FG Eyes N2trn Revenue, 2m Jobs In Telecom Sector

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LAGOS – Nigeria’s telecommunications sector has been projected to be the viable economic catalyst that could boost the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by gener­ating nearly N2 trillion in additional tax revenue and create over 2 million jobs.

This was disclosed by the Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, at the National Telecommuni­cations Policy 2000 Review Workshop with the theme, ‘The Imperative of Poli­cy Drivers in Attaining National Objec­tives and Building Collaboration across Sectors and Segments of Government’, organised by the Nigerian Communica­tions Commission (NCC) in collabora­tion with the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovations & Digital Economy.

In his opening remarks at the 2-day event held in Ikeja, Lagos, on Wednesday, Maida said that stakeholders must also approach the workshop essence as an eco­nomic development exercise and not simply a sectorial policy, not­ing that the role of mobile tele­communications in Nigeria has become an economic catalyst.

According to him, “We must approach this workshop as an economic development exercise, not simply a sectorial policy of it. The role of mobile telecommu­nications in Nigeria as an eco­nomic catalyst has taken deeper digitalisation across sectors like agriculture, manufacturing, transport, trade, and govern­ment could boost our GDP by 2030 by creating an additional 2 million jobs that generates near­ly N2 trillion in additional tax revenue.”

Speaking on the need for a review of telecommunications policy, Maida explained: “We went into the era of network, network building, as access ex­panded. The pressure shifted from simply connecting region to building the infrastructure required for broadband data and install services regulatory attention increasingly known to spectrum planning, fiber deployment, right of way, infra­structure sharing, co-location, open access, quality of service, and universal access.

“However, that phase also explores structural challenges that continue to affect the sec­tor’s faith, fiber cuts, vandalism, high energy costs, multiple tax­ation, permanent delays, and persistent gaps between urban and rural activities.

“These are not just operation­al issues for operators, they are national development issues, be­cause they affect the quality of resilience and reach of telecom services across the economy.”

He said that telecommuni­cations by the mid-2010s had become the platform for a much wider digital ecosystem- bank­ing, commerce, clean tech, edu­cation, entertainment, govern­ment services, security, cloud platforms, social media, and in­creased digital identity to depend on telecom networks.

“The issues before us now include artificial intelligence, satellite broadband, internet of things, cloud infrastructure, crit­ical international infrastructure, digital sovereignty, digital trust, network resilience, and sustain­able revolution.

“This is no longer a narrow method of communication con­versation. The sector is no longer just a sector of the economy.

“So, the policy choices we make today will therefore de­termine not only the future of the telecommunications indus­try, but also Nigeria’s ability to broaden its taxpayers, improve public service delivery, raise productivity, formalise more businesses, great jobs, and build a more inclusive and resilient economy. In other words, we must move beyond celebrating connected lives alone. We must now focus on cross-sectoral pro­ductivity, digital adoption, and GDP growth enabled by mean­ingful connectivity regularly,” Maida stressed.

In his welcome address, Mr. Ayuba Shuaibu, Director, Policy Competition & Economic Anal­ysis Department at NCC, who was represented by Mr. Oladejo Olawunmi, Special Duties Unit, NCC, expressed optimism of the positive outcome of the work­shop, noting that the Policy Re­view Workshop on the National Telecommunications Policy 2000 presents an important opportu­nity for industry stakeholders to reflect on one of the most signif­icant policy interventions in Ni­geria’s communications sector.

“Telecommunications has moved beyond traditional voice services and now serves as a crit­ical enabler of economic growth, digital innovation, financial ser­vices, governance, education and national development.

“However, the operating en­vironment today presents new realities and challenges, includ­ing technological convergence, cybersecurity concerns, data governance issues and increas­ing demands for collaborative regulation.

“This workshop therefore provides a timely platform for us to assess the implementation journey of the policy, reflect on key achievements and lessons learned, identify emerging chal­lenges, and collectively shape the direction for a future-focused telecommunications policy framework. The discussions over the next two days are designed to generate practical recommenda­tions that will support Nigeria’s digital aspirations and the con­tinued growth of the sector.

“I encourage all participants to engage actively and contrib­ute meaningfully to the discus­sions,” Shuaibu stressed.

Earlier in her keynote ad­dress, the Special Adviser to the President on Policy and Coordi­nation and Head of the Central Results Delivery Coordination Unit, Hadiza Bala Usman, called for a deeper broadband access across all parts of the country and to make the cost of digital access for citizens and business­es more affordable.

According to her, “There is no doubt to the fact that the telecom sector needs to review its policy after 26 years. This is crucial be­cause this will deepen broadband access to all parts of the country, protect critical national digital infrastructure, improve quality of service, support innovation, trade, security, public finance, and national value, while main­taining regulatory certainty. It will also ensure that no commu­nity is excluded from the benefit of the digital economy in an in­creasing digital market.”

Usman said the workshop will support responsible use of emerging technologies, strength­en coordination between state, federal, and local authorities on the rights of way, infrastructure deployment, and ensuring that technical durations policy sup­port education, culture.

She reminded stakeholders at the event that policy drivers are the mechanism that moves policies from intention to action, they include laws, institutions, transit arrangements, regu­latory tools, delivery system, performance management, stakeholder ownership, and the political will required to sustain implementation.