Telecom

Consumer Advocacy in a Liberalized Telecom Sector

Published

16 years ago

May 24, 2010

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Consumer advocacy is a form of social network which protects the interests of consumers. For instance, consumers posting their reviews on consumer advocacy sites will stir companies’ behavior towards consumers. Consumer advocacy and consumer protection is linked to the idea of consumer rights (that consumers have various rights as consumers), and to the formation of consumer organizations which help consumers make better choices in the marketplace.
Telecommunications sector is the only sector of the country’s economy that consumer’s right are protected as well as give opportunity to interface with service providers. It stands on a tripod. This did not happen spontaneously. It is as a result of regulatory framework initiated by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC). The consumer wants the services to be of a good quality and affordable. The consumer wants the operator to respond at all times when he or she needs attention, and to provide explanations whenever anything goes wrong. The consumer wants to be protected at all times from being taken advantage of by service providers. Just like consumers of any services, the consumer of telecom services wants to be well treated. The commission has recognized all these and has put in place special structures to ensure that the needs and desires of the consumer are taken care of. For NCC, the consumer is the main object, the subject and the reason for their being.
Against this backdrop, that the sector has good number of consumer advocacy groups that are active in the industry which the commission is supporting to ensure that interest of consumers are taken care of, such groups include, National Association of Telecommunications Consumers Association (Natcomms), Consumer Right Project, among others.
Support for advocacy
The commission has many stakeholders in the regulatory process. These stakeholders include the government, consumers, the operators, the media, and the international community, among few others. The commission strives to meet the expectations of the many stakeholders.
The Commission is supportive of the activities of several Consumer Advocacy Groups. This is novel approach in the history of consumer care in Nigeria.
Collaboration with Consumer Protection Council (CPC): The Commission has signed an MOU with the CPC aimed at collaborating to further ensure protection of Consumers in relation to telecom service delivery.
Mr. Ken Ugbechie, executive secretary, Africa Telecom Development Initiative (ATDI), a Pan-African non Governmental Organization (NGO) committed to the development of telecom on the continent, said the telecom regulator’s revolutionary advocacy for the protection of telecom consumers in the country through the monthly telecom consumer parliament," is unequal.
According to him, upon the licensing of the Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) companies in 2001, NCC oriented itself to regulatory activism to protect the consumer, thereby raising the quality of service consciousness among operators and promotion of potentials in the nation’s ICT market.
Mr. Ugbechie also said such initiative speaks volume of a people-centric commission wholly committed to protecting the consumer in an increasingly capitalist investment environment.
He pointed out that through the Parliament, consumers have a voice and equally been heard. "More importantly, the consumer, the operator and the regulator now have a regular forum to rub minds for the overall development of the telecom sector," he declared. ATDI noted that by moving the event from one part of the country to another every month has assisted the operators to access and better appreciate their level of market penetration, quality of service delivery in addition to consumer behavior.
Government
Government is a very important stakeholder in the job of telecom regulation. The policy and the laws being implemented by the commission have been prepared and enacted by government for good of society. The government’s interest in the process also varies.
Government is interested that services are made available to the Nigerian people in a timely, qualitative and affordable manner and that activities in the sector are carried out in a legal and orderly manner. Government is also interested in creating an enabling environment that would continue to attract investment in the sector so that her desires for the people are substantially met.
The commission in all its actives is therefore mindful of the need to protect, preserve and implement actions and programmes that meet the expectations and objectives of government.
Service providers
The operators also belong to a class of stakeholders in the business of telecom regulation. Apart from obtaining their operational license, with certain obligations attached to them, the operators also expect certain obligations from government and the regulator. They expect a non partial regulator to protect their huge investment. They want the Commission to ensure that no other entity interferes with their network resources such as frequently spectrum. They expect a regulator that will not be arbitrary in decision making and one that will regulate by the rules as contained in the license agreement and provisions of the laws and regulations.
