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Tag: Okoh Aihe

  • Telecommunications: More promises, less services – By Okoh Aihe

    Telecommunications: More promises, less services – By Okoh Aihe

    Once upon a time, there was an Access Gap Map prepared by the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF). The map showed details of remote sites in the country or locations in not too distant environments where Telecommunications services were not available.

    The Nigerian Communications Act (NCA) 2003 recognises these areas or groups in Section 113 as unserved, underserved areas or even underserved groups within a community. So, the Access Gap Map is not a psychedelic creation to demonstrate a pseudo readiness for action, but an ingenious interpretation of telecoms lack in order to simplify the resolution of what may seem an intractable problem.

    Lack is the imaginary bridge between the rich and the poor, between the politicians with fat stomachs and their constituents with pencil figures, between the blessed and the accursed, between the high flyer and the ordinary fella struggling for the crumbs from the master’s table, and, in fact, between the pseudo elite who steals everything from the system by the wave of a biro, and the decent technocrat who watches in amazing horror the craftiness of the sons of men. Lack is not a bridge too far but a grotesque monster in our midst. A troubling reality!

    Telecoms lack, which is what the Universal Service Provision Fund is designed to cure, is not just a Nigerian problem or a problem of developing countries alone.  The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) says telecoms lack is a global problem and takes USPF as a crucial tool, alongside other mechanisms, to achieve universal access to telecommunications.

    In America, it is called Universal Service Fund (USF) which has been described as a system of subsidies and fees designed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to ensure access to telecommunications for all Americans. Whether you want to believe it or not,  there are still places in America where the government is working hard to provide quality telecoms services or even make services available!

    From an early fervent operation at the time of birth, USPF has gone through the mire to seek a reincarnation at the present state of being. Which is why the story of the Access Gap Map became necessary at the beginning of this writeup, to show what was inherited and the intentionality of patriarchs of the system.

    A source at USPF told this writer that the Access Gap Map still remains the major planning tool, giving direction to all their activities. While in 2019, 207 clusters of telecom needs existed, by 2022, the figure has come down to 97, meaning that quite some work is being done. The source informed that the plan of the Fund is to do a study every year to show how gaps are being closed or to even just expose areas where new gaps are being created as a result of telecoms facilities being decommissioned, for whatever reasons.

    It was therefore reassuring when Mr. Yomi Arowosafe, USPF Secretary, said at an even in Lagos last week, that the Fund by 2030, will rollout an additional 1000 base transceiver stations. Expectedly, the stations will be sited in unreached and underserved areas where the people denied telecom services can have access to them. However, his optimism has little accommodation for the series of challenges the Fund has been through recently. It is expected that the intervention agency will have the needed funds to execute its plans and make some people happy by connecting them to the telecommunications national grid.

    The unfortunate reality is that more telecom gaps are popping up everywhere. Even within cities, it is very common to experience very flaky services. The rural areas are worse off. It is more like a return to the days of yore when telecoms services were a rarity and reserved only for the big boys. Nobody prays for a return to that nightmare, not even this government which is showing some level of concerted efforts to deal with the situation.

    Several industry sources confirmed that as of today, there are about 40,000 telecommunication towers carrying about 144,000 transceiver stations across the country. This is a far cry from the 80,000 towers which a former EVC once said were needed to power the telecommunications industry.  For a government that has promised to create a digital economy with the concomitant digital job opportunities, this doesn’t look good at all.

    I am inclined to reason that this government is desirous of making noticeable interventions, just like the guy fighting a roaring fire and is ready to throw anything at it.  The efforts by the USPF is one such intervention. I was also reliably informed that the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) is prospecting a rollout of 2000 base stations in conjunction with some industry stakeholders which include operators. More will be said about this development.

    However, speaking at the USPF programme in Lagos, Dr Bosun Tijani, Minister for Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, informed of the government’s audacious plan to build 7,000 telecommunications towers across the country in order to extend services to more of the country’s population.

    There is so much that this connotes. The development means more money in the environment, more opportunities for connectivity and digital job opportunities that will be unleashed. Before anybody could talk about the government returning to telecom business, Tijani said the project would be done with private participation.

    The minister explained that the project was approved at the Federal Executive Council of February 27, 2025, as part of  a broader strategy to bridge the digital divide and enhance connectivity in rural and underserved areas.

    “The government has decided that if private capital cannot reach these areas, then we must step in and invest public funds in these towers to ensure our people have access,” Tijani said.

    Another leg of Tijani’s plan is a $2bn fibre optics cable aimed at boosting broadband penetration in Nigeria. The minister is a tech geek who has a mind for very big ideas. At some point he had released a blueprint which, he envisaged, could mop up about 3m youth from different parts of the country for tech training.

    While I will want to accept that the present government is doing things to deepen and grow the tech ecosystem, one will want to observe that some of these initiatives should have been undertaken by a well structured USPF except it is considered that the scale of implementation is beyond the intervention agency. So, we start from the scratch, tossing legitimate reason in the air, to build afresh as we always do. But bear in mind that the Ministry of Communications which is pursuing all these big ideas, is not a project implementer but a policy maker.

    The other small matter, and this is from whispers in the industry. Quite a few people are of the opinion, that Minister Tijani is building castles in the air, requesting that time has come for him to climb down to reality and begin a proper implementation of some of his ideas that look quite grandiose.

  • Multichoice and latent broadcast issues – By Okoh Aihe

    Multichoice and latent broadcast issues – By Okoh Aihe

    A simmering broadcast news recently has been the story of Multichoice Nigeria jacking up subscription rates on its DStv and GOtv packages in order to remain in business in Nigeria. Coming on the heels of other similar developments like the 50 percent hike in telecoms tariff, and the stratospheric increase in electricity tariffs last year, Nigerians were outraged, understandably.

    Their cries got to the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) which immediately asked Multichoice to stay action while proper investigations were being carried out. I would probably have said while a determination was being made?

    March 1, 2025, as per the notice sent to subscribers, and like words cast in stone, Multichoice carried out increases between 20 percent and 25 percent. No diplomacy at all to try and sweet-talk FCCPC into a position where nobody would feel humiliated.

    I have always wondered why the tangle wasn’t between Multichoice and the regulator of the broadcast industry, the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC). It would probably have been a straight fight. There may be a reason for this. I have been looking at the broadcast books, like the NBC Act CAP N11, 2004, and the Nigeria Broadcast Code and can’t remember any area where a price determination was ever suggested, except the Code which forbids broadcast operators from engaging in anti-competitive behaviour.

    Could it have been superfluous if the NBC inserted in the Act the opportunity to have a say in the determination of prices and tariffs of products and services in the industry it superintends? Perhaps  this may yet be done through some amendments that could be introduced to the  Act and Code in future.

    Don’t get me wrong at all. I stand for the dictates of the free market where the business owner can fix prices, especially in a challenging economy that is humbling everybody. That is the reason I put my head on the chopping board to advocate for telecoms tariff hike. This should also indicate where I stand on the Multichoice matter. However, things should be done reasonably and in order with respect to the various laws of the land and even constituted authorities. But the case is going through court motions and we should all shut up like the unlearned people we are!

    Once Multichoice initiated the increases, the FCCPC immediately went to the courts to file proceedings against the pay TV service provider and its Chief Executive, John Ugbe, over alleged violations of regulatory directives and obstruction of ongoing inquiry.

