefront of ensuring that the operators are up to date with their offerings to the wide range of stakeholders.
He listed among other services that the NCC has ensured are introduced in Nigeria to include; the roll out of the 5G Service provision, the introduction of Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) Licence to bridge the gap between unserved and underserved areas. He added that the Commission is currently reviewing the scope and structure of its existing licences to make them more robust to accommodate some of the new industry trends.
Danbatta described the TTTR Forum as a platform for non-discriminatory interaction on a one-on-one basis, between the Licensees and the regulator on several industry issues, pertinent to the guaranteeing improved investments and service delivery.
He said the Forum would have taken place last year, but for the flood disaster which overwhelmed the state, necessitating the shift. He therefore commiserated with the state over the flood devastation, which he said, experts described as the worst in the nation’s history.
He challenged all participants at the forum to come up with industry issues and new trends tha could advance the development of the industry, while improving regulations and service delivery to telecom consumers.
Earlier, the Director, Licensing and Authorisation Department of the NCC, Mr Mohammed Babajika said the latest trends in ICT industry informed the need by the Commission to make its licences more robust to capture most of the trends for the Nigerian market.
He said: “The Commission recognises that technological advancements, in the industry such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data, Network as a Service (NaaS) and Internet of Things (IoT) are redefining service-delivery and therefore in line with global trends, the NCC is currently reviewing its license categories. The Commission has also finalised the framework for Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) and is currently in the process of licensing MVNOs. The licensing of MVNO will improve the telecommunication output of the country, enable the expansion and availability of quality mobile coverage and close the gap to the unserved and underserved population in Nigeria.”