The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has applauded the Federal Government for classifying telecommunication infrastructure in Nigeria as critical national assets.
Dr. Aminu Maida, the Executive Director/Chief Executive of the NCC, who made the remarks while speaking at the 93rd Telecom Consumer Parliament in Abuja.
He said: “Vandalism of infrastructure and the increasing cost of operation were some of the challenges facing operators and promised that the NCC was addressing these challenges.
“We cannot ignore the impact of current macroeconomic challenges and the rising cost of business in the country which affects the ability of operators to make the necessary investments in the sector.
“The Commission is mindful of this and is actively working with other arms of government and stakeholders to address these issues and ensure the industry’s sustainability.”
He further, said that in spite of these challenge, the adoption of telecommunication services in the country had been growing in the last two decades.
All over the world, there are over 5 billion internet users, with Nigeria alone accounting for 132 million of such users.
“Nigerians spend an average of 4 hours and 20 minutes on social media daily, far above the global average, underscoring how deeply embedded digital interaction is in our lives.
“In 2024, Nigeria’s daily data usage averaged 336 gigabytes per second, marking a 39% increase from the previous year, a clear indication of the data-driven lifestyle many Nigerians lead,” NCC-EVC stated.
He maintained that the transition from basic voice services to 5G-enabled innovations such as smart cities and the Internet of Things had driven significant digital adoption, which Nigeria is leveraging on.
Maida noted that with the increasing usage of telecommunication services, the issue of data usage and billing transparency had emerged as major consumer concerns.
He stated that the NCC had introduced an auditing system to the billing of mobile network operators and internet service providers.
Recall that NCC had launched a Joint Industry Consumer Awareness Campaign to educating users on smarter data management.