    Nobody would blame FCCPC which carries the expectations of the people on its shoulders and should be seen to be taking actions to alleviate their burden at this time. One would pray here that, at some point, the organisation should create some time to look at the atrocities of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) which, in a most shameful way albeit rodomontade on its part, has been trying to share a meagre 6003 megawatts of electricity among over 220 million Nigerians. Afterall, Nigerians feel even more pained by the near absence of electricity supply.

    Following an ex parte motion filed by its lawyers, Multichoice, March 3, 2025, had its prayers answered as it secured an interim injunction restraining FCCPC and its officers from carrying out the threatened prosecution of the organisation pending the hearing and determination of the motion of an interlocutory injunction.

    Oh! Things getting more interesting and getting more muddled up? This is not a review of the court proceedings, as I am the least competent to do so, being unlearned. I also do not want to speculate about the outcome of this case which is as sure as tomorrow happening or as sure as the painful reality that there will be no electricity supply to about three quarters of the population of Nigeria today or even a larger percentage not having food on the table. However, quite a number of things have come up on the side, so loud that they drown reason and common sense.

    One. There is a strong demand that the NBC should be involved in the fixing of subscription prices. This is understandable in the sense that only in 2023, Multichoice raised subscription twice, one in April and the other in November. And then this increase, March 2025. But as it is now, such demand is not possible. The market is deregulated and the operators have a right to operate without threatening inhibitions from the regulator.

    Two. It has been sugggested that the regulator should break the monopoly of Multichoice. It will stop the operator’s arbitrariness concerning subscription. This is more of wishful thinking. Did the NBC deliberately create a monopoly in Multichoice? I don’t think so. Monopoly can grow from market distortions created by an unpredictable economy, including cost of money, unwarranted feeling of entitlement mentality by some licencees,  presumptive feeling of market understanding even when a proper feasibility has not been done, and especially for pay TV, the lack of patience or capacity to build attractive and marketable channels.

    The regulator will have to do something extraordinary and, in fact, go beyond regulation to achieve a different result and meet the yearnings and prayers of pay TV subscribers. That will not happen immediately, not by waving a magic wand, even if this obvious truth can prove painful to some people.

    To be honest, I believe the pay TV sector needs a reset, a recreation of the entire ecosystem in order to deracinate some latent booby traps that will continue to abort efforts invested in the sector. All efforts to create competition in the sector have failed not because there is a monopoly that swallows up competitions but because of some obtuse realities not sensed at the early stages of licensing. Time has come for the regulator to interrogate the process and take some urgent decisions.

    There is something else that has to be done. There is a failing that cannot be swept under the carpet, if you accommodate this cliche. The regulator must quickly revisit the Digital Switchover (DSO) process, ensure thorough re-examination and reactivation of the process and do everything possible to bring it to conclusion. Concluding the process can do a lot of good for the entire broadcast industry. So much monies will change hands, jobs will be created and technology will be upscaled just as there will be more channels to be filled with new contents.

    Competition in the pay TV cannot be legislated, no matter how you may feel about some developments. But it is not too early or late to address a problem that may well last into the future. The onus rests on the NCC to act.

  • How Nigeria can benefit from $11 trillion mobile industry – By Okoh Aihe

    How Nigeria can benefit from $11 trillion mobile industry – By Okoh Aihe

    The mobile industry will post nearly $11 trillion in economic value by 2030 or 8.4 percent of GDP. Last year, 2024, mobile technology and services generated 5.8 percent of global GDP, which is equivalent to $6.5 trillion of economic value. This was part of the highlights of the annual Mobile Economy Report 2025 launched by the GSMA at the Mobile World Congress (MWC25) which was held  in Barcelona last week.

    Much of this will be driven by countries around the world increasingly benefiting from the improvements in productivity and efficiency brought about by the increased take-up of mobile services and digital technologies, including 5G, IOT and AI, the report informed.

    Mats Granryd, Director General of the GSMA sketched the scope of the industry when he said, “Our industry connects nearly six billion people, and powers economies worldwide. And, at MWC, over 50 percent of attendees come from outside the Mobile ecosystem, a clear signal that industries recognise the vast opportunities our networks create. This week will shine a light on those opportunities – from 5G to AI and many more – and their role in helping us to unlock new markets, drive innovation and shape the future of the mobile digital economy.”

    No doubt the market is huge and there is so much money to be made from the industry and ancillary sectors by those who are bold and creative enough to invest their energy, resources and expertise in the components parts of the industry. Those who gathered in Barcelona last week would be interested in how much comes to their organisation, their sector and. above all, their country.

    That is the question every sane person should ask and, without doubt, it won’t be a question for Nigeria but a matter of humility to admit that our country at this time really needs a heavy dose of fund injection from that mind-blowing projection. But we don’t have to wave a magic wand to attract it but a lot of hard work based on the gaps that are noticeable in the research details. So, what is going to be Nigeria’s share of this money?

    Let’s take a look at the report. 5G enjoyed a lot of attention at the Mobile World Congress. The report also focussed attention on 5G as it periscopes trends that will affect the industry well into the future, and also marks it out as the technology that will dominate, being able  to inspire other technologies to instigate growth. According to the report, 58 percent of the world’s population were using mobile internet at the end of 2024, representing 4.7 billion users – a number expected to rise to 5.5 billion users (65%) by 2030.

    It also says that 5G connections worldwide surpassed two billion at the end of 2024 and will account for over half (57%) of total mobile connections in 2030, overtaking 4G adoption by 2028.

    Here is another interesting observation which interpretation may translate to wealth for the industry and even nations. “With 2G and 3G networks accounting for less than 20 percent of mobile connectivity worldwide, legacy networks are being phased out in many regions. By the end of November 2024, a total of 152 networks had been shut down and another 131 networks were planned to be shut down by 2030. Asia Pacific and Europe lead the way, accounting for around 70 percent of networks sunsets to date. Network sunsets enable more efficient spectrum use while also reducing energy consumption,” the report stated.

    But while legacy technologies are facing deserved sunset in the developed world, they remain very strong in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria. For instance, 2G still controls 41.63 percent of network buildout in Nigeria while 3G has .8.60 per cent, and 4G,  47.23 percent. 5G has less than 3 percent.

    The GSMA sees the world moving into the future with 5G, observing that Sub-Saharan Africa will contribute to strong Mobile connectivity growth before 2030. Between 2024 and 2030, operators will spend a whopping $1.5 trillion on their mobile networks.  Nigerian operators will do part of this spending to expand services and aggressively pursue 5G deployment.

    “This trend will not be uniform across all markets; in emerging 5G markets, CapEx will continue to accelerate over the forecast period on 5G network rollout. Overall, 92 percent of operators’ CapEx between 2023 and 2030 will be spent on 5G network deployment,” the report stated.

    There are three 5G operators in Nigeria with a fourth license waiting to be issued at the right price. Rollout efforts of the three operators –  MTN, Mafab and Airtel, could only yield less than 3 percent coverage. But the GSMA report gives Sub-Saharan Africa an interesting 2024 Technology mix which presents the following picture: 2G – 11 percent;  3G – 49 percent; 4G – 38 percent; and 5G – 3 percent.

    However, by 2030, the picture will be progressively different: 2G – 2 percent; 3G – 28 percent; 4G – 52 percent;  and 5G – 17 percent. It is not just a different picture but an entirely different game in terms of network deployment, service rollout and other industry support services that will be provided. Within the period, 2024 to 2030, smartphones will grow from 54 percent to 81 percent.

    This is why the report notes that despite increasing mobile saturation in developed regions, there remains  room for growth in many large, underpenetrated  markets in developing regions. For example, India and Sub-Saharan Africa will account for around half of new mobile subscribers globally over 2022 to 2030.

