Telecom
NITDA, Airtel to Provide Digital Literacy Through Corporate Social Responsibilities
In line with the National Data Protection Regulation, NDPR, the National Information Technology Development Agency NITDA, is going into partnership with AIRTEL Nigeria to provide digital literacy platforms through joint Corporate Social Responsibilities.
Kashifu Inuwa, CCIE, the Director-General of NITDA, proposed this initiative while receiving Mr. Surendran Chemmenkotil, the Managing Director/CEO of Airtel Nigeria and his management team on a courtesy visit to the Agency’s headquarters in Abuja.
Inuwa explained that NITDA’s regulation is not to stifle innovation or to be a constraint to businesses but to level the field for innovations to thrive. “IT is dynamic, it is changing; new things are coming; we must be innovative in the way we regulate because our regulation is not to put unnecessary stumbles in the business environment but to make it easier’’, he said.
“Government’s role in business is to intervene in terms of policy, infrastructure in the unserved and underserved communities. We all know the key role data plays today and what is happening globally around campaign on data privacy, surveillance capitalism and so on, explained the NITDA DG.
He stated further, that it is not only about collecting the data but how it is utilised matter the most. “The focus on data privacy is to let people be conscious and have ethical values, with the realization that these data belong to human being and should be adequately protected”.
While intimating his visitors on possible areas of partnership, Inuwa disclosed that NITDA have a lot of initiatives that are targeted at igniting activities in the technology ecosystem to create more demand for Airtel services.
“We are doing a lot around digital literacy and digital entrepreneurship that enables the use of digital devices to increase revenue for the data providers,” he explained.
He stated that at NITDA the focus is to bring innovation into traditional, as well as emerging resources, identify new market, create non consumer market values, so that there would be shared incentives that keeps both parties in business.
The NITDA boss averred that the partnership, through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) can promote the implementation of digital literacy, an ambitious target of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration projection of achieving 95% by 2030.
Mr. Ibrahim Umar, the Agency’s Director of Finance, commended Airtel for its compliance in remitting its annual levy of 1% profit before tax to the Information Technology Fund that is usually collected by the Federal Inland Revenue Services.
In his speech, Dr. Vincent Olatunji, the National Commissioner, Nigerian Data Protection Bureau (NDPB), affirmed that the issue of data is key globally, he added, “there is hardly anything we can do now without going online. Every aspect of our life is being digitized and the core of it is data.”
He further revealed that the NDPR gave birth to the Bureau. Mr. President graciously approved the creation of based on the recommendation of the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, about three weeks ago.
He noted that stakeholders would be seeing a lot of actions from the Bureau soon especially in area of capacity building which is key to the development of IT.
He reiterated that data protection is a global issue, and whatever capacity we have here in Nigeria will be the same in any part of the world.
He advised Airtel to have its data protection team that would oversee data and advise management on what to do in terms of awareness, capacity, organizational and technological measures that need to be put in place, to ensure that the data of Nigerians are adequately protected.
He finally implored the Airtel management to report any breach in data protection to the Bureau within 72 hours.
The Managing Director/CEO of Airtel Nigeria excitedly said that he is amazed with the extent of work carried out by NITDA, especially in compliance with the NDPR.
Localised, industrial-grade artificial intelligence (AI) data centre infrastructure will be delivered across Africa and the Global South, following a strategic alliance between sovereign AI infrastructure company Amini, electronics manufacturing giant Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn) and French digital firm Bull.
The three-way partnership aims to close the sovereign compute gap by allowing governments, telecommunications operators, financial institutions and energy companies to acquire and operate computing systems domestically.
Africa’s digital economy is projected to reach $1.5 trillion by 2030, which is driving regional demand for AI-enabled services across public administration, energy and finance, the parties say.
However, advanced cloud and AI processing capabilities have historically remained concentrated within a small number of external providers. The partnership seeks to establish locally anchored infrastructure, enabling domestic organisations to retain control over data and digital sovereignty.
Under the agreement, Amini will drive local market engagement and deployment, leveraging its existing platforms for locally anchored data capacity.
Foxconn will provide specialised hardware, server architecture and modular data centre technologies in its first dedicated infrastructure initiative focused on African markets.
Bull integrates its expertise in high-performance computing, quantum computing and emerging-market digital capacity. By operating independent systems, critical national sectors can bypass reliance on external platform architectures.
Financial entities can deploy independent credit, risk assessment and financial inclusion algorithms, while energy providers can implement localised machine learning for predictive maintenance and national grid optimisation.
“AI is becoming foundational infrastructure for every economy, yet most of the world still lacks the compute capacity required to participate on its own terms,” said Kate Kallot, founder and CEO of Amini. “This partnership ensures that Africa and the Global South can acquire, own and operate AI infrastructure locally, with sovereignty and long-term economic value at its core.”
