Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) N41.6 billion Broadband Connectivity Intervention is planned to service critical sectors across the country, such as 49 higher institutions of learning, 20 airports, and 6 markets.
The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof Isa Pantami, disclosed this while presenting a letter of award to the beneficiaries in Abuja on Thursday.
Being the commencement of the implementation of the second and third phases of the project, the minister noted that the first phase had been implemented 80 per cent after the Federal Executive Council approved the intervention on 29th March 2023.
According to him, the funds for the interventions were internally generated revenue from the NCC, and it has generated broadband connectivity of 113 as a total number of interventions across the country.
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The NCC Broadband’s first phase is up to 90% completion
According to Pantami, the first phase has been implemented an average of 80 per cent, adding that some institutions even have up to 90 per cent implementation level.
“Because of this, I feel it is the right time to commence Phases 2 and phase 3.” He said.
“On Wednesday, 29th March 2023, I was at the Federal Executive Council where I presented a memorandum for this event we gathered here.
The two memos covered 49 higher learning institutions, 20 airports and six markets. So by implication, each memo represents a phase. So, we are here for phase 2 and phase 3. The total amount we have committed to this is approximately N41.6 billion.
“The second and third phases are here; we have provisions for 20 airports, six additional markets, and 49 institutions of learning. We have prioritized polytechnics in this phase; we will prioritize colleges of education in the next phase.” The minister added.
According to him, 19 universities were captured in the first intervention, one college of education, 20 markets, 49 additional institutions of learning, six additional markets and 20 airports.
“You can simply say we have 113 interventions so far from the 41.6 billion Naira to be spent as part of our donation to other sectors from our internally generated revenue through the telecommunication sub-sectors.” He said.
Interventions to diversify the Nigerian economy
Meanwhile, the Chairman Board of NCC, Prof Adeolu Akande, said the interventions were designed to diversify the Nigerian economy as envisioned by President Muhammadu Buhari.
“It Is a project conceived by the minister for communications and digital economy to drive the quest for the diversification of the Nigerian economy as envisioned by our leader, President Muhammadu Buhari,” he said.
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Accelerated Broadband penetration for businesses
The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Danbatta, had earlier this month in a press release, reiterated the Commission’s commitment to continually drive initiatives that accelerate broadband deployment to increase penetration and make internet connection readily available to telecom consumers.
He noted that NCC has been at the heart of providing the digital drive for transforming businesses and sustaining socio-economic activities in Nigeria and is committed towards technological and digital transformation in a manner that makes entrepreneurship seamless.
Danbatta gave an assurance that the Commission will sustain strategic partnerships with various organizations, including the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), which had birthed initiatives such as Digital Economy Academy, where business owners learn about security risks and online threats in a 12-course programme for 3 months.
“As a regulator of Telecommunication, the Commission is in active collaboration with other agencies in the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, as well as with other public sector institutions such as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) to ensure that policies become effective in curtailing cyber-attacks and threats on businesses,” he said.
He charged entrepreneurs to leverage technology to harness the benefits of these initiatives to sustain their businesses.