Telecom
Congolese Regulator Understudies Nigeria’s Telecoms Market
Faith in the operational excellence and regulatory efficiency that have become the marks of Africa’s foremost regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), was demonstrated recently when a delegation from the Congo-Brazzaville Telecommunications Regulations Authority (CTRA) visited the NCC on a benchmarking tour.
Seated L-R: Engr. Bako Wakil, Director Technical Standards and Network Intergrity; Benjamin Mouandza, Director,Networks and Electronic Communications Services, CTRA; Ephraim Nwokonneya, Director, Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement, NCC; Dr. Ikechukwu Adinde Director, Public Affairs , NCC. Standing L-R: Ibrahim Galadima, Assistant Director ,Special Duties, NCC, Mr.Dorcia Kounduola, Head of Analysis and Operations Office,CTRA; Mr. Ghislain Louvouezo of the Traffic Management and Control Department, CTRA; Mr. Narcisse Kiouari of the Telecommunications International Affairs, CTRA and Ismail Giwa, Assistant Director, Special Duties, NCC at the NCC Head Office,Maitama Abuja
The delegation from the central African nation purposively paid a scheduled visit to NCC, essentially to understudy the latter’s policies, practices and programmes that have made it a model telecommunications regulatory authority on the Continent and beyond.
The Congolese team led by CTRA’s Network Director, Benjamin Mouandza, spent three days at the NCC Head Office in Abuja, where it was exposed to key result-oriented regulatory activities, frameworks, programmes and policies of NCC, with the objective to explore how such operational frameworks could be adapted by the African nation noted for its huge rainforest reserves.
In the letter written to Prof. Umar Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of NCC, the Congloese regulator had indicated interest to gain more insights into three areas of NCC’s regulatory activities, namely, management of issues associated with Quality of Service (QoS), SIM Boxing and Call Masking, as well as telecom equipment type-approval process.
In response to the request, Danbatta had graciously accepted to host the team and further directed relevant departments of NCC, including Special Duties (SD); Technical Standards and Network Integrity (TSNI); and the Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement (CME) directorates to interact with the team to provide necessary information sharing that may be useful to the Congolese counterpart.
Addressing the CTRA team, the NCC’s Director, TSNI, Bako Wakil, spoke extensively on the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) institued by NCC on QoS and how these KPIs are measured and monitored by the Commission toward ensuring improved service delivery to the Nigeria’s ever-growing telecoms consumers. He said this also helped to improve Quality of Experience (QoE) of the consumers.
On type-approval process, Wakil stated that the Commission had developed a rigorous type-approval process to ensure that telecoms equipment, including terminal devices, manufactured in line with international standards and specifications are brought into the country.
The “NCC is serious about type-approval process like other processes, because non-type approved devices and equipment which are also not manufactured to international standards and specifications have negative implications for quality of service delivery on the networks,” he said.
Wakil also spoke extensively, to the admiration of the Congolese team, on call masking and highlighted measures the NCC had put in place to address the menace. He described call masking as “the practice of sending international calls to an operator but disguising the calls as if they were local by sending the calls on the local interconnect route with a local number in the national numbering plan instead of the original international calling number.”
In a related presentation to the visiting team on SIM boxing fraud and efforts being taken by the NCC to combat the menace, NCC’s Director, CME, Ephraim Nwokonneya, spoke on the problems created by fraudulent practice of SIM Boxing, including threat to national security, loss of revenue to service providers and the government. Additionally, he asserted the anti-competitive practices associated with such acts among licensees as well as the general economic implications so evident in revenue loss.
However, Nwokonneya itemised solutions to SIM Boxing fraud from a regulatory perspective. He declared that regulators can deploy anti-SIM boxing and call masking solutions, be proactive and effective in monitoring and enforcement, collaboration with the industry and law enforcement agencies, capacity building through training and skill acquisition programmes, as well as the review of the Enforcement Regulations and enabling laws.
