The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has commended the Edo State government for its dedication in ensuring the safeguard of telecom infrastructure especially during road construction.
The Executive Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO), of NCC, Dr. Amimu Maida, made the commendation on Friday in Abuja at a parley with journalists and media consultants, imploring on other states to emulate Edo in reducing fibre cuts during construction.
“I would commend a particular state, Edo, on its approach the matter. I will like to appreciate the state’s authorities in the way they have handled that collaboration in a very simple, but effective manner.
“Their contractors, prior to starting any work, sends out letters to the commission to inform all the telco service providers who have such infrastructure to give them work notice.
“That simple action has resulted in a significant decrease in the number of incidences that occur due to construction activities. So it is a model now that we are encouraging other states to adopt same model.”
On the quality of service that Nigerians are getting from service providers, Maida said that the commission was beginning to see positive signals through independent crowd-sourced data.
He said operators had now committed to about 12,000 additional site upgrades and deployments this year.
“These numbers in terms of the work done also support this. Last year we saw just under 3,000 sites being upgraded and introduced for coverage and capacity.
In her remarks, the Executive-Commissioner, Stakeholder Management (ECSM), Barr. Rimini Makama, said that the quarterly engagement was organised to enable the media to properly inform the public.
“A well informed public is one of the strongest tools we have for driving real progress in the telecom sector,” she said.
Earlier, the Director Public Affairs, NCC, Nnena Ukoha, said that the commission looked forward to frank, constructive conversations on telecom trends.
“It is my expectation that we will constructively utilise this platform for open and frank conversations, sharing insights on the emerging trends in the telecommunications industry.”
She commended journalists for their accurate reporting of events concerning the regulatory body.
