Telecom

Global Financial Crisis: What It Holds for Nigeria Telecoms Sector

Published

17 years ago

March 16, 2009

Kindly share this post

When the global financial crisis started to show its effects in the middle of 2007 and into 2008 in United States of America and Europe, little did people know that it will spread to developing countries in spite of their generally weak integration with the rest of the global economy. It started gradually with the world stock markets falling, to large financial institutions collapsing or even been bought out, and governments in the wealthiest nations coming up with rescue packages to bail out their financial systems.
On one hand, many people are concerned that those responsible for the financial problems are the ones being bailed out; while on the other hand, global financial meltdown will affect the livelihoods of almost everyone in an increasingly inter-connected world.
Today, almost every sector of the economy has been affected by the crisis; telecom industry is not left out.
In many countries, traditional telecom infrastructure has been excessively developed, and the saturation of remaining markets has reached critical mass. Bubbles have also emerged in the traditional operations market. Inflation rates are notably higher in emerging markets than in developed countries, and inflation may get out of control in some emerging markets. In some regions, due to slowdown of GDP growth, telecom operators will have weakened investment ability and willingness to do so. Only the strong will survive if there is a negative growth rate of -5%.
According to a recent World Bank release on the effect of the current global financial meltdown on emerging markets, there is going to be financial shortfall of between $270 billion and $700 billion of investment into emerging markets’ economies. This, the bank said will be as a result of private financial organizations shunning the market in view of the global financial crisis.
Telecom investments largely consist of financial capital or sovereign wealth funds, with an emphasis placed on long-term returns. If the markets are stagnant and the economic downturn is chronic, investors cannot see expected returns and they will slow down or stop investing, particularly during transformation in the early stages of telecom development when the balance sheets are still in the red.
The financial storm will expose the contradiction in the transformation of the traditional telecom industry, and the contradiction between the saturation of per capita access demand and per capita bandwidth demand. It will correct the course of bad investment as in the past, bringing more attention to per capita bandwidth, and cause some market bubbles to burst.
Market growth
The growth of market demand will slow and customers will reduce procurement, leading to a dramatic decrease in operating income for the IT and telecom industries. Financial institutions, large enterprises, and governments are always large consumers of telecom and IT services, spending heavily to replace equipment and upgrade networks each year. The financial crisis will make the financial chain tauter and lead to more complex embedded restrictions.
This position was corroborated by Mr. Bayo Banjo, managing director, Disc Communications. According to him, Nigerian operators are likely to feel the hit of the current global financial meltdown in the area of investment required for network expansion.
He explained that operators seek for facility from financial institutions to import telecommunications equipment for expanding network coverage as well as upgrade, but when the institutions are not strong to advance the facility, it will invariably slow down development in the sector.
He noted that Nigeria operation of some telecommunications equipment vendors may not downsize their staff because they are engaged in more of buying and selling as against manufacturing that is undertaken in the home country operation, which are affected because of low demand for their equipment.
Regulatory effort
Nigerian Communications Commission had responded to this situation when it organized a forum to determine the impact of the current situation on the development of telecommunications in Nigeria.
The forum drew telecom experts and economists to deliberate on the effects of the global economic crisis on the ICT industry in Nigeria and proffer solution on how to ensure that the crisis does not affect the ICT sector in Nigeria.
For telecom operators, it was an opportunity to seek attention to their growing cost of doing business and thereby requested for reduction in fees payable to government, a move they believe is panacea to the effect of the global economic meltdown on the sector and also will allow for inflow of more capital into the economy by no known means.
Chief Bayo Ligali, chief executive officer of Zain Nigeria, said that for the telecom operators to successfully thrive at this critical moment of global economic melt down there is the need for the government to reduce regulatory fees.
He stressed that there should be liberal interpretation and application of the regulatory provisions that have financial implication to stimulate growth in the sector.