More importantly, Nwokonneya told the Congolese telecoms regulator team that collaboration between the regulator and the industry is required to effectively combat the menace of SIMBox Fraud, Call Masking and Call Refiling in conjunction with deployment of technological solution and well trained staff.
From the presentations, it was made clear that the scale of call masking and SIMBoxing has been on the downward decline in Nigeria while the number of complaints from subscribers on incorrectly displayed calling numbers has also reduced substantially. To prove that NCC processes emplaced to combat the menace are succeeding, Nwokonneya stated that there has been a significant and noticeable improvement in the display of correct international calling numbers into Nigeria networks.
The NCC Directors also reiterated that the Commission is also taking strategic actions on SIM Registration, the National Identification Number (NIN) and the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) linkage policy. The NCC team informed the visitors that a maximum of four SIM numbers are permissible to be registered per subscriber per network requirement. This is another measure deployed by the NCC to tackle SIMBoxing which usually requires multiple SIMs to flourish.
The NCC team emphasised that the combination of regulatory action and deployment of technology solutions have helped to put the menace of call masking and SIMBoxing in the Nigeria’s telecoms sector under check.
Commenting on the benefits of the visit, CTRA’s Mouandza, said the choice made by the Congolese regulator to visit NCC on a benchmarking tour has been worthwhile. “We have come to understand how the regulator in Nigeria has been handling some salient regulatory issues and matters in the country as it relates to telecoms. In the course of this visit, I can say that our objective has been achieved. The experience has been very rich, we have learnt many things. We thank the EVC and his team for accepting to host us. We are more positioned now to replicate some of the things we have learnt in our telecoms market back home,” he said.
The Congolese officials had practical demonstrations of the issues earlier discussed, especially the nature of technologies that have been deployed by the NCC to independently and remotely monitor, measure and validate QoS on the networks of mobile operators in the country.
It will be recalled that the visit by the Congolese team came barely a month after the NCC hosted officials from Sierra Leone’s National Telecommunications Commission (NATCOM), who equally visited NCC to benchmark the Nigeria’s telecom regulator’s policies, programmes and regulatory activities.
Over the years, the NCC has constantly received delegations from telecoms regulators in Africa and this trend has remained a major boost for Nigeria’s global ranking as a model in telecommunications regulation. Suffice it to say, that, these benchmarking visits have eloquently reinforced NCC’s leadership status in operational efficiency, collaborative partnership, and commitment to intra-African solidarity in the telecommunications sphere.
National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has entered into a strategic partnership with the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at accelerating digital literacy, innovation development, and economic growth across Southwest Nigeria.
Director General NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa CCIE, Director General DAWN Commission Dr Seye Oyeleye alongside representatives of both organisations, display signed copies of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) upon its signing at NITDA Headquarters, Abuja.
Speaking at the signing ceremony in Abuja, NITDA Director General, Kashifu Inuwa, described the agreement as a significant step toward leveraging human capital and fostering regional collaboration to drive sustainable national development.
He commended the Southwest region for its longstanding culture of cooperation, noting that collective action remains essential for national progress.
“The Southwest continues to inspire when it comes to collaboration because no one succeeds in isolation. Other regions can learn from this model of cooperation.
“For Nigeria to grow, we must understand our strengths at both the state and regional levels and build on them,” he said.
Inuwa emphasised that Nigeria’s greatest resource is its people, stressing that investments in digital skills, innovation, and technology are critical to creating prosperity and expanding economic opportunities.
According to him, the partnership will facilitate knowledge exchange, capacity building, and innovation-driven initiatives capable of empowering citizens to develop local solutions with national and global impact.
Highlighting NITDA’s ongoing efforts to deepen digital transformation nationwide, he said the Agency is scaling digital literacy programmes, supporting innovation hubs, and promoting technology development across the country.
He noted that innovation flourishes where talent, infrastructure, and supportive policies intersect, making it important for every region to identify and strengthen its comparative advantages.