    Although the GSMA annual Mobile Economy Report 2025 paints Sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria, as a developing market for the mobile industry, a little analysis shows that countries in the region can make so much money only if they can achieve the projections that look very humble. For instance, 17 percent of the 5G market in Sub-Saharan Africa is pegged at 247 million lines.

    It means that the regulator must create the right ecosystem to encourage operators’ activities that can directly and indirectly affect the market to create needed returns to both industry and the public, which includes the government.

    For instance, in 2024, the mobile sector made a substantial contribution to the funding of the  public sector with around $600 billion raised through taxes on the sector. The industry also directly created 24 million jobs while supporting another 16 million, bringing it to a total of 40 million. It is the responsibility of the regulator, the Nigerian  Communications Commission (NCC), to ensure that Nigerian operators are spruced up to enable them. contribute their share of these global projections.

    Through proper regulation and other interventions, there is much benefit that can accrue to the nation from the mobile industry. The report also harped on creative regulatory processes. My humble suggestion is for the regulator to encourage operators to offer good services, make more money and be able to support the government through tax remittances and other channels. The regulator must work hard to give Nigeria a decent share of that $30 trillion by 2030.

  • A mobile industry in need of help – By Okoh Aihe

    A mobile industry in need of help – By Okoh Aihe

    As the global community gathers at the Mobile World Congress (MWC25) in Barcelona, from March 3 – 6,  2025, with the theme: Converge. Connect. Create, it will be interesting to find out how well the mobile industry is doing at home, I mean in Nigeria, and whether we are close to having any serious relationship with those three generic words with broad meanings and implications.

    Activities in Barcelona will feature huge exhibitions and 48 keynote speakers at the Fira Grand Via, venue of the Congress, including some other major activities like the Ministerial Programme, Partner Event and Professional Training Sessions. It is always a big opportunity for big deals, business breakthroughs and tech catch-up.

    I am unable to confirm the attendance of the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) but it will be a big opportunity to be missed if Nigerian officials were not there for whatever reason. As I railed last year when I found out we did not have the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) at the National Association of Broadcasters Conference in Las Vegas, I want to reiterate here that industry shows that serve as barometers for measuring tech advancement should be a priority to regulators no matter the state of the economy.

    Anyway, there will be time to look at the activities at the Mobile World Congress but I think the focus at the moment should be to take a look at some of the developments in the nation’s mobile industry. Quite a lot of developments, some not too interesting but overall the progress being made is worth noticing.

    For most of last week, the trending story was the collapse of the 9MOBILE network which threw a number of subscribers into confusion without explanations from any quarters. Some could swear on the graves of their forebears that the network was down and out and actually just vented frustrations on why a thing like that should happen without a word from the operator or regulator. But was there a network outage?

    Nothing seems to be beyond 9MOBILE as the glory days of the operator seem to be impaired. Even an NCC source told this writer that 9MOBILE was going through a very difficult situation. The figures are not even giving the organisation a good hiding. From about 23m lines in 2016, the subscriber base has plunged to as low as 3.3m which the NCC has recorded on the telecoms dashboard. This is only about 2.15 percent share of the market. But was there a network outage?

    A 9MOBILE source told this writer that there was indeed an outage last week that has since been fixed, the proof being that the source was calling on a 9MOBILE number. There was the acknowledgment however, that the operator was going through a rough patch which was noticed by the critical stakeholders – regulator, operators and subscribers. Ownership has changed hands severally and there were some needless controversies in the past. There was the promise that 9MOBILE was clawing its way back and that it would soon be standing to offer good services and take a respectable place in the industry.

    An NCC source was not overtly optimistic but acknowledged that the new owners of the service provider seems to be making some investments but since there was no major fund injected over a long period of time, leaving the network really degraded, subscribers may have to accommodate the kind of glitch they witnessed last week. The source made the observation that there are some activities at 9MOBILE  as the owners, LH Telecommunications Ltd, are demonstrating a seriousness to breathe life into the challenged operator. But the turnaround, the source warned, will not happen in a flash.

    There was another source of good news however, which may bring a new lease of life to the various mobile networks which don’t seem to be doing well in terms of quality service provisioning. Without exception and in most locations, calls cannot be sustained without a drop, and internet speed can be very frustrating. The regulator is aware of the frustrations as it says that it will have to rely on quality of experience by subscribers as a measurement tool, plus other metrics to determine how well operators are doing.

    However, the NCC source was optimistic that network challenges may soon be over as it noted that some operators are investing heavily in network expansion, and also to improve the quality of services being provided. In the past, operators had complained that Forex volatility and other economic pressures have made it impossible for them to do needed investment on their operations. They agitated for a tariff increase which they got recently. Things may not have turned the corner yet but their efforts to improve and expand their services have been noticed by the regulator. It is good news for the industry. It is even better news for the subscribers who may soon begin to get the real worth for money spent on telecommunications services.

    An industry source was not so charitable or lavish with praises and expectations. The source is of the opinion that time has come for the regulator to engage in creative regulation in order to activate the kind of industry that will meet the needs and expectations of the subscribers. The source urged the regulator to take a dispassionate and professional look at the operations of both 9MOBILE and NTEL, operated by NATCOM Development and Investment Limited (NatCom), and take a decision that will enable their bouquet of licenses to be put to better use, according to the source, in order to deepen the competition in the telecommunications industry.

    But there is competition already in the industry, I reminded my source. No, not the kind of competition that was introduced in 2001, or even thereafter. Some have since fallen on the wayside, while, of the three operators that are still in competition, one is in clear lead, creating a distance that is too discomforting to be acceptable. The regulator needs to be very creative in dealing with the situation.

    When we were in primary school, we told a lot of stories as small children where the tortoise would usually enjoy an unhealthy advantage with its crafty ingenuity. At that time, we were told of the wisdom in not putting all your eggs in one basket. I do not want to engage in the laborious enterprise of linking the nation’s telecom industry to the egg story. But from all indications, the regulator can do better. And that is why events like the Mobile World Congress are important as they provide channels for regulators to learn from each other in peer review relationships. It is only then the regulator can cause the industry to really Converge. Connect. Create.

    Ogayoloo, a hit single

    I am told Ogayoloo, in lgala language, is a shout of Hallelujah or even plain and pure exclamation of, and excitement in appreciation of some benevolence received. But at a Healing and Deliverance Crusade in Idah, Kogi State, a few weeks ago, Dr Pastor Pastor Paul Enenche, Senior Pastor of Dunamis International Gospel Centre, got such a spontaneous creative burst and Divine inspiration that Ogayoloo, became an energetically danceable music which literally dropped. See the beauty of good music – keep the lyrics simple, preferably in local language with a resonating refrain. Then you have a monster hit in your hands. I do not understand Igala but as I watched the Crusade that night, I could see the vibrating connection between the local folks and the Almighty God through the Crusade platform provided by Dunamis, and the tears came to my eyes. Ogayoloo is a hit single that plays with freshness all the time and provokes righteous gyration. I recommend it without reservations.

  • And Prof Adaba joins the conference in heaven – By Okoh Aihe

    And Prof Adaba joins the conference in heaven – By Okoh Aihe

    One by one, the elders are taking a leave of us, perhaps tired of this fetid  putrescence of a noxious earthly abode, to attend a big conference which seems to be happening in heaven, according to a senior colleague with an acerbic sense of humour. The conference is for good people only, he intoned.

