Telecom
NCC Restates Commitment to Fund Research as VCs Attend Roundtable
Prof. Adeolu Akande, chairman of the Board of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has restated the commitment of the Commission to commit more funds to research and prototypes resulting from grants from the Commission to the academia.
This is coming at the backdrop of the recent revelation that the Commission has committed more than N500 million in funding research across the Nigerian universities.
Akande told a gathering of vice chancellors and professors from universities in the southern parts of the country at a roundtable conference at the Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, that the Commission acknowledges the importance of working with stakeholders to engender innovations and build indigenous technological capabilities that would strengthen the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) ecosystem.
“We want to use this opportunity to assure you that the Commission will continue to give support to the educational sector in the interest of national development.
“We will also continue to encourage research and innovation in Nigeria’s tertiary institutions,” Akande said, explaining that the essence of the roundtable was to dialogue with the academia, industry and other stakeholders on how research efforts and prottotypes can be transformed into commercially-viable products that solve real-life problems.
“Consequently, the Commission will continue to allocate the requisite resources to research, development and innovations necessary for the industry to continue to contribute to the socio-economic development of the country,” Akande said.
Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, executive vice chairman of NCC, represented by Josphine Amuwa, director, Legal and Regulatory Services of the Commission, said academia is a key driver of innovation in all spheres of human endeavour.
He said this is why his leadership at the Commission is determined to not only give grants to the academia but also support the commercialisation of the prototypes developed to deepen the indigenous technological capabilities which would support the overall development of the industry.
Ubale Maska, executive commissioner, Technical Services, NCC, who was represented by Bako Wakil, director, Technical Standards and Network Integrity at the Commission, revealed that the Commission had, so far, awarded a total of 49 telecom-based research grants to the academia out of which 10 prototypes have been successfully developed.
“We are hopeful that these sessions will culminate in the development of common framework that would facilitate the commercialisation of the existing prototypes and future research outcomes (prototypes) for the benefit of the economy and the industry,” he stated.
Coming shortly after a similar roundtable in Kano for the northern region, the event organised by the Research prototypes and Development R&D Department of the Commission, was aimed at bringing together Resources persons, business savvy industry experts, the academia, relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), entrepreneurs and renowned individuals who have successfully commercialised their inventions to brainstorm on the way forward for research output commercialisation.
Telecom
Report Says 71 Percent of Nigerians Don’t Have Access to Regular Internet
A recent report by the Groupe Special Mobile Association (GSMA) revealed that a significant 71% of Nigerians do not have regular access to mobile internet.
“While 29 per cent of Nigerians are regularly using mobile internet, there remains untapped potential; 71 per cent are not accessing these services regularly. An improved policy environment has the potential to help the industry boost coverage and adoption, resulting in 15 million additional internet users by 2028.
However, the sector faces challenges to infrastructure deployment,” the report stated.
The details of the study were disclosed during the report’s launch in Abuja, highlighting a critical gap in digital connectivity amidst ongoing discussions about possible tariff increases by Nigerian telecom operators.
The telecom industry is currently advocating for an increase in tariffs to counter various operational challenges. However, the government is pushing for alternative solutions rather than price hikes.
The GSMA report underscored the challenges hindering the expansion of telecom coverage, which include cumbersome and costly rights-of-way acquisition processes and a complex tax environment. These factors collectively make it difficult for the industry to sustain investment levels.
Despite these hurdles, the report optimistically noted that Nigeria could add 15 million internet users by 2028 with appropriate policy adjustments. It emphasized that achieving universal access to digital connectivity hinges on a wider digital transformation of the Nigerian economy.
The report details the sector’s challenges, stating that “An improved policy environment has the potential to help the industry boost coverage and adoption, resulting in 15 million additional internet users by 2028. However, the sector faces challenges to infrastructure deployment.”
