Emma Okonji
The Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta has said leveraging the potential of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to automate service delivery should be the next frontier of excellent service delivery to Nigerians by public institutions.
Danbatta made the assertion in a goodwill message presented on his behalf by NCC’s Director, Public Affairs, Dr. Ikechukwu Adinde, at the opening ceremony of a three-day SERVICOM retreat, which ended recently in Abuja.
The retreat, focused on ‘Charter Performance Monitoring and Reporting,’ was aimed at enhancing the monitoring of the implementation of the NCC’s Client Service Charter, identifying gaps, as well as measuring and evaluating the progress of service delivery in the Commission.
SERVICOM, an acronym derived from SERVICE COMPACT WITH ALL NIGERIANS, speaks to a special social contract between the Federal Government through its institutions across Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs) and the Nigerian people to ensure that services are delivered in a courteous, prompt and efficient manner.
Speaking at the event, Adinde said NCC had been living up to expectations as one of the public institutions that have continued to implement the Service Charter with all its various stakeholders.
He stated that the digital economy drive of the Federal Government should mean that more services be delivered online to the people of Nigeria and in a more efficient manner in line with the philosophy of SERVICOM.
He said the NCC is an important partner of SERVICOM in its journey towards service delivery and excellence, and invited the participants to recall that fact in the passion and commitment of Prof. Danbatta in ensuring that telecom service providers deliver optimal services to varied categories of stakeholders.
“Therefore, from our perspective as regulator of the digital ecosystem in Nigeria, we feel that automation of service should be the next stage of service delivery. While Nigeria has started this journey with the example of REMITA, which has brought about a lot of efficiency and transparency into the payment remittances by the public, and Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs) of government,” Adinde stated.
On the implementation of the NCC Charter for SERVICOM, Adinde said the NCC boasts of one of the best and brightest brains that could be found in the public sector as civil servants, and they are ingrained with good work ethics and culture.
“Our staff are renowned for their warmth and geniality when dealing with internal and external stakeholders. They work as a team on the principle of achieving Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound (SMART) objectives of the Commission,” he said.
Adinde also listed the roles of the commission in collaborating with other MDAs in various ways, in order to achieve policy objectives of government on many fronts.
He also highlighted a number of corporate social responsibility (CSR) projects of the Commission being implemented singly or jointly with other MDAs towards achieving the objective of government to serve the citizenry better.
National Coordinator/Chief Executive Officer of SERVICOM, Nnenna Akajemili, in her remark, commended NCC for contributing to the cultivation of effective communication between the Commission and its various stakeholders for improved service delivery.
Akajemili acknowledged the commitment of NCC towards facilitating major activities, even as she affirmed that the Commission had improved significantly in delivering its key regulatory functions. Akajemili also observed that NCC went the extra mile in engaging its stakeholders as well as creating affinity between itself and its stakeholders.
Akajemili stated that she was particularly gratified by NCC’s contribution of 12.45 per cent to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), based on the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report for the third quarter of 2021.
The SERVICOM Chief Executive, however urged NCC to sustain and expand on its collaboration with other MDAs, specifically in the area of data management, Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR), Value Added Services (VAS) and short codes, in order to enhance greater synergy among MDAs.
Head, Legislative and Government Relations, NCC and SERVICOM Nodal Officer at the commission, Bashir Bello, said SERVICOM, as a service delivery initiative, would require everyone to put in his or her best in achieving desired objectives. He emphasised the role of management’s support, education, and commitment towards improving and consolidating the various SERVICOM interventions that had been initiated.
