The Nigerian Communications Commission has said that the growth of the country’s digital economy depends on the development of robust, scalable, and secure telecommunications infrastructure.
The Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Dr Aminu Maida, stated this recently in a keynote address at the second edition of the West Africa Telecoms Infrastructure Summit and Exhibition in Lagos.
According to Maida, who was represented by the Head of Next Generation Technology and Standard at the NCC, Victor Adoga, telecommunications infrastructure is critical to economic growth and attracting foreign investment, comparable to other vital sectors such as healthcare, electricity, transportation, and agriculture.
He observed that the path to a digital economy presents opportunities and challenges.
He added, “How we navigate this path will determine the role Nigeria plays in the global digital landscape.”
The NCC boss described telecommunications infrastructure as the backbone of the digital economy, facilitating seamless connectivity and supporting a range of services from basic voice calls to high-speed internet and cloud computing.
“The rollout of 5G networks is a transformative trend in telecom infrastructure. 5G promises significantly higher speeds, lower latency, and greater capacity, facilitating new applications such as IoT (Internet of Things), autonomous vehicles, smart cities, and advanced augmented reality,” he remarked.
Maida listed other emerging trends affecting the deployment of telecom infrastructure across the region, such as the Internet of Things, fibre optic expansion, data localisation and security, regulatory frameworks, cybersecurity, energy efficiency, and sustainability.
He stressed that telecom operators must take strategic actions to stay in business, saying that collaboration among government, industry, and academia could drive innovation and development.
He emphasised that investing in rural telecom infrastructure requires innovative financing models, investment in human capital, a focus on sustainability, integration with AI and machine learning, and the development of smart infrastructure.
According to the NCC boss, making digital literacy a key component of the country’s educational programmes is crucial.
The Chief Executive Officer of WTES Projects Limited, Mr Chidi Ajuzie, who joined virtually from Ethiopia, said there was a deluge of connectivity from submarine cable landings linking Nigeria to Europe and the rest of the world.
According to Ajuzie, while there is no centrally managed national transmission backbone, licensed operators have, over the years, built transmission networks to meet their own needs, often duplicated on most routes.