Telecom
NCC’s Regulatory Instruments Set to Facilitate 5G Deployment, Tackle Insecurity – Danbatta
Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC), has declared that three of the Commission’s regulatory instruments are set to offer enabling provisions that will help the country in tackling security and insurgency; as well as to enhance spectrum availability to facilitate the deployment of Fifth Generation (5G) technology.
The three instruments, which were subjected to a public inquiry on Tuesday physically and virtually, include the Spectrum Trading Guidelines (STG), Registration of Telephone Subscribers Regulations, and the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) Replacement Guidelines.
Speaking recently at a semi-virtual public inquiry, which on-site operation was conducted at the Commission’s Head Office in Abuja, Danbatta said the three regulatory instruments have been developed to address the challenges of the ever evolving communications industry and to further strengthen the market structure.
He said the public inquiry was held in line with the Commission’s consultative approach in all its regulatory interventions, as the regulatory instruments being reviewed are vital to ensuring that the regulatory frameworks that pertain to SIM registration and replacement in the communications industry meet the demands of the digital age and also further enhance the flexibility of the spectrum trading regime.
The first instrument, the Registration of Telephone Subscribers Regulations, provides a regulatory framework for the registration of subscribers of communications services utilising subscription mediums.
The second instrument, SIM Replacement Guidelines, provides guidance on the standards and procedure which Network Service Providers (NSPs) are expected to adhere to in the process of conducting a SIM Replacement, swap or upgrade.
Besides the instruments, two Business Rules that relate to SIM Registration and SIM Replacement, introduced by the Commission to further ensure that the process for SIM activation and Replacement is seamless and align with the national identity management policy.
The third instrument, the Spectrum Trading Guidelines (STG), seeks to promote certainty and transparency by outlining the detailed procedure and conditions for spectrum trading in the Nigerian communications sector.
While underscoring that the availability of spectrum frequency is a necessary element in the deployment of the 5G technology in Nigeria, Danbatta said the recent approval of the 5G Deployment Plan by the Federal Government makes the STG review process expedient.
Danbatta said the public inquiry is a precursor to the Commission’s current drive towards ensuring that frequency spectrum is readily available to licensees through a rapid and effective process.
Additionally, the EVC said that “in view of the resolve of the Federal Government to tackle insurgency and insecurity through citizen identity management, it has become necessary to ensure that the provisions of the Registration of Telephone Subscribers Regulations and SIM Replacement Guidelines are in alignment with the National Identity Policy for SIM Card Registration and related activities.”
According to him, the revision of both instruments is geared towards ensuring a more secure and robust process for the registration, activation and replacement of SIMs.
“It is, therefore, my expectation that the review will ensure a more robust framework for the registration of subscribers of communication services, improve the standards and procedures for SIM replacements and ensure effective and efficient utilisation of frequency spectrum in Nigeria,” the EVC said.
Speaking earlier, NCC’s Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Management, Adeleke Adewolu, said the draft of all the regulatory instruments had been published on the Commission’s website and comments from all stakeholders have been received and reviewed.
However, he noted that the public inquiry was meant to receive more comments from stakeholders, which would ensure that the final regulatory instruments will enhance development of the industry.
At the event, which was well attended by senior management staff of the Commission and virtually by other external stakeholders, presentations were made by the Commission on the inputs so far received from licensees and other stakeholders on each of the three regulatory instruments, highlighting issues for further rethink by all stakeholders.
The stakeholders who participated in the event virtually, were also provided the opportunity to make inputs, contribute freely to the discussions in a very frank and objective manner that elicited thoughtful discussions that will further enrich the quality of the regulatory instruments being developed for the growth of the sector and the national economy.
Telecommunications operators have resumed full SIM swap and related services following a four-week nationwide outage linked to the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC)’s migration to a new verification platform.
The outage rendered millions of subscribers unable to perform SIM-related tasks such as swaps, replacements, and activations.
Operators in the industry say the disruption began on June 26, 2025 when telcos temporarily halted SIM registrations and swaps due to unforeseen technical challenges during the transition to NIMC’s upgraded identity verification system.
The migration was mandated to enhance the integrity and efficiency of national identity management but caused major service interruptions across all Nigerian networks.
However, July 21, both MTN and Airtel confirmed via their social media handles that SIM swap services have now fully resumed.
MTN announced: “SIM swaps have now resumed. We can confirm that NIMC services are fully operational and appreciate their support in the migration to a new platform for NIN verification services for the telecommunications industry.
In a public update issued via its MTN Nigeria Support handle on X (formerly Twitter), MTN confirmed that SIM swaps have now resumed.
Telecom operators complained that the portal was unreliable or inaccessible, which resulted in the suspension of SIM swaps, number porting, and new SIM registrations, even though NIMC maintained that the platform was operating as intended.
Unexpected technical difficulties arose during the switch to the new platform, according to the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria.
Real-time NIN verification for SIM registration, replacement, and network migration was impacted by these issues.
