Telecom
Akande Tasks Telecom Operators on Licensing Obligations
Prof. Adeolu Akande, Chairman, Board of Commissioners of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has urged telecoms licensees across different segments of the Nigerian telecommunications sector on the need to adhere strictly to their licensing obligations in order to ensure robust provision of services to the consumers.
Prof. Adeolu Akande, Chairman NCC Board, contributing to the forum
Akande made the call in his remark at the third edition of NCC’s 2021 “Talk to The Regulator” (TTTR) Forum, which took place at Visa Karena Hotels, Port Harcourt, over the weekend.
At the forum held with a focus on “Improving Stakeholder Satisfaction”, Akande stated that the essence of conducting the stakeholder engagement forum across the country’s geo-political zones was to demonstrate to the Commission’s licensees that responsibility does not end in issuing of licenses alone but rather in working with the licensing authority to address issues affecting their operations.
Beyond the issuance of licences to operators, Akande declared that the Commission is legitimately concerned with providing the necessary regulatory frameworks and initiatives capable of ushering in an environment that encourages seamless implementation of the licence conditions.
“In return, we expect the licensees to deliver on their licensing conditions and I want to use this opportunity to challenge our licensees to always comply with their licensing obligations and conditions in order to provide the much-needed services to the generality of Nigerians,” he said.
Speaking earlier on the centrality of the stakeholder engagement to the regulatory activities of the Commission, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO), said the Commission considers feedback from stakeholder’s engagement initiatives imperative for building a robust licensing regime in the Nigerian telecom sector.
The EVC, who was represented at the forum by Adeleke Adewolu, Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Management, reiterated the Commission’s commitment to stakeholder engagement as a means of deepening collaboration with NCC’s licensees, identifying areas of concern, and jointly developing and implementing practical solutions.
The NCC boss noted that the focus of deliberations for the series of stakeholder engagement had been on licensing processes, policies, and procedures, all geared towards improving Stakeholder Satisfaction, a central factor to all NCC’s regulatory activities.
He emphasised the need to curate insights from each geo-political zone to encourage mutually-beneficial relationships and enhance understanding between the Commission and its key stakeholders.
According to Danbatta, measurable success has been recorded essentially because of Commission’s focus on prioritising stakeholders.
“Achievements such as contributions to Gross Domestic product (GDP) grew to 14.42 per cent in Q2’2021; active internet subscriptions have reached over 140 million; teledensity which now stands at 99.98 per cent; and 40.01% per cent broadband penetration, all as at the end of September, 2021,” he said.
Speaking further, Danbatta said to achieve national policy targets and maintain progressive growth in the telecoms industry, “efforts must be jointly made to harness the full cooperation of licensees to highlight areas hampering the progress of the Commission’s stakeholders.
“We have started making necessary adjustments to reflect the views of our licensees in Kano and Lagos. Port Harcourt will not be an exception,” Danbatta assured.
He reiterated that the meeting is organised in keeping with the Commission’s strategic objectives, which seek to guarantee continuous interface with the critical stakeholder in the industry, for collaboration in seeking solutions to challenges of licensing in Nigeria.
Further underscoring the significance of stakeholder engagement and sensitisation in the Commission, Danbatta said the forum affords stakeholders a platform to raise questions about the challenges of licensing and their operations.
He said such forum also avails the Commission ample opportunity to adequately respond to the concerns that may be raised.
At the Focus Group Discussions (FGD), participants reviewed and discussed licensing trends, regulatory process, implementation of Annual Operating Levy (AOL) regulations, assigning of short codes, type-approval obligations, and Commission’s expectations.
Commission’s propositions for the survival of smaller licensees were also discussed in a session termed “Listen to the licensee,” as they were not only given ample time to air their grievances but also made to proffer solutions for Management’s consideration.
Also, mutually-beneficial positions on multiple taxations, surrendered licences, Right-of-way (RoW) for Internet Service Providers (ISPs), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) boosters, amongst others, were part of the issues discussed.
The Port Harcourt edition of the TTTR was sequel to previous editions of the stakeholder engagement forum which took place in Kano on October 16, 2021 and Lagos on November 25, 2021.
The event had in attendance members of NCC Board: Prof. Millionaire Abowei; Clement Baiye; Chief Uche Onwude; as well as Director, Technical Standards and Network Integrity, Bako Wakil; and his counterpart in Licensing and Authorisation, Muhammed Babajika, whose department facilitated the organisation of the forum.