Ligali requested for two years waiver on annual numbering fees as well as two years waiver on Microwave transmission fees, and expected government to also help operators resolve interconnect debt problems.
The Zain boss appealed for waivers of tax noting that tax paid on bad debt by the operators is a burden which NCC should help on by following the definition of revenue as stated by the International Accounting Standard Board on payment of tax on bad debt.
He proposed that the payment limit period should be reduced to three months instead of nine months which is obtainable presently because the early refund of the debt will form at least close to 300 base stations.
Engr. Ernest Ndukwe, the executive vice chairman, NCC, said that the continued success of Nigerian information and communication technology (ICT) is critical to the nation’s ability to ameliorate the effect of the global economic crisis on Nigeria.
He noted that the ICT industry is one private sector that is capable of providing an economic stimulus for the nation; adding that there is the need to evolve innovative ways of employing that industry as a catalyst for economic recovery in Nigeria
Ndukwe pointed out that there have been concerned voices within Nigeria, on the impact the crisis will have on the continued expansion and growth of the ICT industry in Nigeria. “Mobile technologies are the most powerful tools for combating extreme poverty in the most isolated part of the world.”
"As the regulator of the ICT industry and one of the advisers to the government on ICT matters, the NCC has found it expedient to convene the public forum so that as industry players, we can together address our concerns as well as proffer solutions to challenges that have the potential of affecting investment flow to the sector,” he said.
According to him, digital technologies will play a core role in ending poverty and enabling the world to join together through markets, social networks, and cooperative efforts to solve our common challenges.
The EVC observed that Nigeria is already feeling the effect of the global crunch with the oil and gas sector been severely hit leading to a sharp decline in the federal government revenue, stressing that in this period of the crisis only improvement on the ICT can salvage the nation.
Industry watchers that spoke to Nigeria CommunicationsWeek argued that some of the demands by operators to cushion the effect of the current financial crisis are frivolous, citing the issue of tax waivers where the income of operators are not affected due to the culture of Nigerians who prefer making calls to eating food.
They explained that phone usage in the country is not likely to be affected by global financial turmoil, due to Nigerians’ love for telephone.
Since 2008 Q3, more than 90% of enterprises around the world have experienced negative year-on-year growth. 43% of enterprises have started to cut IT spending, and 49% of financial institutions have started to reduce IT budgets. Almost all enterprises have started to cut expenditures in 2008 Q4. In 2009, all enterprises will invariably cut their expenses. Due to various reasons, downsizing has begun in the information industry and around 10% of the total workforce has lost their jobs; and this is in an industry where the number of employees has already been declining.
New dimensions
As governments tighten up monetary policies and financing costs increase, over-expanded and fragile links of the industry chain will run the risk of their finances drying up. This is especially true for newly established companies that rely on venture capital, and many of them happen to be the "anchors" of future supply chains. They will bear the brunt of the trauma. As credit and loans become difficult to obtain and liquidity drops, the traditional telecom industry will see slow development.
Multinational operators must also face the risks of exchange rates and inflation because their revenue is generated in local currencies. Due to the impact of the US dollar economy, most countries have experienced inflation (depreciation of currencies). As a result, most multinational operators’ revenues started to decrease in 2008, and revenues from operating companies will continue to drop. At the same time, multinational operators’ operational baseline is rising with associated growing costs. Job-cutting and other cost reduction measures become an inevitable choice.
The cost of debt and inflation will dramatically increase an operator’s cost. Financing will become a precondition to contract signing for operators both in developed and developing countries. Operators will also adopt light-asset operation models, putting greater pressure on equipment vendors to adopt new models like managed service and capacity service.
Consumers will not give up mobile voice or fixed broadband for now. Internet-related applications and solutions like mobile broadband and mobile Internet devices (MID)/PC-like terminals will become the new stars. In the terminal market, the high-end and the low-end segments will become the focus; iPhone, GPhone, and simplified black-and-white terminals will become primary choices for most people.