The Consumer
The commission does not just theorises about empowering the consumer in industry, it has given practical expressions to this phenomenon through actions, policies and programmes which have venerated, empowered, protected and uplifted him/her in the comity of stakeholder in the industry. Prior to the enactment of the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003, the commission had in September 2001 established a full fledged department called Consumer Affairs Bureau. The Bureau was charged with the mandate – to Protect, Inform and Educate the Nigerian telecoms consumers. This mandate has remained and irrevocable social contract between the commission and telecoms consumers in the country. At its maiden Consumer Forum at Flamingo Restaurant in Victoria Island in April 2002 and shortly after in August 2003, it launched the monthly Telecoms Consumer Parliament, a novel regulatory initiative that earned the commission, commendations not only in Nigeria, but from ITU, ICT professionals and groups across the globe. At the last count, 56 sessions of Telecoms Consumer Parliament has helped in no small measure in creating awareness of the rights of consumers and the obligations of the service providers in the resolution of their problems and concerns. It has enable operators to clarify issues pertaining to service delivery for the benefit of their subscribers and also to publicly give account of their stewardship to the people. Useful feedbacks have emanated from the programme which culminated in far-reaching regulatory interventions by the commission.
The commission has over the years proactively enunciated policies and programmes that served the interest of the consumers through promotion of competition in all segments of the telecom services portfolio to ensure that consumers have a wide range of products and services to choose from; and are not held to ransom by any service provider. Based on feedbacks received from consumers at the TCP, the commission intervened on the issue of tariff charged subscribers for calls made to customer care lines to lay consumers complaints.
In line with the commissions consumer-centric philosophy that it inaugurated a twelve-man Industry Consumer Advisory Forum, (ICAF), headed by Mrs. Ifeyinwa Umenyi the director general of the Consumer Protection Council to review the general consumer code of practice regulations by the Commission as well as facilitate consumer protection, information and educational programmes.
ICAF acts in advisory capacity, and will make recommendations to the commission regarding the interests and concerns of the consumer of ICT products and services, the interests and concerns of physically challenged and the elderly, ensure that consumers are protected from unfair practices and facilitate the review of the Consumer Code of Practice Regulations 2007 as well as make recommendations on all issues to the commission.
The commission has also defined acceptable quality of service thresholds which operators are expected to meet on the one hand, as well as sanctions in event of failure to meet those threshold. In order to ensure compliance by operators, regular monitoring by the commission of the operations of licenses across the length and breath of the country is undertaken.
Periodic reports on these monitoring activities are published on the website of the commission and in major national newspapers. To underscore the importance that the Board and management of the commission attach to improved QoS on the networks, an industry QoS Working Group was set up with members drawn from the public and private sectors of the economy.
In 2007, the commission caused to be gazetted Consumer Code of Practice Regulation which has become the reference document for both consumers and the operators. Each licensee is required to produce and submit a Code of Practice which has to be reviewed and approved by the Commission. The Code of Practice stipulates Services Level Agreements, the responsibilities and rights of each party, and procedure for resolving disagreements whenever they arise between parties.
Given the diversity of the country coupled with its geographical vastness, the commission has taken it upon itself to promote and nurture consumerism by identifying and collaborating with reputable Consumer Advocacy Groups to facilitate nation-wide consumer protection and empowerment as a precondition for orderly and sustainable growth and development for the telecoms industry in Nigeria.
Nigerians are craving for the replication of consumerism initiatives in telecommunications sector of the country’s economy in other sectors where consumers are badly treated without recourse to rules guiding service provision in those sectors. Among such sectors are energy, financial, healthy and housing.

