Stakeholders in the information communication technology (ICT) industry have urged the federal government to step up as a matter of urgency an agency to manage ‘right of way’ (RoW) and protect the nation’s critical IT infrastructure.
‘Right of way’ is a legal instrument allowing operators to deploy infrastructure on federal or state roads at a fee while critical IT infrastructure is the backbone of the nation’s economy, security and health.
A cross section of the stakeholders who spoke to Nigeria CommunicationsWeek at the weekend, are unhappy with the way critical IT infrastructures are left unprotected by the same government that benefits from the burgeoning sector.
Mr. Chris Erewele, executive director, Broadbased Communications (BBC) Limited, said “We pay ‘right of way’ either to the federal or the state government; it depends on the road we are operating at. On the infrastructure, we have sought for an understanding with the Lagos state government, because the digging of the ground has become something; everybody is digging and laying separate fiber. What we are asking is for a structured system where if you were there first the rest can lease capacity from you.
Beyond that, he said, “Absolutely, there is need to have a body to primarily focus on the protection of the IT infrastructure in the country. If we believe that IT is the current global biggest market we are moving into, we have to work ahead by protecting existing infrastructure. Right now, I am not aware of any agency that squarely focuses on that assignment.
Elsewhere, Engineer Gbenga Adebayo, chairman, Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), said that government must go beyond granting of licenses to eliminating those barriers such as bottlenecks in securing ‘right of way’, impediments to smooth network operations- where operators are forced to pay levies that are not legalized, and vandalisation.
He insisted that operators that secured licenses to roll out broadband services with big money are yet to invest in provision of infrastructure because of clumsy process of securing ‘right of way’ from various government agencies.
He added that unless these barriers are addressed it may be difficult for operators to invest in infrastructure that will enable provision of broadband.
Also speaking, Olusola Teniola, chief executive officer, Internet Solutions, told Nigeria CommunicationsWeek that, already the Nigeria Communication Commission (NCC) has been on the vanguard in seeking solutions to issues related to right of way; however, the 2003 Communications Act has to be fine-tuned to bestow more powers on NCC to cater for such matter.
He said the National Assembly should also work towards enacting an all inclusive law that will bequeath telecom infrastructures with the status of such as NNPC, electricity, among others.