    Just take a count and you can hardly disagree with him. The other day, February 14, 2025, it was Chief Ayo Adebanjo that took a deserved exit. Far beyond Afenifere leadership, he had a large heart for this great nation, fighting for the kind of leadership that would improve the quality of governance and the standard of living of the people. He was 96. Chief Adebanjo was a good man, a patriot without reservations and apologies, and with very stubborn faith in his beliefs.

    Three days later, Monday, February 17, 2025, Chief Edwin Kiagbodo Clark, a prominent son of the South-South and tormentor-in-chief to bad leaders – past and present, including those in the disreputable world of once upon a leader, a political activist with an elevated voice to flagellate without restraints, joined his co-fighter in the final place of rest where they would already have received the comforting imprimatur of the Creator. On the side of the poor and the oppressed, EK Clark, as he was fondly called, was prepared to stake his life any day. But not any more.

    It is painful that both men have departed at a time the country is in dire need of the restraining voice of the elders, audacious men whose fear of death for speaking truth to power is minimised. The stock of good men is depleting fast and replacement is even leaner.

    Saturday, February 22, 2025, it was the turn of Prof Tom Adaba to join the departing team and have a share of glory which only good men deserve. He was 84. From all indications, he was a much junior edition of the nonagenarians except that he wasn’t a politician, not even an activist. He had a different life. Adaba was a broadcaster, a pioneer regulator, and much later, an academic. This explains why my friend says he will serve as secretary to that conference holding in chimerical heavenly abode.

    Prof Adaba was living a quiet life as an NTA Director before being appointed the pioneer Director General (DG) of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), which was created by Decree 38 of August 24, 1992, now an act of Parliament, National Broadcasting Commission Act CAP N11, 2004. The Decree effectively deregulated the broadcast industry, to allow the participation of private investors, at a time such practice was strange to the industry and government stations held sway, where the DGs of the broadcast sector – NTA and Radio Nigeria, were like small gods breathing human air.

    Not so many people thought broadcast deregulation would work. The industry held it in contempt. The government had its doubt although the selfish reason for such deregulation may not have too be stated here. And the people had never heard anything like that. Adaba had his job cut out for him – win the people, win the industry and earn respect from government.

    Prof Adaba went about his job with the precision of a surgeon and the boldness of a lion, probably irritating some forces along the way. He had the full backing of pioneer Board Chairman, ace journalist and publisher, Chief Peter Enahoro, who died in London on April 24, 2023, at the age of 88.

    The first major test was to recruit the right personnel who would understand the word, deregulation, and not be afraid to carry out the responsibilities of a regulator. He passed this test with flying colours as he got people from different backgrounds and professions. They include: Bright Igbako – Secretary to the Commission, Mac O Emakpore – Director, Monitoring, Eddie Amana – Director, Engineering, Biodun Ogunshote – Director, Finance, Lac Okpala – Director, Administration, Dr Ronke Ogunmake – Director, Research, and Olalekan Ajia – Head, Public Affairs.

    It was a strong team which equally had secondary layers of very strong peronnel around them. Their pioneer office was at the Red Bricks Building, Tafawa Balewa Square, Race Course, Lagos. The game was about to start, how far could the Regulator go? That was a question which only Prof Adaba could answer.

    Apart from staff recruitment, Adaba’s capacity on the job was demonstrated by the early broadcasters and broadcast channels that were licensed for operation. Chief among them is Raypower from the stable of Daar Communicarions and  AIT that would follow later. Others are Clapper Board TV, DBN, DITV from Desmims Broadcast Nigeria, Murhi Television, Channels, Rhythm FM, followed by Silverbird Television, M-NET which was eventually subsumed in Multichoice, and ABG, among others. All of a sudden, Nigeria had a number of news and entertainment channels, including international TV channels, broadcasting via satellite into the country.

    It was a golden dawn for broadcasting and, almost instantaneously, Adaba’s rating soared, rocketing to the A-list at occasions. Previous history may have prepared Adaba for the NBC challenge.

    Writing in the book, The Handkerchief, The Story of High Chief Raymond Anthony Aleogho Dokpesi, the authors wrote of Adaba: A former Director at the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Adaba had the added benefit of leading the African Councill for Communication and Education (ACCE) based in Nairobi, Kenya, from 1976 to 1980. He would eventually confess that in Nairobi, he saw the problems of broadcasting in Africa and longed for an opportunity to make direct interventions. President Babangida gave Adaba that opportunity as the pioneer head at the NBC and he seized it with both hands.

    It is difficult to explain to much younger Nigerians that the broadcast sector was not always this vibrant and active even if not buoyant. The credit goes to Adaba and the NBC for which he laid a very solid foundation. The NBC structure has proved ressilient, refusing to go down in spite of constant abuse by external powers in a wilful display of regulatory capture.

    Reflecting on those early days of the Commission, Emakpore said: “The team was loaded and we had a good house. We had experienced people already, nobody had less than 25 years TV experience. We were professional in everything we did and didn’t punish anybody unjustly.”

    His other colleagues have also been speaking about him. “The truth is that Adaba was a good material as the pioneer head of the NBC at a time the industry was sceptical about the regulator. He was one of the best in broadcasting. He knew how to bring workers together. A disciplinarian who also knew how to make his workers happy by showing love,” Igbako recalled.

    Ajia, who was the image maker at the time, adds his voice: “You had a leader who could push you to the limit. He was a hard task master who also led with love. He would come to your house with his wife to share great moments with his workers.”

    Under Adaba and even much later, the NBC was a family. The people worked as one and were therefore able to overcome the challenges of a new regulator that was given a very strange assignment. They had immediate results that served as a testament to the beauty of a deregulated broadcast industry with the participation of private investors.

    “We knew there was a future in the industry. We also knew the industry needed a regulator. Dr Adaba provided the leadership needed at the time,” a former worker told this writer.

    But things have changed at NBC. The centre doesn’t seem to be able to hold any more. Some of the pioneer staff observed that the people seem to be trying but there is too much interference; the place has become a shadow of itself.

    This is not the kind of story that should make Adaba happy or feel good. It must be one painful dot that he couldn’t do anything about, I mean professionally, just to watch your legacy wither. Because I also know that the system he served didn’t do him well since 1999 when he left office. We had an encounter once where I raised an issue. His reaction was spontaneously explosive, and the depth of bitterness cut my heart. Always, the system wants to make good people feel bad about their past and genuine commitment and contributions to the nation.

    Don’t misunderstand me. Prof Adaba never lost his sense of humour, his gait or that regal assurance of a leader even when, much later in life, he needed adscititious support for ambulation. Adaba was a happy man and his load of joy was too much for every shred of bitterness in him.

    I am told by his former colleagues that his memory would be served best if this government could fix the failings at the NBC and restore the agency back to performance. The nation needs a strong regulatory agency, especially for the challenges ahead, including the digital switchover whose implementation seems to be on ice for no reasonable explanation, they observed.

    Yes, the memory of Prof Adaba would appreciate a regeneration of the NBC where he did a damn good job for which the nation would always hold him in love.

    Prof Adaba is survived by his lovely wife, Lady Aaze Theresa Adaba and eight lovey children namely: Margaret Ozuhu Adaba Soyemi, Elizabeth Onyinoyi Adaba Gomwalk, Oyiza Grace Adaba Okereke, Onimisi Jude Adaba, Inya Josephine Adaba Ode, Inda Emmanuel Adaba, John Adeiza Adaba Salami and Esther Onyioza Araga.

    May his memory always be a blessing.