“Unexpected technical difficulties have surfaced, impacting real-time NIN verification for SIM registration, replacement, and porting, following a recent directive from the National Identity Management Commission mandating Mobile Network Operators to transit to a new identity verification platform,” ALTON stated in a previous joint statement signed by Gbenga Adebayo, chairman, and Damian Udeh, publicity secretary.
The World Bank has affirmed that 84 per cent of adults in low-and middle-income economies, including Nigeria, own personal mobile phones.
The bank in its Global Findex 2025 report said mobile phone ownership was widespread and nearly everywhere. It said data from the Global Findex 2025 Digital Connectivity Tracker, revealed that “86 per cent of adults worldwide, and 84 per cent of adults in low- and middle-income economies, own personal mobile phones.”
The report pointed out that mobile phones and the internet had become widespread and essential to daily life in every economy around the world.
A earlier overview had indicated that Nigeria had a high mobile phone penetration rate, with estimates around 85 per cent to 87 per cent in 2024.
This translates to over 200 million mobile connections, making Nigeria a leading market in Africa for mobile phone ownership and usage. While the overall penetration is high, there’s a growing trend towards smartphone adoption, with forecasts predicting over 140 million smartphone users by 2025.
According to DataReporter, a total of 150 million cellular mobile connections were active in Nigeria in early 2025, with this figure equivalent to 64.0 per cent of the total population.
However, note that some of these connections may only include services such as voice and SMS, and some may not include access to the internet.
There were 107 million individuals using the internet in Nigeria at the start of 2025, when online penetration stood at 45.4 percent. Nigeria was home to 38.7 million social media user identities in January 2025, equating to 16.4 percent of the total population.
These headline stats offer a great overview of the “state of digital” in Nigeria at the start of 2025, but in order to make sense of how digital trends and behaviours have been evolving over time, we need to dig deeper into the data.
According to the World Bank, “as of 2024, individual ownership of mobile phones reached 86 per cent of adults worldwide.
“For many people, barely an hour goes by without their using a mobile device to make a call, ext a friend, read the news, access business information, post a meme on social media, pay for something, play a game, engage with a colleague or a customer, or search for information.
“As access to and use of digitally connected technologies increase, people, businesses, and governments place an increasingly high priority on online interactions. “Digitally connected technologies have clear, well-documented benefits.”
It further highlighted that access to mobile phones and the internet was associated with reduced poverty, increased consumption, and more employment for individuals in lowand middle-income economies.
“Women also experience these benefits, as internet access enables access to flexible jobs3 and has been shown to increase female labor force participation. “Mobile phones also facilitate information sharing.
For instance, in agricultural contexts, farmers’ access to real-time prices and buyer demand data can inform their decisions on where to sell, enhancing market efficiency and reducing the distances they would otherwise travel to get the best return for their product and time.
“Internet access also helps create jobs and aids individuals and countries in exporting goods and services,” it added. The World Bank further noted that owning a mobile phone furthermore enabled financial access through mobile money and other mobile financial services.
It added that these financial accounts and services, typically offered by mobile network operators or fintech firms and accessed via networks of local agents, were associated with lower rates of poverty, increased consumption and savings,and greater resilience to economic shocks.
Sophos, a global leader of innovative security solutions for defeating cyberattacks, today announced that it has been named a Leader in the 2025 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Endpoint Protection Platforms (EPP), marking the 16th consecutive time the company has received this recognition.
Sophos has been recognized in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Endpoint Protection Platforms (EPP) since the inaugural publication for this category in 2007.
Sophos’ market-leading endpoint security solutions include Sophos Endpoint powered by Intercept X, Sophos Extended Detection and Response (EDR/XDR), and Sophos Managed Detection and Response (MDR).
Over 300,000 organizations trust Sophos endpoint security solutions to defend against cyberthreats, including advanced remote ransomware attacks and active adversaries.
Unique to Sophos, the solution includes adaptive defenses that automatically disrupt attackers by dynamically adjusting protection levels based on threat context.
“Sophos’ strength lies in its prevention-first strategy, designed to stop breaches before they start, adapt defenses in real time, and strengthen detection and response when it matters most,” said Kyle Falkenhagen, SVP, Product Management, Sophos. “We believe that receiving this recognition in the highly competitive endpoint security market for 16 consecutive reports reflects our relentless focus on developing innovative solutions that stay ahead of the global threat landscape and the adversaries we face every day.”
Sophos and Secureworks: The future of protection, detection, and response
Following Sophos’ acquisition of Secureworks in February 2025, combining two leading and complementary portfolios to offer a comprehensive suite of solutions for small, midmarket and enterprise organizations.
Secureworks Taegis XDR customers can use Sophos Endpoint to elevate their cyber defenses, at no additional charge, delivering both improved protection and return on investment.
The integration of Secureworks also adds a new Counter Threat Unit (CTU) to the Sophos X-Ops advanced threat response joint task force, further expanding the rich threat intelligence that informs all customers’ defenses.
Backed by Sophos’ advanced security technologies and a broad network of intelligence contacts and partners, the CTU plays a critical role in identifying and tracking threat actors and analyzing anomalous activity, uncovering new attack techniques, threats, and major shifts in the threat landscape.
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