Emma Okonji
Determined to promote local content development and reduce expenditure on foreign goods, the federal government saved as much as $12 million from the sales of locally developed SIM cards used in mobile phones and other devices.
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) disclosed this yesterday in Lagos, during a panel session, moderated by its Director, Public Affairs, Mr. Reuben Muoka, at the ongoing AfricaNXT forum.
He said the money was saved from August 2022 to January 2023, following the ban on foreign SIM cards in the telecom sector.
The ban, according to NCC, compelled telecom operators to patronise local SIM cards that were produced and sold in Nigeria, as against foreign SIM cards that were imported at the rate of $3 per SIM card, a development that helped the federal government to save as much as $12 million from August 2022 to January 2023.
Speaking on the theme: ‘The NCC Mandate Towards Realisation of Full Digital Economy, Muoka said the Digital Economy Agenda was built around the Eight Pillars of the NCC, driven largely by telecom infrastructure.
According to Muoka, “The need to ensure individuals, businesses, and the nation harness derivable benefits and the opportunities offered by the emergent digital culture, to improve quality of life, grow businesses, and leapfrog the national economy, remains the overarching objective of government policies, plans, and strategies.
“The NCC is mandated to facilitate the attainment of this and many other objectives by enhancing the availability, accessibility, and affordability of digital services.
“In carrying out its duties, the NCC has instituted processes to improve connectivity, protect infrastructure, and defend the interest of consumers and other stakeholders.
“While there have been challenges, the commission has ensured that it consolidates on the successes recorded in the telecom industry, while striding steadily to achieve government plans as articulated in the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) 2020-2030, and particularly the Nigerian National Broadband Plan (NNBP) 2020-2025, the NCC Strategic Management Plan (SMP) 2020-2024, and the Strategic Vision Plan II (The Five Point Agenda) 2021-2025, to meet the targets outlined in the policies, plans, and strategies.”
He added: “They are measurable in terms of country-wide broadband access, connectivity, qualitative improvement in citizens’ life, quantifiable growth in businesses, and remarkable growth of the nation’s economy.”
One of the panelists, and Head of Digital Skills and Services at NCC, Freda Bruce-Bennett, said infrastructure development remained key to achieving full digital economy.
According to Bruce-Bennett, NCC licenced seven Infrastructure Companies (InfraCos) across the six geopolitical zones, including Lagos, to drive broadband infrastructure that would further help to achieve full digital economy and innovation. “NCC is at the forefront of driving technology innovation and creativity, which have helped to build Nigerian unicorns that are driving the African technology space. Among the seven unicorns in Africa today, Nigeria has five, and unicorns are technology startups with minimum of $1 billion,” Bruce-Bennett said, adding that NCC will continue to support digital talents in Nigeria.