  • The world looks at the good side of AI – By Okoh Aihe

    The world looks at the good side of AI – By Okoh Aihe

    It was good that Nigeria’s voice was heard at the AI Summit in Paris, France, even if peripherally. It was heard, nothing can subtract from that. Receiving the Google Chief Executive Officer, Sundar Pichai,  who led a team to visit him, President Bola Ahmed TInubu, used the opportunity to tell  the world that Nigeria was ready to provide the right environment for the advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AI).

    The collaboration with Google and hopefully, many other big tech players, will seek to position Nigeria as a prominent technology and innovation hub, leveraging AI, cloud computing and digital infrastructure to economic growth and enhance global competitiveness.

    “The ongoing conversations focus on key initiatives such as expanding digital infrastructure in Nigeria, equipping the workforce with essential digital skills for the future, promoting AI-driven research and innovation, encouraging greater cloud adoption across various industries, and establishing Nigeria as a key player in the global digital economy,” Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President (Information & Strategy) said in a statement after the meeting.

    Dr Bosu Tijani, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, who was at the Google meeting with the President, declared from the AI Action Summit, that “Artificial Intelligence is an opportunity for humanity to be better, and we cannot afford to take our eyes off it.”

    The AI Action Summit was hosted by President Emmanuel Macron who also invited Prime Minister Shri. Narendra Modi of India to Co-Chair the programme with him. The Summit was attended by world leaders, including Vice President JD Vance of the United States and Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing who was special envoy of Chinese President, Xi Jinping, and global tech tycoon who saw the Summit as a veritable opportunity to discuss advancement in AI or to strike new deals

    Before the France Summit, there was a freak development from China which rocked the AI world. Like  a little rodent sent to pass flatulence at a gathering of the nobles, a little known Chinese company, DeepSeek, from Chinese hedge fund, High-Flyer, announced it has built an AI model DeepSeek-R1 with less than $6m, which is a little sandwich money when compared to $100m Open GPT-4.

    The result was instantaneous. Shares of big US tech companies like NVIDIA plummeted on the stock market but rebounded when it was found out a few days later that DeepSeek was reluctant in providing the right answers to questions concerning the Chinese Government.  Alas! It has been programmed to hide some truth.

    The world leaders and tech behemoths that gathered in France from February 10 – 11, 2025, didn’t talk about that development. Although the gathering was to enable them to share ideas, it was quite obvious that this new variant of technology monster was about competition, about country and about business to profit the people. It was also about prestige. Like the space race in the 60s – Soviet Union had sent Sputnik into space on October 4, 1957, America must land a man in the moon before end of the decade (between 1960-1970) because no other country must be allowed to control space technology (July 20, 1969, America landed a man on the moon); like 5G technology which President Donald Trump, in his first term in office, said was too important for America to leave to any other country to control, AI is a tech race among the big nations as seen in France and it was salutary that Nigeria stood to be listed.

    Beautiful speeches were delivered in Paris but the subtle threat wasn’t too far away to detect. So many countries are building their strength around technology, especially AI, where they want to play a lead role or position to attract generous investment.

    Speaking to his high profile guests, Macron boasted that “France is back in the AI race.” His boast was boosted by a whopping €109bn which private investors are putting on  AI in the next few years. Macron also launched Current AI with an initial $400m investment from the French government, supported by philanthropists and industry partners.

    Macron was on a swing when he baited President Trump without mentioning his name, “I have a good friend on the other side of the ocean saying ‘drill, baby, drill.’ Here, there is no need to drill. It’s plug, baby, plug,” as he made allusions to Trump’s push for America to drill more oil as he resumed a new term in office with unrestrained gusto.

    President Trump had more than a worthy representative in Vice President, JD Vance, who stated the new government’s position on AI without leaving anything to doubt. No emotions, no equivocations, just cut straight even if that leaves some people very uncomfortable. This new government doesn’t seem to make other people happy except Americans.

    There had been previous conferences – the UK AI Safety Summit, November 1-2, 2023, Seoul Summit, May 21-22, 2024, and the European Union AI Act which came into force on August 1, 2024; they all placed emphasis on AI safety and development.

    After thanking Macron for a good dinner the previous evening, Vance got down to business. “I’m not here this morning to talk about AI safety, which was the title of the conference a couple of years ago. I’m here to talk about AI opportunity,” he declared.

    He explained that the Trump administration believes that AI will have countless, revolutionary applications in economic innovation, job creation, national security, health care, free expression, and beyond. And to restrict its development now would not only unfairly benefit incumbents in the space, it would mean paralyzing one of the most promising technologies we have seen in generations.

    Vance proceeded to enunciate America’s position on AI as follows:

    Number one, this administration will ensure that American AI technology continues to be the gold standard worldwide and we are the partner of choice for others — foreign countries and certainly businesses — as they expand their own use of AI.

    Number two, we believe that excessive regulation of the AI sector could kill a transformative industry just as it’s taking off, and we’ll make every effort to encourage pro-growth AI policies. And I’d like to see that deregulatory flavor making its way into a lot of the conversations in this conference.

    Number three, we feel strongly that AI must remain free from ideological bias, and that American AI will not be co-opted into a tool for authoritarian censorship.

    And finally, number four, the Trump Administration will maintain a pro-worker growth path for AI so it can be a potent tool for job creation in the United States.

    He capped his presentation by saying that of the $700bn that is estimated to be invested in AI by 2028, over half of that money should be invested in the United States of America, which has the technology, a conducive regulatory environment and market to soak up such investment.

    Like the Space race, semiconductors and 5G, the AI race started long ago and countries are digging in for advantaged positions and opportunities.

    With a population of over 1.4bn people, India enjoys advantage even in market size and quite a few heads will turn their direction in terms of investment. Prime Minister Modi told the Summit: “We are developing AI applications for public good. We have one of the world’s largest AI talent pools. India is building its own Large Language Model considering our diversity. We also have a unique public-private partnership model for pooling resources like compute power. It is made available to start-ups and researchers at an affordable cost. And, India is ready to share its experience and expertise to ensure that the AI future is for Good, and for All.”

    Like India, China is ready to share her AI experience with the global community, promote development, safeguard security, and share achievements in the field of AI, with Jinping’s Special Envoy to the Summit, Guoqing, extending invitation to community developers around the world to attend the 2025 Global Developer Conference, holding in Shanghai from February 21-23.

    Quite a few people rued the missed opportunity to address AI safety at the Paris,   Summit as focus was more on opportunities and benefits to humanity. From the presentations, there is no doubt that nations are sprucing up to attract the multibillion dollars that is projected as investment in the AI sector in the coming years.

    To return to where we started, it is good news that Nigeria is positioning to serve as an AI hub in Africa. But first, we must banish all the demons that drive away investment from our clime, and they are too numerous to behold.

    Really, I agree with Modi when he said, “We are at the dawn of the AI age that will shape the course of humanity. Some people worry about machines becoming superior in intelligence to humans. But, no one holds the key to our collective future and shared destiny other than us humans.”

  • Mr President, NCC Board too important to be ignored – By Okoh Aihe

    Mr President, NCC Board too important to be ignored – By Okoh Aihe

    The other day the government announcement the board appointments of forty-two government agencies and parastatals. Very good news it was for me, hoping that at last, my silent and open prayers must have been answered. I nearly reached for a magnifying glass incase my reading glasses were getting too weak to enable me read the press statement with understanding; alas, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) wasn’t on the list.

    “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appointed board chairpersons for 42 federal organisations and a secretary to the board of the Civil Defence, Immigration, and Prisons Services.