Kindly share this post

Telecom

Digital Encode Sponsors PAFON 3.0 as CVO Prof. Adewale Set to Deliver Keynote on Cybersecurity and Trust

Published

1 day ago

April 10, 2026

Ugo Onwuaso

Kindly share this post

Digital Encode Limited has emerged the lead sponsor of the upcoming third edition of the forum (PAFON 3.0), the organisers have announced.

PAFON 3.0

PAFON 3.0 is scheduled to take place on Friday, April 24, 2026, at the Oriental Hotel, Lekki Road, Lagos, from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM.

Themed “Fair Digital Payments as a Catalyst for Deepening Financial Inclusion in Nigeria,” PAFON 3.0 serves as a strategic platform for senior executives from banks, fintechs, regulatory agencies, and technology innovators to address the evolving digital payment landscape.

As Nigeria transitions toward a cash-light economy, the forum will focus on critical pillars of sustainability, including transparency, pricing integrity, and system resilience.

Bridging Cybersecurity and Financial Inclusion

Professor Adewale Peter Obadare, the Founder/chief visionary officer of Digital Encode will deliver a cybersecurity-focused keynote address that connects trust, resilience, fraud prevention, and consumer protection to financial inclusion.

His session will provide a specialized perspective on how information security serves as the bedrock of financial inclusion; exploring the vital links between building infrastructure that consumers can rely on, protecting the ecosystem to allow inclusion to scale, and ensuring equitable and secure access for all Nigerians.

Prof. Obadare is arguably the most Credentialed PAN-African Digital Trust Leader, CyberSecurity Strategist, GRC Thought Leader & Global Technopreneur.

He is a seasoned Multi-Award Cybersecurity & GRC expert with over 58 (Fifty-Eight) international professional certifications to his credit, Master of Science in Cybersecurity, Liverpool Unversity, UK, was awarded Honorarary Doctorate Degree in Cybersecurity from Trinity International University of Ambassadors Atlanta Georgia, United State of America and First Professor of Practice – Cybersecurity at Miva Open University, Abuja, Nigeria.

Prof. Obadare is a well-recognized subject matter expert with numerous successful engagements to his credit in Africa and the world. His skills and experience spans Data Privacy, Data Protection, CyberSecurity, Information Security, Vulnerability Management, Penetration Testing, Computer Forensics, Business Continuity, I T Governance, Risk Management and Compliance.

He is a Cybersecurity Advisory Board Member for Lagos State Government, a Platinum Team Member of Open-Source Security Testing Methodology Manual (OSSTMM), as well as a lifetime member of the Open Worldwide Application Security Project (OWASP). He is an alumnus of FATE Foundation and US Department of State Exchange program.

He is also a distinguished alumnus of executive education at Harvard Business School, Harvard School of Government, MIT Sloan School of Management, MIT Professional Education and Oxford University – Said Business School.

“Without trust in the security of digital payments, inclusion cannot scale. And we are happy to welcome Digital Encode as our Lead Sponsor this year. With what the company stands for and the personality of the CVO on a global scale, we have no doubt that attendees at this year’s PAFON will go home with lots of insights.”

“The theme for PAFON 3.0 was carefully selected because if digital payments are affordable, transparent, accessible, and trustworthy, more Nigerians, especially the underserved, will participate in the financial system”, Mr. Chike Onwuegbuchi, the co-convener of Payments Forum Nigeria, noted, highlighting Digital Encode distinguished leadership in Nigeria’s cybersecurity ecosystem.

Other Confirmed speakers: Dr. Jameelah Sharrieff-Ayedun, Vice President, Fintech Association of Nigeria (FintechNGR) & CEO, Credit Registry; Uche Uzoebo, MD/CEO, Shared Agent Network Expansion Facilities (SANEF Limited): Special Guest of Honour; Mojeed Abayomi Agboola, National President, Financial Inclusion Agents Multipurpose Cooperative Society (FIAMCS); Dr. Obioha Otti, National President, Association of Mobile Money and Bank Agents in Nigeria (AMMBAN); Chukwuemeka Enoch, Founder, Lagos Blockchain Week, and Sarafadeen Fasasi, National President, Association of Financial Inclusion Agents of Nigeria (AFiAN), amongst others.

The forum will feature speakers from across the financial spectrum, including mobile money operators, payment processors, and development institutions, to shape policy dialogue and industry standards.

PAFON is a premier industry gathering that aligns brand positioning with trust and innovation in Nigeria’s digital payments ecosystem. It provides a unique space for thought leadership, regulatory engagement, and market expansion within the payment infrastructure sector.

Kindly share this post

Telecom

NITDA Boss Warns of AI Threat Shift @ GITEX Africa

Published

1 day ago

April 10, 2026

Ugo Onwuaso

Kindly share this post

The era of treating cybersecurity as a mere IT problem is over. As AI-powered digital threats become more elusive and destructive, Nigeria is shifting its strategy toward “Total Resilience”—a multi-dimensional defense involving every level of society.

NITDA

At the 2026 GITEX Africa summit, NITDA DG, Kashifu Inuwa sounded the alarm on the changing nature of digital warfare, asserting that technology alone is no longer enough. Instead, Nigeria’s survival in the digital age now hinges on a strategic blend of policy, people, and proactive defense.

Speaking during a panel session on Cyber Resilience, Inuwa described the current global digital environment as being at a “critical turning point.”

He warned that emerging technologies are not only transforming industries and economies but are also reshaping the nature of cyber threats, demanding a proactive and multi-dimensional response from governments, institutions, and citizens alike.

“Cybersecurity is no longer just a technical issue. It is a strategic imperative for national development,” Inuwa stated. “We must think beyond technology alone and build resilience through people, processes, regulations, and infrastructure.”

