News
NRTP: FG Mute on Kano Zone
The federal government has said that it is yet to take any decision on the Kano zone of the National Rural Telephony Project, a part of the little successful $200 million initiative conceived in 2001 to take telephony services to the rural areas, Nigeria CommunicationsWeek can now reveal.
Bid for the zone was canceled in 2006 after the companies that bidded for it failed to meet the requirements. The zone comprises Kano, Kaduna, Bauchi, Yobe, Gombe, Borno, Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto, Kebbi, Jigawa and Plateau.
This puts to bed news making rounds that the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) and ministry of Communications Technology have opened fresh bids for the zone.
But Chukwuma Nwokoh, head of Communications, Bureau of Public Enterprise, said the agency has no role presently in the National Rural Telephony project.
Also reacting, Engr. John Ayodele, director, Telecom and Postal Services at the ministry of Communications Technology, said that the ministry has not taken any decision on the zone.
The reactions are coming on heels of claims by some members of Association of Rural Telephony Operators of Nigeria (ARTON), who claimed that the federal government has given them the go ahead to bid for Kano zone.
According to them, the guideline as contained in the fresh Request for Proposals (RFP), stipulates that only companies that emerged as preferred bidders in the first process are eligible to bid for the zone.
But Ayodele, explained that ARTON had made a proposal to the ministry that they are coming together as one network to operate in all the zones because of their mono-frequency.
According to him, ARTON also proposed that Kano zone should be included in the basket instead of handing it over to another operator.
Ayodele added that the ministry has not taken any decision on the proposal let alone taking it to federal government for consideration.
There has been renewed interest in the Rural Telephony Project after Nigeria CommunicationsWeek reported recently that the initiative is caught in a web of claims and counter charges.
NRTP which began under former President Olusegun Obasanjo administration about 11 years ago was to cover 218 local government areas in the first phase and provide over 636,256 Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) lines in the 774 local government areas and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in the second phase to bridge the digital divide between the urban and rural areas.
The government had borrowed $200 million from the China Export Import (EXIM) Bank and provided 15 per cent counterpart funding of N5 billion to execute the project but years down the line, the project is yet to make an impact.
But stakeholders have also queried the credentials of the companies to take telephony to communities in Nigeria which have not heard a telephone ring or create over 10 million jobs directly.
Nigeria CommunicationsWeek gathered that the project was dead on arrival due largely to its faulty design and execution.
Three Chinese companies – ZTE Corporation, Huawei and Shangai Bell – were awarded the NRTP contract to take telephony services to the rural areas but ended up building only exchanges.
Sensing it could not run the project, the federal government in 2009, transferred the second phase to G-cell Wireless Limited, Hezomic Limited, Key Communications Limited, Suburban Broadband Limited and Voicewares Network Limited.
They were to build, operate and maintain the project in the different zones under the modeled of a Lease, Operate and Own (LOO) framework.
The selection process followed a competitive bidding process prescribed by the World Bank for privatization and concession transactions and undertaken in the most transparent manner possible.
The operators were supposed to operate the networks for a period of 10 years within which they would pay a specified amount of money to the government.
But awardees said that they are yet to take possession some four years after the award because of some bureaucratic bottlenecks.
Atte Ayodeji, a Nigerian computer scientist,has developed an artificial intelligence algorithm capable of detecting, counting, grouping and generating healthy hair follicles during hair transplant procedures, an innovation that earned him the Best Innovative Technology award.
Atte Ayodeji
Ayodeji also graduated with a Distinction in his Master of Science (MSc) in Computer Science from Birmingham City University on Friday, adding another milestone to an impressive academic year.
Beyond his award-winning hair transplant innovation, the Nigerian researcher developed a system and framework on Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) as a professional responsibility in the diagnosis of lung cancer.
His dissertation received a silver award at the PGXPO2026 Winter, further highlighting the impact of his research in applying artificial intelligence to healthcare.
Sunday Dare, special adviser on Media and Public Communication to President Tinubu, celebrated Ayodeji’s achievements in a post on X, recalling how he first met him in 2019 during his National Youth Service.
“In 2019 when I became a Minister of the Republic, I met a young man of medium height, genteel with penetrating eyes: Atte Ayodeji. His words rarely come out and he could easily be passed by unnoticed. But I noticed him especially when my SA Kemi Areola brought him to me asking my approval for him to do his Youth Service in my office. I approved. From then on he was unstoppable. His brilliance shown and he developed skills beyond his frame.”
Highlighting Ayodeji’s recent accomplishments, Dare congratulated him saying, “Congratulations Atte. I am proud of you!”
Mr. Joseph Tegbe, minister of Power, has said that the federal government plans to end power sector subsidies from 2027 and that there are no immediate plans for tariff increases.
Mr. Joseph Tegbe, minister of Power
The minister told journalists during the media interactive session at the weekend that the government has announced plans to phase out electricity subsidy payments from 2027 as part of efforts to address mounting liabilities in the power sector.
He explained that the planned removal forms part of the broader reforms aimed at ensuring the long-term sustainability of the electricity sector, while tackling the financial challenges confronting the industry.
According to the minister, despite the planned subsidy withdrawal, there are no immediate plans to increase electricity tariffs, reassuring consumers that the government is not considering a tariff hike in the short term.
Patience Okala, the National Coordinator and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria AfCFTA Coordination Office has urged African countries to stop exporting raw materials and instead focus on adding value to its natural resources if it is to fully harness the opportunities offered by the African Continental Free Trade Area.
She stated this on Thursday at the Streamsowers & Köhn 20th Anniversary Business Forum, where she stressed that value addition and beneficiation are essential to Africa’s industrialisation and long-term economic growth.
According to a statement issued on Friday by the Nigeria AfCFTA Coordination Office, she said the AfCFTA goes beyond the elimination of tariffs, serving as a framework for industrialisation, value addition, and job creation across the continent.
“AfCFTA is not only about tariffs; it is also about value addition. Africa has to stop exporting raw materials. We need to add value and ensure that beneficiation is done on the continent,” she said.
Okala also said Africa’s economic transformation would depend on the effective implementation of the AfCFTA rather than on the signing of trade agreements alone.
“We have moved beyond negotiations. The success of AfCFTA will be measured by the extent to which businesses can access new markets, trade seamlessly across borders, and benefit from the opportunities created by the agreement,” she said.
She noted that Nigeria had intensified efforts to implement the agreement under the leadership of the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, including the development of simplified AfCFTA guides in six languages to help businesses understand and take advantage of opportunities under the trade pact.
Okala called for stronger collaboration among governments, regulators, and the private sector to eliminate barriers to trade and investment and build a truly integrated African market.
“As we move from policy to implementation, our collective responsibility is to ensure that the opportunities created by AfCFTA become practical realities for businesses, particularly MSMEs, women-owned enterprises, and young entrepreneurs across the continent,” she said.
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