    “The President has also appointed a new managing director for the Nigerian Railway Corporation and a director general for the National Board for Technology Incubation (NBTI).

    “President Tinubu directs the board chairpersons not to interfere with the management of the organisations, emphasising that their positions are not executive,” the statement signed by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President (Information & Strategy), said in part. This was January 23, 2025.

    Ironically, I wasn’t too disappointed. The President of any country is a very busy person. For the Nigerian President, the basket of worries is heavier because there are too many things he has to sort – poverty in the land, the purity of data from the National Bureau of Statistics about the rightness and wrongness of data – whether headline inflation is 34 percent and food inflation is 40 percent; insecurity and daily carnage on our roads, the inability of previous administrations to communicate effectively that Nigeria doesn’t really have enough money to provide all the infrastructure, including roads, and that it must work through Public Private Partnership (PPP) to deliver some services,  that the energy sector remains a shame and can really not cater for the development needs of the people, and that life expectations in Nigeria will remain a mirage except all parties are able to come to the reality that the nation must move ahead on a clean slate without bitterness, mistrust and festering acrimonies. There are other sundry issues too numerous and troubling to be listed.

    The Nigerian President has too many things to think about and board appointments, though an issue for the loyalists, may not be so compulsive as to serve as distraction or inordinate concern.

    However, I want to reiterate my appeal that President Tinubu should appoint a Board for the NCC as a matter of urgency in order to put developmental expectations in the telecommunications sector on a seeming virtual accelerator. As we say in this part of the world, to move the industry forward but moving the industry forward might be too slow to deliver on the promises by this government which has a psychedelic commitment to a digital economy.

    The Nigerian Communications Act 2003 does not envisage any day NCC will not have a Board, as it states very clearly that “the President shall ensure at all times there are a minimum of 6 serving Commissioners on the Board at any and all times, made up of – the Chief Executive, 2 Executive Commissioners and three non-executive Commissioners.

    A fully composed Board, according to the Act, should consist of 9 Commissioners which include:  a chairman, a chief executive who shall also be the Executive Vce Chairman, 2 Executive Commissioners, and 5 non-executive Commissioners, who shall be appointed by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    Those who are advocating for the Board to be constituted, including this writer, harbour the opinion that the diversity of background, experience and knowledge of the members may encourage fresh thinking, hopes, aspirations and fresh drive to the activities and programme implementation at the NCC.

    Their expectations are anchored on a provision of the Act which states as follows: Commissioners shall be persons of recognised standing, qualification and experience in one or more of the following fields – finance or accounting; law; consumer affairs; telecommunications engineering; information technology; engineering generally; economics; and Public Administration.

    The dream of having all these professionals in one board can be too tantalising to be real but it has happened before and can still happen again if the President picks well irrespective of party affiliations. Unfortunately, these professionals can quickly morph into the garb of politicians and begin a ruination of the system. That is what happened under the last administration which inflicted so extensive a damage on the Commission from which it is still struggling to recover.

    But the President, in the statement, warned the newly appointed chairpersons and board members not to interfere with the management of the organisations. Same should be said of the NCC when the Board is constituted because of antecedents that are too ugly to always recall.

    But some voices at the NCC are not in a hurry to forget yesterday. A particular source told this writer, “We pray not to have a transactional Board. The last Board was horrible. We want a chairman with capacity.”

    All the same, a Board is needed to help the policy thrust of the Commission and facilitate good decision making. A Board that can take the Commission to the next level and bring various experiences to bear on its operations, according to another source.

    At the moment, there are only three Commissioners, one of which is the Executive Vice Chairman ((EVC), and two Executive Commissioners, all from a part of the country, which strains a provision of the Act that states clearly that they must be drawn from the 6 geo-political zones of Nigeria subject to confirmation by the Senate.

    I do not have the boldness to ever insinuate that the NCC is running in breach of the Act. My only appeal is that the President should constitute the Board and remove the Commission from a needless cul-de-sac and avoidable hermetic strictures.

  • Telecom tariffs – the rot cuts deeper – By Okoh Aihe

    Telecom tariffs – the rot cuts deeper – By Okoh Aihe

    The responses to the tariff adjustment for telecom operators on January 20, 2025, by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), clearly demonstrate that Nigerians are not a conquered people yet. That, in spite of how the socio-economic conditions have impacted them harshly to endure subhuman living, they can still find their voices from the ruins of such chaotic existence. Thank God for democracy no matter how very obtuse.

    The operators wanted a hundred percent hike. The regulator granted 50 percent. The subscribers see the development as an overkill, one load too many. The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) is rallying its members for a nationwide protest. The National Civil Society Council of Nigeria (NCSCN) has asked the NLC to reconsider its position because of industry facts released to them by the regulator. Quite a number of people are speaking on the subject with quite a sizeable number pleading emotions as their very strong point.

    “The Leadership of NCSCN, having clearly conducted a forensic analysis of the facts and figures available on this burning national issue, sincerely sympathises with the NCC in the dilemma they find themselves, cut between a Nigerian People that have been pushed into the walls owing to biting economic hardship, and Telecom Service Providers whose businesses are equally endangered as a result of same inflationary factors and unfavourable environmental conditions,” the organisation stated.

    Quite a flurry of frenetic activities, not because of the increase in the prices of foodstuff or the hike in electricity tariffs, now denominated in bands, or the cost of petrol or diesel, but telecoms. They say the operators don’t want us to be able to communicate any more.

    As I write this material on Monday night, words came in that the Nigerian Government just had a high profile meeting with NLC, prompting the latter to backpedal on proposed protest. Some decisions had also been reached on the way forward. The meeting was at the instance of the Government.

    “So, the summary of it is that Labour and the Nigerian Labour Congress specifically and the delegation of the federal government have set up a committee of five each. We are going to meet here continuously for the next two weeks. And at the end of the second week, we will now come up with a recommendation that we will give to the government and the organised Labour for final consideration,” a government statement said.

    In the ensuing bedlam, the regulator quietly released the latest industry statistics on the Commission’s website. The figures are quite revealing and should trouble everyone who wants to continue to use telecom services in an industry that should by now have earned maturity status. The site was last updated on January 30, 2025.

    The statistics reveal some discomforting market positions and movements and, in plain summary, an industry in a clear state of hibernation needing serious motion to untangle it from that freeze. Since the Govenment and Labour will be meeting for the next two weeks on a regulatory decision by the NCC, I find it relevant that the statistics are served here with some annotations.

    By December 2024, total active lines stood at 164,926,599 while the teledensity is 70.08 on a projected population of 216m after rebasing from a previous figure of 150m.

    The stats per operator are as follows: Airtel – 56,619,381 (34.39%), 9MOBILE – 3,283,270 (1.99%), Globacom – 20,139,951 (12.23%), and MTN – 84,607,831 (51.39).

    Look at the figures closely. 9MOBILE that had over 23m in 2015 has nearly disappeared from the industry radar, thus complicating the activities and operations of the other operators. The organisation is not dreaming expansion at this time but it’s unable to even maintain its network infrastructure. It is a devastating minus for an industry that should be building for the future.

    Globacom is doing over 20m lines after it lost a significant number recently from an action by the NCC. This writer is aware that the organisation is clawing its way back. Afterall, it has a network might, including an undersea cable from Europe, so it stands in a good position to withstand every vicissitude. The place of Globacom retains a significant value in the industry.

    From the stats, MTN maintains a clear lead with Airtel running a distant second. The interesting thing is that both of them are running at a loss as stated in their annual reports previously. My concern then is, if the big players suffer losses, what happens to the smaller operators and the ones offering ancillary services, including tower operators?