Inuwa revealed that the focus of Nigeria’s cyber strategy is shifting from high-tech software to the people behind the screens. Pointing to data showing that 95% of all digital breaches stem from simple human mistakes, Inuwa argued that the world’s most advanced encryption is useless if the user is compromised.

“The most sophisticated technology cannot protect us if the human element is overlooked,” he noted. By prioritising human capacity and digital literacy, NITDA aims to turn every citizen into a “human firewall”, the first and most critical line of defense in a world where AI-driven attacks are the new normal.

In response, the Nigerian government has launched a comprehensive National Digital Literacy Programme aimed at achieving 95 percent digital literacy by 2030, with an interim target of 70 percent by 2027.

The programme emphasizes digital safety and cybersecurity awareness, equipping citizens with the knowledge to navigate an increasingly online world responsibly.

Inuwa highlighted initiatives such as the “3 Million Tech Talent” programme, designed to develop Nigerian expertise across key technology domains, including cybersecurity, data science, and AI.

The programme also leverages hackathons, innovation challenges, and mentorship schemes to channel young people’s skills into productive, lawful, and globally competitive ventures.

He argued that nurturing local talent is essential not just for national security but also for economic growth. “We want to create an environment where young Nigerians are innovators, not just consumers of technology,” he said.

Addressing concerns about Nigeria’s ranking in global cybercrime indices, Inuwa urged contextual understanding. “Countries with the most advanced digital economies also rank high in cybercrime because of the scale of their online activity,” he explained.

“Our focus is on redirecting talent towards innovation and solutions that protect our citizens while contributing to global digital advancement.”

On the legal and regulatory front, Nigeria continues to review and enhance the Cybercrime Act of 2015 to keep pace with the rapidly evolving threat landscape. The law underpins a structured National Cybersecurity Architecture coordinated by the Office of the National Security Adviser.

In addition, the country operates a 24-hour cybersecurity operations centre tasked with monitoring threats, issuing advisories, and providing real-time support to government institutions, businesses, and citizens. Advanced technologies, including dark web monitoring and AI-enabled threat detection, are being deployed to enhance situational awareness and improve response times.

Inuwa emphasized that effective cyber resilience requires collaboration between public and private sectors. NITDA is working closely with ministries, departments, agencies, and private sector stakeholders to secure critical infrastructure and strengthen national resilience.

“Cyber resilience is not a solo effort; it is a collective responsibility. By integrating people, technology, and regulation, we can build a secure, globally competitive digital economy,” he added.

As Nigeria navigates a digital-first future, initiatives such as the National Digital Literacy Programme, 3 Million Tech Talent, and strengthened legal frameworks underscore a commitment to turning cybersecurity challenges into opportunities for innovation and growth.

The country’s strategy reflects a broader understanding that in an era of AI-driven threats, preparedness is as much about people and processes as it is about technology.

Kindly share this post

Telecom

Truecaller Targets Global Market with Powerful New Business Chat Push

Published

2 days ago

April 9, 2026

Ugo Onwuaso

Kindly share this post

Truecaller, the leading global communications platform, today announced the expansion of its Business Chat platform, making it accessible to global channel partners and enterprise solution providers. By “opening up” market access to its platform, Truecaller is empowering partners to transition their enterprise clients from legacy, low-trust SMS to a verified, smart, media-rich, and conversational communication experience.

Truecaller

Through this partner-led expansion, Truecaller empowers businesses to reclaim customer attention and establish immediate trust and credibility.

“The definition of success for modern enterprises has fundamentally evolved. It’s no longer just about delivery – it’s about earning attention, establishing credibility, and driving meaningful conversion,” said Priyam Bose, Global Head, GTM at Truecaller.

“By opening up market access to our global partners, we’ve created a powerful gateway for brands to engage with over 500 million active users where they already interact daily through communication that is contextual, trusted, free from clutter, and designed to initiate actions. For existing customers, the outreach opportunity extends to an additional high-impact channel, strengthening the overall customer experience journey.”

Truecaller Business Chat enables a clutter-free, high-trust conversational experience between businesses and consumers. The Business Chat platform equips partners with actionable insights, including real-time data and rich engagement metrics. This facilitates a more sophisticated, data-driven communication strategy that adapts at every stage of the customer journey.

Partners, including Gupshup and OneXtel, are already live in India along with Globe Teleservices, Cloudcom, and Sling Africa in other global markets, rapidly scaling the product in their respective regions. Global partners can now leverage Truecaller’s massive footprint to offer their clients a trustworthy engagement channel in an increasingly crowded digital world.

Kindly share this post