“Lagos has already established itself as a fintech hub and the commercial centre of the country. Abuja is emerging as a GovTech cluster, while other regions can develop specialised ecosystems around manufacturing, commerce, and other sectors.
“Every region possesses unique strengths that can be transformed into thriving innovation clusters,” he stated.
The NITDA boss expressed optimism that the collaboration would accelerate the implementation of the Agency’s strategic initiatives throughout the Southwest.
He added that both organisations had already begun working together prior to the formalisation of the agreement and called for swift action following the signing.
“We are excited about this partnership and look forward to translating our shared vision into tangible outcomes. While engagements have already commenced, I would like to see even greater momentum after the signing of this MoU,” he added.
In his remarks, the Director General of the DAWN Commission, Seye Oyeleye, highlighted the importance of digital literacy in preparing citizens for future opportunities and ensuring meaningful participation in the digital economy.
He noted that the Commission, which coordinates development initiatives across Ekiti, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, and Oyo States, views the partnership as a strategic vehicle for advancing Nigeria’s digital transformation agenda.
Oyeleye highlighted Nigeria’s target of equipping 100 million citizens with digital skills by 2030 through the Digital Literacy for All Initiative, stressing that the Southwest has a pivotal role to play in achieving the national objective.
“Nigeria has committed to equipping 100 million citizens with digital skills by 2030. Southwest Nigeria is not merely a contributor to that vision; it is central to its success,” he said.
He explained that the MoU formalises a shared commitment to ensuring the effective implementation of NITDA’s programmes, particularly the National Digital Literacy Framework, across the region.
He added that the Commission would leverage its extensive network and partnerships across the six Southwest states to bridge federal digital initiatives with local communities, institutions, and young people.
“We will work to ensure that NITDA’s frameworks are not only implemented but strengthened. Our reach across the Southwest positions us to connect federal digital infrastructure and programmes with communities and young people who require the skills needed to thrive in the digital economy,” he stated.
Oyeleye further assured NITDA of the Commission’s commitment to delivering measurable results throughout the five-year duration of the agreement, noting that the true value of development institutions lies in the impact they create rather than the agreements they sign.
The MoU reflects the shared determination of both organisations to advance digital literacy, strengthen innovation ecosystems, and create sustainable economic opportunities for citizens across Southwest Nigeria, further supporting the country’s journey toward a robust and inclusive digital economy.
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Airtel Africa Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Airtel Africa plc, has released its inaugural annual report, marking its first full year of delivery and impacting millions of learners and communities across Africa.
During the reporting period, the Foundation committed $6.2 million to interventions across its four strategic pillars; Financial Inclusion, Education, Environmental Sustainability and Digital Inclusion (FEED), with education receiving the largest share of investment.
Key achievements include connecting 1,028 schools to the internet through its partnership with UNICEF, bringing the total to 3,296 schools connected across 13 countries, reaching over 2 million learners and nearly 39,000 teachers. In addition, 64 zero-rated digital platforms enabled over 11 million learners to access free educational content.
The Foundation also improved the condition of public schools, with seven fully renovated and 43 undergoing upgrades under the School Adoption Programme that integrates infrastructure improvements with digital access and holistic student development.
Through the Airtel Africa Tech Fellowship, 257 full university scholarships were awarded in Malawi, Nigeria, Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Uganda, expanding access to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education and building a pipeline of high-potential African technology leaders.
In addition to this, 30,530 youth and women were trained through digital skills initiatives delivered with national, multilateral, and private-sector partners.
Segun Ogunsanya, Chair, Airtel Africa Foundation said: “The Airtel Africa Foundation was established to help dismantle barriers caused by unequal access to opportunity. While talent and ambition are abundant, access to education, digital tools and economic participation remains uneven. Through partnerships and our continental reach, we are committed to investing in communities furthest from opportunity.”
The report also underscores the Foundation’s growing focus on measurable outcomes and long-term systems change.