MTN Nigeria has marked 25 years of commercial operations, with Karl Toriola, chief executive officer, saying the company began operating in the country at a time when telecommunications access was severely limited.
Toriola said that a quarter of a century ago, making a phone call was a privilege few Nigerians could afford.
People queued at public telephone booths and centres, travelled long distances to deliver messages, and sometimes waited weeks for letters to arrive, he said, noting that a mobile phone was then beyond the reach of most.
Today, the company connects more than 90 million people across Nigeria, a figure MTN says reflects its role in building the infrastructure behind the country’s shift to a data-driven economy.
MTN entered Nigeria in 2001 following the GSM liberalisation carried out by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), at a time when mobile telephony was still a luxury reserved for a privileged few.
Toriola said the milestone was about more than subscriber numbers.
Businesses have been built, families have stayed connected across distances, students have gained access to knowledge, and creators have found audiences beyond Nigeria’s borders, he said, crediting the wider telecommunications ecosystem for enabling entire new industries to emerge.
The company also pointed to its role beyond direct connectivity.
MTN has helped build a wider value chain of SIM registration agents, tower contractors, retail distributors, fintech partners and digital developers that now supports millions of livelihoods in Nigeria.
Toriola thanked MTN Nigeria’s customers, saying their trust had allowed the company to expand its community investments through the MTN Foundation, which has supported health, education, youth development and economic empowerment programmes.
Looking ahead, the CEO acknowledged that significant connectivity gaps remain, with millions of Nigerians still needing access to reliable, affordable and inclusive digital services.
He said greater digital inclusion would be a central priority for the company’s next chapter, adding that the anniversary marks both a celebration of the past 25 years and a renewed push to expand digital access for the country’s young and growing population.
“We’ve come a long way. And we are only getting started,” Toriola said.
The anniversary comes as MTN Nigeria continues to navigate rising operating costs tied to Nigeria’s unreliable power supply.
Where the national grid is unreliable, the company and its infrastructure partners have had to rely on diesel generators, batteries, solar systems and other backup power solutions, making network operating costs highly sensitive to fluctuations in diesel prices.
Telecommunications subscribers under the umbrella of the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers (NATCOMS), has handed telecommunications operators in the country September deadline to improve network quality or face legal action.
Deolu Ogunbanjo, president, NATCOMS, said that subscribers have endured deteriorating network services despite repeated interventions, warnings, and sanctions by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
As reported by BusinessDay, Ogunbanjo, noted that if the situation fails to improve through regulatory intervention, NATCOMS will seek justice through the courts by the end of the third quarter.
The ultimatum comes as rising data consumption, subscriber migration, and growing demand for mobile services place severe pressure on network infrastructure across parts of the country.
The NCC stated that mobile operators have offered compensation to more than 75 million subscribers for poor network quality following a regulatory directive requiring restitution in locations where performance fell below required standards.
The regulator is conducting an independent review to determine whether all eligible subscribers received proper compensation.
The compensation scheme, provided through automatic airtime credits for verified service failures dating back to November 2025, requires no individual claims from consumers.
For many subscribers, however, airtime credits do little to offset the broader economic and personal toll of unreliable connectivity.
Emeka Douglas, a subscriber, recounted how poor network quality nearly turned a medical emergency into a tragedy when he was unable to transfer funds to a hospital during his wife’s surgery.
Douglas noted that his brother in the United States eventually sent funds directly to the hospital’s account after local banking channels failed.
Janet Okoye, a small business owner, said unreliable connectivity severely affected her business after service disruptions on her Airtel and Globacom lines led clients to cancel orders.
Teniola Adeyemi, a university student, highlighted dropped calls as a major concern, stressing that recent tariff increases ought to reflect in better service quality.
Grace Eze, an Abuja-based media professional, explained that fluctuating network connectivity once delayed a lead news story intended for her editor in Lagos, resulting in an official query over late submission.
Pressure on national networks is driven by both expanding subscriber numbers and rising usage intensity.
Active telephony subscriptions in Nigeria rose from 182.2 million in January 2026 to over 187 million by April, according to NCC data. MTN leads the market with 96.4 million subscriptions, followed by Airtel with 64.7 million and Globacom with 23.2 million.