    The telecoms backbone consists of the follllowing: 41.59% of 2G, 8.75% of 3G, 4G at 47.20%, and 5G, for which two operators – MTN and Mafab – paid $273.6m each in 2022, before Airtel paid another $316.7m in 2023, has hardly added much to the telecoms echo system. Rollout has been slow because of paucity of investment funds perhaps, and uptake is even slower.

    Here are my observations. There is hardly a growth on the telecommunications network, instead there is considerable shrinkage. It means that transition to a robust digital economy based on state-of-the-art telecom facility rollout, will remain a mirage. There must be considerable efforts to grow the 4G network while it must be stated here that there are some operations that only 5G can enable. But 5G rollout is cost intensive and operators who are struggling to return to profit may not be in such  financial health to engage in service expansion or new facility rollout.

    Before a concluding analysis, some industry facts may be necessary here for further appreciation of the unfolding situation, and I state only two. One. Operational costs for telecommunication operators have gone up by over 300% in most cases. Given microeconomic challenges, and the cost of FX, they have it tough to purchase new equipment and upgrade their services. Two. Adjustments will remain within the tariff bands outlined in the 2013 NCC Cost Study and must comply with the recently issued NCC Guidance on Tariffs Simplification (2024).

    What is the picture arising from the foregoing? Let me make the following observations. The industry is not in a good place and may not be able to power the sort of digital economy that the present administration is pushing to build. Nearly all the facilities are subpar designed only for voice communication. The NCC Cost Study on which the tariff adjustment was made was done in 2013. Since then things have really gone downhill, taking a fall that has been difficult to break. In 2013, inflation was 8.50%, the Naira was 160 to a US Dollar, and a litre of diesel cost about N165. Today, inflation stands at 34%, the US Dollar has climbed up to N1600 while a litre of diesel sells for N1200. The metrics are frightening.

    The Committee has to carefully consider everything in the basket, the good, the bad and the very depressing. The members have a cardinal responsibility to build hope where hope is in serious deficit. It is a choice between the past and the future, between reality and emotions, while also taking into consideration that a regulatory decision has been taken which the government must handle with tact in order to retain confidence in the sector and not break the spine of the regulator as was done under the last administration.

    If that decision suffers a setback, potential investors will think more than twice before considering Nigeria for future investments. While I make an appeal that emotions be confined to where they belong, I want to point out that how we treat investors in Nigeria today may decide the transformational development of the country in the future. No country ever grows alone no matter the depth of patriotism.

  • So, what happens to SkillUp Imo now? – By Okoh Aihe

    So, what happens to SkillUp Imo now? – By Okoh Aihe

    Please, don’t let the above question trouble you. It’s my response to the SkillUp Imo documentary which I watched recently. It was so totally unexpected but so delightfully nourishing at the end that I couldn’t have asked for anything better to see on television that very day. AIT gave me the full dose of SkillUp Imo Impact Story that morning for which I remain grateful.

    I was privy to its birth and have also done regular checkups on the project to measure its progress or should I say growth? SkillUp Imo is a cardinal capacity building programme designed by the Imo State Government to tackle youth unemployment and restiveness by exposing beneficiaries to well structured training on modern technology, which is executed in cohorts. Take them off the streets and wean them on the ever expanding but rich and increasingly and infinitely relevant diet of technology.

    So much space within which to move but oftentimes, reason, meaning and relevance are lost within the space and a good programme can easily morph into a political ballyhoo.

    The Governor of Imo State, Hope Uzodinma, set the limits of what would turn out to be broad expectations. “The aim of the SkillUp Imo Project is to upskill, to re-skill and train 300, 000 Imo youths to acquire the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) skill set needed to align and fit into the evolving digital world,” his voice rang out in a hall filled to capacity.

    Pioneer Commissioner of the Ministry of Digital Economy and e-Government, Dr Chimezie Amadi, who was equally as enthusiastic, said the whole idea spins from the governor’s foundational belief in the Imo Digital Agenda – IDEA 2022-2026, which is tasked with spearheading digital transformation and redefining governance in Imo State.

    But transformation would have to start with the people, especially the young ones who shouldn’t waste their prime of creativity and genius when given the right training or skill set, that is, if the governor is kind enough to lend us his phrase.

    This was 2022, and above expectations are expected to be met by 2026. Is the State close to meeting the target? Without a tint of doubt, I want to say they are not close to meeting the target at all. But a seed has been sowed and it is the germination of that seed and gradual growth that prompted my opening question: so, what happens to SkillUp Imo programme now?

    The documentary and other available documents clearly put the records out there. After the successful completion of Cohort 1 and 2, about 40,000 youths have been trained in areas such as Cybersecurity, Artificial Intelligence, Mobile App Development, Introduction to Computer, Phone Repairs, CCTV, LAN, Graphics, UIUX, Project Management, Software Development, Blockchain, Fibre Networking and Spicing, Fintech, Entrepreneurship and Digital Marketing.

    There are other details. Out of these numbers, 47 percent are males, 53 percent female while 2 percent of them are people living with disability.

    Within the period, SkillUp Imo has developed strategic partnerships with local and international technology giants, such as CISCO, Microsoft (via wootlab Foundation), and the Memoranda of Understanding signed with the European DIGITAL SME Alliance. The Alliance opens several windows of opportunities for SkillUp Imo graduates.

    The documentary informs that a remarkable percentage of the SkillUp Imo graduates have been connected to high paying job opportunities within and outside the state. Over  500 alumni have secured remote gigs on remote platforms like the ministry’s own freelance platform – Technosphere, while some others are pursuing sustainable careers with companies like Konga, Adminting, Silicon Valley, Zinox, and 421 Films, among others.

    The documentary brims with testimonies of young people whose lives have been impacted by the SkillUp Imo initiative, as they have become natural ambassadors, flying the flag of a programme they least expected to change their stories forever. There is no need to talk of the job situation in Nigeria which is dire, but quite a number of them say they are gainfully employed now and have a means of livelihood which opens them up to the opportunities in the global technology ecosystem.

    Some employers attest to the quality of graduates of the programme while appealing for its sustainability.

    A beneficiary of the programme, Precious Ikoku testified in the following manner: “SkillUp Imo exposed me to a lot of opportunities. First, I got to meet a lot of amazing people, creatives that are interested in video editing. I am still in touch with them. They give me jobs for editing. I edit videos for them and they pay me,” she said excitedly.

    While for Jim Temple, “My experience with SkillUp Imo is that it really had a positive impact on me. I made some connections in which Wakanow.com Ltd was one of them. I had a series of interviews with so many companies before I landed the one with Wakanow.”

    “We are excited about the partnership between Microsoft and SkillUp Imo. We have seen tremendous impact especially with the participation of the youths,” said Ola Tominwa of Microsoft.

    There is no doubt that Imo State is building a coalition of relationships that can secure its future and achieve that “unique and enviable status of an emerging tech talent hub of Nigeria,” which Amadi dreams about.

    So, what happens to the SkillUp Imo programme? “The SkillUp Imo Project represents a visionary initiative that empowers citizens, fosters innovation, and positions Imo as a key player in the global economy,” Amadi says.

    More words, you may want to say, to decorate a project that has achieved resounding acclamation, but what future lies ahead? What are the sustainability plans?

    I remain fascinated by that documentary. I am happy for the young men and women who now have their future within their grasp as they tap into the digital world with limitless opportunities. But I also know that ideas and projects can easily take a journey to the graveyards, destroyed by whimsical cravings of politicians who care only about their tenure and less about the people.

