Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Aminu Maida, has reiterated the commitment of the commission to meeting the 70 per cent national broadband penetration through the laying of 95, 000 kilometres of fibre optic cable across the country under the Nigerian National Broadband Plan (NNBP) 2020-2025.
Maida described the target as total and non-negotiable, saying that it is in alignment with the Strategic Plan of the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani.
Maida disclosed this while speaking recently at the 13th Annual Nigeria ICT Impact CEO Forum/Africa Digital Award at Oriental Hotel, Lagos.
He said that the focus of his commission in the next four years and beyond was in strict alignment with the vision of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government to expand national economic growth using digital economy as a major instrument to create massive job opportunities thereby lifting over 100 million Nigerians from poverty.
The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Aminu Maida, maintained that the commission has, over the years, created numerous regulatory frameworks geared towards ensuring incremental broadband deployment to make connectivity available, accessible and affordable to telecoms consumers in the country.
He said: “As the regulator of the nation’s highly dynamic telecommunication industry, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has, over the years, put several regulatory frameworks in place towards ensuring incremental broadband deployment for available, accessible and affordable connectivity to telecoms consumer.
“Post-pandemic, the NCC, working with various stakeholders has continued to explore ways to sustain the growth of broadband networks to address identified digital gaps (demand and supply sides) highlighted by the pandemic and consider steps to overcome these challenges especially in terms of addressing the digital divide.
“Through various policy directions, especially the Nigerian National Broadband Plan (NNBP) 2020-2025, the Nigerian government has set out ambitious targets accompanied by timelines that aim towards making broadband an enabler of economic growth across all sectors in Nigeria.”
Maida gave the assurance that NCC under his leadership will support the target of the Ministry to boost Nigeria’s broadband penetration rate to 70 per cent by the end of 2025 in line with the NNBP 2020-2025, through the laying of 95,000 kilometres of fibre optic cables across the country.