The Foundation aims to scale proven interventions in the year ahead, including expanding its School Adoption Programme to over 80 schools, increasing scholarships to more than 600 youth, providing free internet connectivity to an additional 2000 schools, and extending digital skills and financial inclusion initiatives to underserved communities.
“As a Foundation, we are positioned to deliver skills development and lasting change at the individual and household level, while partnering with governments to unlock Africa’s economic transformation”, Mr Ogunsanya added.
Zoho Corporation, a global technology company and parent company of Zoho and ManageEngine, announced the launch of Nathu La, a designed-in-house server and a pivotal step in the company’s journey towards building its full technology stack, from the hardware layer to software applications.
Zoho
With Nathu La, Zoho has achieved equivalent performance with 12-18% lower power consumption and 20-30% lower total cost of ownership (TCO), thereby reducing inference costs. The Nathu La server, comprising Intel® Xeon® 6 processors, was developed collaboratively with Intel, leveraging their enablement capabilities and technical expertise.
“Zoho Corporation has invested in building its own technology stack from the ground up over the last three decades. The Nathu La server launch is in line with that goal,” said Kehinde Ogundare, Country Head, Zoho Nigeria.
“With our strategy of using contextual, right-sized models, running on our own platform, on our own servers, in our own data centres, we are compounding the benefits accrued from owning and operating our entire technology stack.
“This ensures that our solutions are more sustainable and accessible for businesses. These long-term R&D investments we are making at every layer of the stack are aimed at delivering customer value.”
Building the Full Technology Stack
The design philosophy behind Nathu La is rooted in the Open Compute Project (OCP), emphasising modularity, thermal efficiency, and ease of maintenance. This enables Zoho’s data centres to significantly reduce total cost of ownership and power consumption.
Zoho plans to host its applications on the Nathu La server platform, enabling the company to optimise the full software-hardware stack for its specific workloads, reduce costs, improve performance, and strengthen data governance for its global customers. This will also help bring down inference costs for Zoho’s AI usage.
Developed Hardware Engineering Talent
In 2020, Zoho established a small R&D team in Nagpur, a Tier 2 town in India, focused on projects such as server design and systems engineering. Members of the Nathu La R&D team include hires from SETU – short for Student’s Engagement for Transformative Upskilling – an initiative designed to build a pipeline of industry-ready engineers, with a focus on advanced learning in Electronics System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM).
The initiative directly addresses the growing need for stronger foundational engineering skills in an era increasingly influenced by AI-assisted development. By prioritising hands-on innovation and first-principles problem-solving, SETU helps cultivate deeper research capabilities, creativity, and applied engineering expertise. To date, over 300 students have been trained through the programme, some of whom have joined Zoho.
What’s Inside
The Nathu La server motherboard and chassis platform is the result of five years of R&D across hardware, firmware, and systems management. Based on Intel® Xeon® 6 Processors, the server is designed to optimise performance for virtualisation (VM), High Performance Computing (HPC), AI inference, and storage applications. This results in improved performance of Zoho applications for end users.
The server features customised power delivery subsystems, an in-house DC-SCM (Data Centre Secure Control Module) design, and modular chassis options compatible with diverse end-user environments, offering flexibility across deployment types.
All modular components – including the DC-SCM and NIC (Network Interface Card) – were designed in-house by Zoho’s hardware engineering team and assembled through electronics manufacturing partners, enabling tighter integration and quality control across the platform. Over five patents have been filed covering advanced thermal management and cost-optimised server architecture designs.
Moving Towards Technological Sovereignty
Nathu La is engineered with hardware-rooted security at every layer of the stack. The platform’s indigenous IP-driven approach reduces dependency on external entities for security audits, firmware updates, and licensing continuity.
The solution aligns with open-source software principles and reflects Zoho’s broader commitment to building sustainable, secure, and scalable digital infrastructure. It also supports the growing global focus on digital sovereignty, local innovation ecosystems, and high-performance computing capabilities.
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