Alexandre Jouys, chief commercial officer and head of Southern Europe, Middle East and Africa at Bull, added that Africa and more generally the Global South have the potential to emerge as a global-scale AI hub, by continuing to build regional computing capacity and supply chain independence.
The organizing committee of the 2026 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum (NDSF) on Internet Governance for Development (IG4D) is proud to announce Dr. Olusola Teniola as the Chairman for this year’s landmark event.
A seasoned leader with over 32 years of global experience in the telecommunications and technology sectors, Dr. Teniola brings a wealth of strategic expertise to the forum.
The Convener of NDSF and Group Executive Editor, ITREALMS Media group, Ogbuefi Remmy Nweke, welcomed the appointment, noting that Dr. Teniola’s leadership comes at a pivotal time for Nigeria’s digital economy.
Dr. Teniola currently serves as the Director of Strategic Business Initiatives at ipNX Nigeria, where he leads market expansion across West and Central Africa.
His recent contributions as a Digital Development Consultant to the World Bank Group for the May 2025 Country Private Sector Diagnostic report further underscore the high-level expertise he brings to the 2026 forum.
Dr. Teniola’s career is defined by high-impact leadership and infrastructure development:
- He previously served as COO for Oodua Infraco Resource Limited, overseeing the deployment of 870km of digital infrastructure in Southwest Nigeria.
- He is the past President of the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) and succeeded Dr. Ernest Ndukwe as the National Coordinator for the Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4ai).
- His background includes executive roles at global giants such as British Telecom, Vodafone, Cisco Inc, and Alcatel-Lucent Technologies.
- He has been a vital contributor to the Nigerian Broadband Plan (2012-2013 and 2020-2025) and currently serves on the IPv6 Council.
Dr. Teniola holds a B.Eng (Hons) in Computer & Information Engineering from South Bank University, an MBA from the University of Bath School of Management, and an Honorary Doctorate (DBA) from Prowess University.
He is a Fellow of the MSME Institute of Management & Professional Studies and a member of the Chartered Institute of Directors (IoD) Nigeria.
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) says ongoing investments and regulatory interventions in the telecommunications sector are expected to address persistent quality of service challenges across the country.
NCC
In a statement signed by the Head of Public Affairs, Nnenna Ukoha, on Wednesday, the commission acknowledged public concerns over dropped calls, slow internet speeds, unstable data services and service disruptions affecting consumers.
The commission said telecommunications services had become central to work, education, business, access to essential services and social connectivity, adding that consumers deserved reliable services and value for money.
According to the NCC, improving quality of service has remained a major regulatory priority over the past two years.
It said the commission had intensified monitoring of Mobile Network Operators, Internet Service Providers and Tower Companies, while strengthening data-driven oversight and stakeholder engagement to address structural challenges affecting service delivery.
The commission disclosed that the sector was undergoing one of its largest network expansion and modernisation phases in recent years following a prolonged period of under-investment.
It said Mobile Network Operators invested more than N2.13 trillion in network infrastructure and upgrades in 2025, while Tower Companies invested an additional N373.8 billion.
According to the NCC, the investments supported the addition and upgrade of more than 2,800 telecommunications sites nationwide to improve network coverage and capacity.
The commission said interventions included deployment of additional 4G and 5G infrastructure, fibre backhaul expansion, targeted deployments in high-demand urban areas, expansion into underserved communities and equipment upgrades.
It added that operators had committed to adding or upgrading more than 12,000 sites in 2026, with nearly 3,000 already completed.
The NCC also said over 730 additional 5G sites had been deployed across 27 states in 2026.
The commission noted that 4G penetration rose from 45 per cent in January 2024 to 54 per cent currently, while national median download speeds improved from 16.5Mbps to 20Mbps within the same period.
It further said power availability at telecom towers improved from a national average of 99.3 per cent in January 2025 to 99.7 per cent.
According to the commission, spectrum reallocation among major operators and spectrum block rearrangements were also being implemented to improve network efficiency and service performance.
The NCC, however, acknowledged persistent external challenges affecting service quality, including vandalism, theft of telecom equipment, fibre cuts, power disruptions and access denial for maintenance.
It disclosed that more than 27,000 avoidable fibre-cut incidents linked mainly to road construction and vandalism were recorded in 2025.
The commission said it was collaborating with the Office of the National Security Adviser and other stakeholders to implement the Presidential Order on Critical National Information Infrastructure.
It added that operators had been mandated to notify consumers of major service outages promptly and restore services within specified timeframes.
The NCC said enforcement of the updated Quality of Service Regulations 2024 commenced in November 2025, including consumer compensation measures for poor service quality and additional investment obligations on Tower Companies.
It warned that regulatory action would continue against operators that fail to deliver measurable improvements.
The commission reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring affordable, reliable and high-quality telecommunications services for all Nigerians.
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