NCC Hosts Telecom Leadership Summit

NCC Hosts Telecom Leadership Summit

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) is set to hold the maiden edition of Nigerian Telecom Leadership Summit, slated for Lagos next week.

The summit, with the theme: “Repositioning the Nigerian Telecom Industry for future challenges and Prospects,” would be in line with the Commission’s commitment towards improving the investment climate of the Nigerian telecom industry.
According to NCC, “the summit is geared towards sustaining a robust collaborative regulatory environment where current and future challenges will be addressed.”

As part of the programme of collaborative regulatory atmosphere, the summit presents an opportunity for the NCC to interact with key stakeholders to discuss pertinent issues affecting the industry with a view to proffering solutions to address challenges. It was also designed to analyse the current state of the industry and make profound recommendations for sustaining a healthy Nigerian telecom industry.

The Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, is expected as Special Guest of honour, while the Keynote would be delivered by Dr. Omobola Johnson, former Communications Technology Minister, on the topic, “Best Fit Infrastructure Investment Choice for an emerging Market.”
The Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode and the Minister of Communications, Chief. Raheem Adebayo Shittu are expected as guests. The Chairman of the Governing Board of NCC, Senator Olabiyi Durojaiye, and Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) and CEO of NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, who would present an overview of the status of the industry as a prelude to the Keynote and panel discussions will also be present.

Selected panellists for the summit would discuss, “The challenges facing the Nigerian telecoms industry, way forward and the role of the regulator,” and “Implications of multiple taxation on telecom investments in Nigeria.”
The panellists for the two segments include: Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele; Executive Secretary, Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Ms. Yewande Sadiku; immediate past President, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Abubakar Mahmood (SAN) and Senior Partner at KPMG, Mr. Joseph Tegbe.

President, Association of Telecom Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), Mr. Olusola Teniola, and his counterpart at the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Gbenga Adebayo are also on the panel.

With telecoms investments so far put at over $70 billion since 2001, active lines in the voice segment standing at 173.7 million as at March 2019, and with Nigeria’s teledensity also standing at 91 per cent as at March 2019, and broadband users increasing to more than 63 million, representing 33.22 per cent broadband penetration, there is no doubt that the telecoms sector has made significant improvements since inception, but not without challenges that the summit seeks to address.

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