    From that documentary, one could see an enthusiasm about the SkillUp Imo Project that Governor Uzodinma should sustain. He should solicit more private sector participation and also the active involvement and sustained engagement with international technology organisations and agencies which are more disposed to training and subsequent engagement of international talents from tech hubs even in the developing countries.

    Technology unites the world. The language is almost synchronous, and is blind to colour and race. Those who acquire it have a password to happenings in the global technology ecosystem. This should encourage the government of Imo State to elevate SkillUp Imo beyond the dirty realm of politics, to an idea whose time has not only come, but can well lead the State beyond dreams, to a world which only technology understands and can interpret fully to the benefit of humanity.

  • New telecom tariffs are here – By Okoh Aihe

    New telecom tariffs are here – By Okoh Aihe

    New telecom tariffs are here,  and this is official. The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) said Monday night that it has granted a 50 percent tariff adjustment to the industry operators for industry sustenance and for continuing service delivery.

    This is the first raise since 2013. Although the operators had mounted a sustained campaign, demanding for 100 percent increase, the regulator said it granted 50 percent as it tried to balance the twin interests of the operators and consumers who are struggling to deal with the same economic variables but at different degrees.

    Although empowered by the Communications Act 2003 with such responsibilities, a new tariff regulation would usually come into force after some cost based studies would have been done. This writer is aware that some works were done in that direction but the regulator did not need to plead any particular one to arrive at a decision at this time that Nigerians are facing sizable squeeze from multiple directions.

    In the statement titled, NCC Approves Requests for Tariffs Adjustments by Operators, Public Affairs Director, Reuben Muoka, said: “The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), pursuant to its power under Section 108 of the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003 (NCA) to regulate and approve tariff rates and charges by telecommunications operators, will be granting approval for tariff adjustment requests by Network Operators in response to prevailing market conditions.

    “The adjustment, capped at a maximum of 50 percent of current tariffs, though lower than the over 100 percent requested by some network operators, was arrived at taken into account ongoing industry reforms that will positively influence sustainability,” the NCC said.

    I am not expecting most consumers to understand this development and may want to seek protection from the courts. Nobody will blame them. Afterall, the prevailing socio-economic situation in the country is putting nearly everybody under pressure wiith so many people in no good position to accommodate new costs without caving in.

    But the operators also live here. They are saying that their basket of worries is becoming too heavy for them and there could be a snap soon if urgent steps were not taken. They evidenced their plight with the trading losses of MTN and Airtel who in a single year, have lost so much money, more than the budgets of several states in Nigeria, put together. Just two organisations! And that is reality.

    For instance, an MTN source told this writer that the operator lost money in excess of N700bn last year and was therefore unable to pay dividends to their shareholders. No good news for an investor that had put money in a blue chip organisation by Nigerian standard. Airtel by financial year ending March 31, 2024, lost $89m in operations across Africa, with losses mostly attributable to the exchange rate volatility in the Nigerian market.

    The NCC was careful to take a much expected decision without creating a wrench within the industry as it said, “these adjustments will remain within the tariff bands stipulated in the 2013 NCC Cost Study, and requests will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis as is the Commission’s standard for tariff reviews. It will be implemented in strict adherence to the recently issued NCC Guidance on Tariff Simplification 2024”.

    Here is the simple explanation. NCC has only reformatted a 2013 decision which the operators couldn’t operationalise because of two reasons: one, because of competition and two, because of official meddlesomeness and industry capture which happened much later before the present administration. Ever since, the tariff floor remains at N6.40 with the ceiling hanging at N50. The operators should always been able to navigate between the tariff window or band but for the exceptions in Nigeria.

    A highly placed NCC source lamented that the regulator didn’t do what it should have done, by permitting marginal increase every year which should have made any adjustment less impactful.

    If you permit the cliche, the regulator seems to be waking up from a very long sleep, but it is still much better that a renaissance feeling seems to be enveloping the place. The new feeling is that, based on data and studies available, the industry is in so much trouble requiring urgent measures to address them layer after layer.

    This is what is responsible for the renaissance feel. A source within the regulatory institution told this writer that every month the industry guzzles about 40m litres of diesel, and that translates to about N48bn. Money that should have been spent on expansion of infrastructure and services is just burnt by the generators at the base stations because the nations power grid isn’t up to scratch.

    A highly placed source at the NCC pointed out that the “nation’s telecommunications

    Industry was built on transparency and professionalism in the the days of Engr Ernest Ndukwe. We know how we got to where we are and may not be able to walk back to the past, but we have to make the indsutry a better place for the sake of its importance.”

    Imagine a Nigeria without connectivity, the source dared me. I couldn’t react appropriately because my personal experience tells a story of its own. The first time I held a phone in my hands and made a call was in 1981 after I got into the university. Years latter when I worked at the Vanguard, it was my assignment as Hi Tech Editor to purchase two limited mobility phones for two of my bosses. For two days I carried N360,000 cash in my bag from Apapa to Lagos Island. No instant cash transfer, no mobile or internet banking. Sometimes you had to take tally number to achieve some speed at the bank. It was the world of the Stone Age. It was only through divine intervention I succeeded the second day. You can laugh at me now but that was our world.

    Imagine a Nigeria without connectivity, the voice came again. Even the NCC does not look forward to such a world and has been taking some quiet measures to build a more resilient indsutry, the source disclosed.

    The NCC has encouraged the industry operators to trade well with each other by ensuring they settle interconnect debt promptly. It used to be a mountain of debts dating back in years. The debt, one has gethered, has come down by 40 percent. In simple parlance, interconnect fee is the money operators pay for technical relationship with each other. Each time a call is made from one network to another, a fee is involved and the calls are aggregated by the parties at the end of the month.

    Also last week, the NCC tackled the lingering debt issue the banks owed mobile operators through Unstructured Supplementary Data Services (USSD). By December 2024, 18 banks were owing the operators about N250bn. The debt had been piling up for years, but under the Muhammadu Buhari administration, it was viewed politically that any attempt by the operators to enforce payment would have political consequences, especially for a government that was ineffective and unpopular.

    Last week , the NCC empowered the operators to collect their USSD debts and by January 27, 2025, disconnect whoever couldn’t make payments. It also released a list of the banks making life difficult for operators through debt. It was no political decision but regulatory. There was no upheaval. The banks have largely complied with the exception of just five of them. But it is not January 27 yet.

    The NCC says it is working towards cleaning up the industry and reposition it for growth and quality service delivery. It has recently issued a Tariff Simplification Guideline mandating operators to make service offering, including data very simple instead of shrouding them in sales and promo abracadabra. A new Code of Corporate Governance is also expected to come into place soon.

    The NCC source says the regulator is working with the NSA, State Governors and other relevant stakeholders to ensure that telecom infrastructure are not damaged during road construction works and through some other villainous, activities after President Tinubu issued Presidential Order on Critical National Infrastructure of which Telecoms is a critical part. The industry needs its infrastructure to be given extra cover to encourage the operators to build a more resilient and robust network.

    The telecoms industry which promised so much hope has recently suffered its share of a bouquet of challenges facing the country. But the NCC is promising a new lease of opportunities and industry reforms.

    “The NCC reaffirms its dedication to fostering a resilient, innovative and inclusive telecommunications sector. Beyond protecting consumers, the Commission’s actions are designed to ensure the long-term sustainability of the industry, support indigenous vendors and suppliers, and promote the overall growth of Nigeria’s digital economy,” the regulator said in a statement.

    Time, they say, will tell.