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Telecom

Xenophobia: MTN Nigeria Belongs to Nigerians, Not Only South Africans — Toriola

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1 hour ago

July 4, 2026

Ebere Melum-Nwogbo

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Karl Toriola, chief executive officer, MTN Nigeria, has stated that the telecom company is “a Nigerian company through and through,” emphasising that it belongs as much to Nigerians as to its global investors, with over 11 million Nigerians holding indirect stakes through pension funds.

Xenophobia: MTN Nigeria Belongs to Nigerians, Not Only South Africans — Toriola

Toriola also defended the federal government’s approval of telecom tariff adjustments, noting that the move helped prevent a financial crisis in the sector and enabled the company to ramp up capital expenditure to about N1 trillion in 2025 to improve network quality.

Speaking during an interview on Arise News, the MTN boss dismissed claims that the company is solely South African, despite its origins.

According to him, MTN Nigeria is incorporated locally, listed on the Nigerian Exchange, pays taxes in Nigeria, and is largely managed by Nigerians.

“We are labelled as a South African company because MTN Group was founded in South Africa. But the reality is that MTN Group has a very diverse global shareholding. Only about 50 percent of the shareholding is African, while the rest is held by investors from North America, Europe, the United Kingdom, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific,” he said.

Speaking further on MTN Nigeria’s identity, Toriola stressed the company’s deep roots in the Nigerian economy.

“MTN Nigeria is a Nigerian company through and through. We are domiciled in Nigeria. We are listed on the Nigerian Exchange. We pay all the taxes, duties and levies expected of us, and we are run by Nigerians.

“I am Nigerian. Apart from one executive, every member of our executive committee is Nigerian, while our entire expatriate workforce in Nigeria is just four people.

“We have over 201,000 retail investors, while about 11 million Nigerians own MTN shares indirectly through pension funds. We are very proud of our Nigerian identity,” he stated.

On the recent telecom tariff adjustment, Toriola said the increase was driven by necessity rather than profit motives, noting that operators were struggling to meet basic financial obligations before the review.

“People perceived the tariff increase as an aspiration for profitability, but the reality was that we were on our knees financially. We couldn’t even pay our month-to-month bills with the revenues we were generating. The tariff adjustment was an absolute necessity. It enabled us to stay alive,” he said.

He added that the improved revenue base has enabled MTN to scale up infrastructure investments to enhance service delivery.

“In the first quarter of this year alone, we spent N390 billion on capital expenditure, compared with a profit after tax of N359 billion. That shows our commitment to improving quality of service,” he said.

Addressing concerns over poor network quality, Toriola attributed the challenges to increasing demand, infrastructure gaps, vandalism, insecurity, and unreliable power supply.

“There are people who deliberately pour petrol into our manholes and set them on fire. A single incident can knock out services for millions of subscribers. We also face security challenges that prevent our engineers from quickly accessing some sites.

“In addition, we operate about 18,000 sites nationwide, each requiring generators, batteries, rectifiers and constant fuelling because of inadequate public electricity supply. All these affect quality of service,” he explained.

While acknowledging that service quality still needs improvement, he assured customers of continued investment.

“We are not perfect, but we are investing aggressively and continuously striving to do better,” he added.

On allegations that telecom operators deliberately deplete customers’ data, Toriola said findings often point to background data usage by smartphone applications.

“There is a perception that MTN goes and takes customers’ data, but our studies have shown repeatedly that background applications are consuming much of that data.

“I encourage customers to check their device settings. Daily automatic backups are unnecessary for many users. If possible, carry out backups over Wi-Fi instead of mobile data,” he advised.

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Telecom

MTN Nigeria Celebrates Volunteers at Y’ello Care Impact Showcase

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1 hour ago

July 4, 2026

Ugo Onwuaso

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MTN Nigeria celebrated its 2026 edition of the 25 Days of Y’ello Care employee volunteerism initiative with an impact showcase held at the MTN Rooftop, Ikoyi, on Wednesday, June 24, 2026.

MTN Nigeria

This year’s edition saw employees move beyond financial donations to invest their time, skills, and even their blood [donations] into underserved communities across the country.

The impact showcase served as a reflection point on weeks of intensive outreach, including the recent medical intervention at Badore Market in Ajah, where traders received free screenings for hypertension, diabetes, and other non-communicable diseases which schools benefit from and many more.

Hundreds of market women, artisans, and residents benefited from on-the-spot consultations, medications, and health education sessions led by MTN staff volunteers.

In Lagos, the initiative brought critical health and wellness resources directly to the youth at Kuramo Senior College. Volunteers led intensive health awareness campaigns and structured medical outreach programmes, equipping students with vital information on preventive care and personal well-being.

Simultaneously, the regional execution extended to the nation’s capital to support the busy transit community at Utako Motor Park in Jabi, Abuja.

This regional activation targeted transport workers and commuters with the “Know Your Numbers” campaign, providing accessible basic health screenings, general wellness education, and essential medical checkups designed to promote long-term preventive healthcare.