The report also identified key obstacles, such as the rigorous process of securing rights of way and a layered tax regime, which together increase operational costs and stymie sustainable investments. Added financial pressures from rising fuel prices and increased governmental fees further strain telecom operators’ ability to maintain healthy investment flows.
The GSMA report recommended several policy measures to foster a more enabling economic and regulatory environment for the mobile industry.
These include establishing a legal framework to protect critical national infrastructure, simplifying rights-of-way issuance, reducing the tax burden, and cultivating a regulatory climate conducive to robust investment.
“Future policies should be geared towards reducing the cost and complexity of infrastructure rollout to encourage investment and boost the adoption of mobile broadband,” the report advised.
It further highlighted the far-reaching implications of such policy enhancements, noting, “The impact of such actions would go far beyond mobile, driving productivity gains across the economy and creating millions of new jobs in Nigeria.”
Telecom
MTN Group Weighs Down by Nigerian Operations
MTN Group (MTNJ.J), Africa’s biggest telecoms operator, reported on Tuesday an 18.8 per cent fall in first-quarter service revenue, weighed down by the performance of MTN Nigeria
MTN, with 288 million subscribers in 18 markets across Africa, said its reported group service revenue fell to 42.9 billion rand ($2.34 billion) in the quarter ended March 31, from 52.8 billion rand in the same quarter last year.
In constant currency, service revenue, which excludes device and SIM card revenue, rose by 11.1%.
MTN’s service revenue from South Africa surpassed that of Nigeria, its biggest market by revenue, growing marginally by 3% to 10.4 billion rand, while Nigeria tumbled by 52.8% to 10.2 billion rand.
“The macro environment in the first quarter of 2024 remained challenging with ongoing high inflation as well as local currency devaluations in some of our key markets,” Ralph Mupita, group president and CEO said in a statement.
Mupita also cited global geopolitical tensions as a factor impacting the operator’s performance, including the ongoing civil war in Sudan, which severely affected network availability and revenue generation in that business.
MTN was also impacted by subsea cable cuts that resulted in downtime.
Overall reported group earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) fell by 28.7% to 17.2 billion rand and rose by 3.9% in constant currency.
Reported EBITDA margin declined by 5.8 percentage points to 37.9% due to rising costs and currency depreciation mainly in Nigeria.
The group revised down its anticipated capital expenditure (excluding leases) deployment for 2024 to about 28 billion rand to 33 billion rand from a target of 35 billion rand to 39 billion rand, largely due to a reduction in expected spending by MTN Nigeria.
Telecom
Airtel Excites Business Owners with Unlimited Speed Plan
Telecommunications network, Airtel Nigeria has introduced a groundbreaking new service for business owners called the Enterprise Business Broadband (EBB) Speed Based Plans 3.0. This specially designed plan offers unparalleled connectivity and flexibility with unlimited monthly plans.
Tailored to meet the diverse needs of enterprises, the new EBB plans feature unlimited internet connectivity options, providing the opportunity to without data limitations. Customers also get a chance to select from three dynamic options, from as low as N20, 000 to N60, 000.
The N20, 000 monthly subscription delivers internet speeds of up to 20Mbps, the N35, 000 subscription offers up to 40 Mbps, and, with the N50, 000 monthly subscription users can experience ultimate reliability and speeds of up to 60Mbps, which is perfect for large organizations with high bandwidth requirements.
Speaking on the new unlimited plan, Chief Commercial Officer, Airtel Nigeria, Femi Oshinlaja emphasized the transformative impact of the new unlimited plan.
“We have seen the early adopters of the Speed Based Plans 3.0 express their satisfaction after using this service and we are confident to say that the uninterrupted internet service is a game-changer for business owners.
“We are committed to continuously providing innovative solutions that empower businesses to thrive in the digital landscape, ensuring unparalleled connectivity and reliability for our valued customers,” he said.
According to Airtel, customers get a complimentary router upon purchase. The speed plan also allows customers to have the flexibility to set data usage limits and control access to specific websites on the router, promoting responsible internet usage.
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