PROF. Umar Danbatta executive vice chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, has said that the target of the commission is to be consistent with the national broadband plan. According to him, the commission has made very modest progress in the sector, but still need to deepen investments to make broadband pervasive in the country. He stated that the broadband penetration is at 21 percent now and plans to hit 30 percent by 2018.

Danbatta made this known at the ongoing ITU Telecom World 2017, in Busan, South Korea, where he revealed that the ITU/UNESCO Broadband Commission for sustainable development recently said Nigeria now has about 21 percent broadband penetration. Conscious of the reality that broadband fuels faster data transmission speed and capacity, the commission is now focused on how it can attract the right investments to grow this critical area of the sector through broadband coverage expansion.

The Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, as a foremost regulator, has put in place measures and guidelines to licence wholesale broadband service providers consistent with the Open Access Model for broadband deployment. Of the seven infrastructure companies (Infracos) earmarked for licensing, only two have so far been licensed for Lagos, which is commercial hub of Nigeria, and Abuja, including the North Central zone of the country leaving five more licences for the South West, South East, South-South, North East and North West zones of the country. The process of licensing of infracos for these five remaining zones is about to be concluded.

In its firm resolve to strengthen institutions of corporate governance for telcos, woo investors and guarantee returns on their investments, the NCC, in consultation with industry stakeholders introduced a mandatory Code of Corporate Governance as guide to managers and boards of telecommunications companies.  The code outlines minimum global best practices covering processes, procedures and general corporate behaviour for telecommunications industry players.

“When we rolled out the eight-point agenda in 2016, it was predicated on the change mantra of the new democratic government in Nigeria led by President Muhammadu Buhari. It is premised on facilitating broadband penetration, improving quality of service, optimizing usage and benefits of spectrum, promoting ICT investment and innovation, facilitating strategic partnership, promoting fair and inclusive growth and ensuring regulatory excellence and operational efficiency.  Because we recognize the importance of ICT to national development that is why growing this sector has been top on our agenda.  Hence, ladies and gentlemen permit me to say that despite our modest achievements, Nigeria ICT sector is work in progress,” he said.

Accordingly, Danbatta said in 16 years since the Digital Mobile Licences, DML, were issued, investment in the sector has hit about $70 billion from a mere $50 million in 2001. Encouraging investors to invest in Nigeria, he said most of these investments are Foreign Direct Investments, FDIs.

Sept. 27, 2017 @ 17:55 GMT |