Setting the tone for the ceremony, Ayham Moussa, Chief Operating Officer, MTN Nigeria, praised the dedication of staff volunteers who consistently showed up across the campaign’s field activations. “From day one, we said we don’t just give money we sacrifice, we put in the effort, we go to the field, and we even give our blood.

“Not many companies are doing what we are doing today. We are one of the very few making this kind of big impact,” he said.

Building on that sentiment, Odunayo Sanya, Executive Director of the MTN Foundation, celebrated the cultural shift the initiative has triggered both inside and outside the organisation. “The greatest takeaway from Y’ello Care is that it confronts you with your privilege and helps you channel that privilege in the right direction.

“Someone told me today that she never knew MTN would do these kinds of things in the market. We are changing the narrative of what MTN means to communities,” she noted.

The impact showcase ultimately reinforced that Y’ello Care is a sustained movement embedded in MTN Nigeria’s corporate culture. With healthier markets, empowered communities, and inspired employees as visible proof of impact, the company signaled that its commitment to equitable health and social good will continue well beyond the 25 days shaping a future where business and purpose remain inseparable.

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Telecom

Listicle: 10 Essential Meta Safety Tools Every Parent and Teen Should Know

Published

1 hour ago

July 4, 2026

Ugo Onwuaso

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As teens spend more time online connecting, creating, and exploring their interests, safety needs to be built into their digital experiences.

Listicle: 10 Essential Meta Safety Tools Every Parent and Teen Should Know

To ensure safe, age-appropriate online experiences for teens, Meta has Teen Accounts to give parents more peace of mind and address their top concerns: making sure teens see age-appropriate content and don’t experience unwanted contact.

Here are 10 ways Teen Accounts are helping create safer and more positive online experiences for young people.

Teen Accounts Are Private by Default: Teen Accounts automatically come with private settings enabled. This means teens must approve new followers, and people who don’t follow them cannot view or interact with their content. And with Teen Accounts teens under 16 need a parent’s permission to change any settings to be less strict.
Stricter Messaging Controls Reduce Unwanted Contact: Teen Accounts are automatically placed in the strictest messaging settings, allowing messages only from people teens already follow or are connected to.
Sensitive Content Is Limited Automatically: Teens are automatically enrolled in Teen Accounts and defaulted into 13+ age appropriate content settings, These settings help create a more age-appropriate experience by limiting exposure to sensitive content such as violence, graphic imagery or content promoting cosmetic procedures. Teens also won’t be able to follow, message or see accounts that regularly share age-inappropriate content, or whose profile photo, name or bio suggests the account may not be suitable for younger users.
Protections Against Bullying Are Built In: Meta automatically enables its strongest anti-bullying protections for Teen Accounts. Hidden Words filters offensive language from comments and message requests, helping create a more positive experience.
Tagging and Mentions Are More Controlled: To reduce unwanted interactions, teens can only be tagged or mentioned by people they already follow.
Screen Time Reminders Encourage Healthier Habits: After 60 minutes of daily usage, teens receive reminders encouraging them to take a break from the app and spend time offline.
Sleep Mode Supports Better Digital Wellbeing: Teen Accounts automatically switch to Sleep Mode between 10 PM and 7 AM, muting notifications and sending automatic replies to direct messages overnight.
Parents Can See Who Their Teens Are Chatting With: While parents cannot read their teen’s messages, supervision tools allow them to view who their teen has messaged over the previous seven days, creating greater transparency while respecting privacy.
Parents Can Set Time Limits and Usage Schedules: Parents can establish daily Instagram usage limits and block access during specific times, such as school hours, study periods, or overnight.
Family Center Gives Parents Resources and Support: Meta’s Family Center brings all parental tools across Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger into one hub, so parents can manage and supervise their teen’s experiences more easily. Parents can also see the topics their teen has chosen to explore, and access expert-backed resources to help them have meaningful conversations about being online.
Building Safer Digital Experiences Together

Teen Accounts are designed to help parents feel more confident about their teens’ online experiences while empowering young people to connect, create, and discover content in age-appropriate ways. Combined with parental supervision tools, Family Center resources, and digital literacy initiatives, Teen Accounts represent Meta’s ongoing commitment to creating safer online spaces for young people and their families.

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