Telecom
ipNX Collaborates with ICT Stakeholders on the Future of Fibre-to-the-Home in Nigeria @ ATCON Forum
ipNX Nigeria joined other stakeholders across the telecommunications ecosystem as they convened at the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) Critical Conversation Forum on Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) to deliberate on practical solutions to the challenges affecting broadband infrastructure deployment and the future of fibre connectivity in the country.
The forum, themed “Fibre to the Home in Nigeria: Addressing Challenges, Strengthening Standards and Ensuring Sustainable Deployment,” was held at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Lagos, and brought together representatives from government agencies, telecommunications operators, regulators, infrastructure providers, industry associations, and the media to foster dialogue around policies and collaborative actions needed to accelerate Nigeria’s broadband ambition.
Delivering the keynote address virtually, the Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Aminu Maida, described Fibre-to-the-Home as a critical enabler of Nigeria’s digital future.
“FTTH is uniquely positioned to meet Nigerians’ next phase of data demand. The quality of our broadband will increasingly shape the competitiveness of our businesses, the growth of our digital industry and the opportunities available to our citizens,” he said.
Dr. Maida also stressed the importance of protecting telecommunications infrastructure, noting that damage to fibre networks carries significant economic consequences.
“We must uphold deployment standards. Nigeria needs fibre that is properly installed, properly documented, and properly protected.”
Speaking during the opening session, ATCON President, Mr. Tony Emoekpere, underscored the strategic importance of FTTH in achieving Nigeria’s broadband penetration targets while calling for greater public awareness around protecting communications infrastructure.
“This forum is critical because Fibre-to-the-Home is the technology that will enable the country to achieve full broadband penetration. We all depend on communication infrastructure, and it must be protected.”
Drawing a comparison with power infrastructure in the country, he added:
“If somebody comes to your neighbourhood to tamper with your transformer or power cables, everybody will come out. The same thing needs to apply for communications infrastructure. When we see people damaging fibre cables, we should raise an alarm.”
The forum also highlighted successful collaborative initiatives at the state level. Speaking on infrastructure management, Director-General of the Oyo State Infrastructure Management and Control Agency (OYSIMCA), Mr. Adebayo Akande, shared how the agency is addressing fibre theft, vandalism, and promoting shared infrastructure among operators.
He explained that encouraging operators to utilise common pole infrastructure along shared routes would reduce unnecessary duplication, minimise infrastructure damage, improve urban aesthetics, and optimise investment across the sector.
Similarly, Managing Director of the Edo State Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA), Mr. Eghosa Urhoghide, advocated stronger collaboration among operators, regulators, government institutions, road maintenance agencies, and host communities.
He emphasised that strict adherence to NCC deployment standards remains essential to ensuring the long-term sustainability and resilience of Nigeria’s telecommunications infrastructure.
Representing ipNX on the panel discussion titled “Policy, Governance and Regulatory Alignment,” Mr. Segun Okuneye, Deputy Director, Strategic Business Initiatives, highlighted the need for stronger collaboration across the telecommunications ecosystem to unlock the full potential of fibre broadband in Nigeria.
According to him, sustainable fibre deployment extends beyond technology and investment to include policy consistency, stakeholder alignment, infrastructure protection, and shared responsibility.
“Achieving universal fibre connectivity requires more than deploying infrastructure, it requires sustained collaboration between operators, regulators, government agencies and host communities.
“When policies are aligned, deployment standards are consistently enforced, and critical infrastructure is protected, we create an environment where investment thrives and more Nigerians can enjoy reliable, high-speed broadband.
“At ipNX, we remain committed to working with all stakeholders to build resilient digital infrastructure that will support Nigeria’s economic growth for generations to come.”
Throughout the discussions, participants agreed that while Nigeria has made considerable progress in broadband expansion, addressing recurring issues such as fibre vandalism, right-of-way challenges, inconsistent deployment practices, infrastructure duplication, and limited public awareness will require stronger partnerships and coordinated industry action.
The forum concluded with a shared commitment among stakeholders to strengthen industry standards, encourage infrastructure sharing, improve policy implementation, and promote greater public appreciation of telecommunications infrastructure as critical national assets deserving of protection.
For ipNX, participation in the ATCON Critical Conversation Forum reinforces our company’s ongoing commitment to supporting industry-wide initiatives that advance broadband penetration, strengthen digital infrastructure, and accelerate Nigeria’s journey towards a more connected and digitally inclusive future.
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