Telecom
Stakeholders Canvass for Concerted Effort in ICT Local Content Development
Stakeholders in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector have urged the federal government to do everything in its powers to support local content in ICT.
They stated this at the Nigeria Information and Communications Technology Reporters’ Association’s (NITRA), quarterly forum with the theme, “Local content development in Nigeria’s ICT sector: stimulant for national economic recovery” held on Thursday in Lagos.
Chris Uwaje, Director General, Delta State Innovation Hub, in his keynote address called on federal government to create national strategy on software development as well create a park where people can work and come out with productive output.
He noted that Nigerian technology space is underfunded and unprotected and thereby urged the government to ensure that 10% of its national budget is earmarked for the development of ICT sector in the country.
He explained that local content development is a topical issue in the country, stressing that local content is when a product is developed in Nigeria by Nigerians or anywhere else in the world but the product does not require foreign remittance.
Uwaje, commended Systemspec for developing Treasury Single Account for the federal government, noting that they deserve national merit award for harmonizing government accounts into one.
He called on attendees to imbibe local content in creating their passwords with local languages as these will reduce the chances of cybercrime attack to 50%.
“I call on you all to change your passwords to Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba and any other Nigerian languages through this you will reduce the chances of cyber crime attacks to 50%.
“In china, Russia and other countries they do not use English to create their passwords, they use their local languages and this thereby reduced the chances of them being attacked by hackers because they may not understand local language used in creating the password”
He also called on government to build knowledge labs in our schools to ensure bottom up growth for our children in ICT development.
Speaking earlier, Emma Okonji, Chairman, Nigeria Information and Communications Technology Reporters’ Association (NITRA), said that the main thrust of NITRA as an umbrella body of all practicing ICT journalists in Nigeria is to drive ICT development and ensure accurate and robust ICT reportage.
He noted that this quarterly seminar is in line with the association’s noble vision of driving ICT development and creating a platform where issues of national interest would be discussed.
He stated that the incursion of Financial Technology (FinTech) players into the country’s financial sector has led to digital disruption in the banking sector.
He decried the lack of support and patronage from government agencies and organisations towards these startups who have developed home grown technology solutions with the best of quality that are commercially viable in addressing specific and organisational challenges in the country, to foreign software and hardware solutions.
He said, “Since the incursion of Financial Technology (FinTech) players into the country’s financial sector that has led to digital disruption in the banking sector, we have witnessed the growth of several FinTechs and technology startups.
“The FinTechs and startups have developed home grown technology solutions with the best of quality and are commercially viable in addressing specific and organisational challenges, but they lack support and patronage from government agencies and organisations who still prefer foreign software and hardware solutions, to the detriment of locally developed products.
“NITRA strongly believe that if the right support is given to FinTechs and technology startups, it will not only boost local production that will enhance job creation, but will also help the federal government and the Nigerian economy to save huge revenue that would have left the country for the purchase foreign solutions and products.”
He called on the federal government to urgently formulate new policies that will ensure full implementation of polices that will protect local content in Nigeria.
He commended the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) for its Local Content Guidelines initiative that seeks to help restructure and develop a strong indigenous ICT industry, adding that they should give such guidelines the utmost attention it deserves, especially in the area of implementation.
Okonji, also commended SystemSpecs for developing Remita that is driving the country’s Treasury Single Account (TSA) and other electronic payment systems in the country.
“The Association is proud of SystemSpecs, one of the leading FinTechs in the country for developing Remita, the indigenous software solution that is driving the country’s Treasury Single Account (TSA) and other electronic payment systems in the country.
“We also commend the federal government for believing in the local solution called Remita that is currently doing the country proud in the area of electronic payment system.
“We encourage other FinTechs and technology startups to develop quality solutions that can address specific, organisational and our collective national challenges, he stated.
Telecommunication companies have threatened to withdraw their Unstructured Supplementary Services Data (USSD), services from banks over what they called misinformation.
MTN Nigeria, Airtel, Globacom and 9Mobile- the telcos disclosed that the banks’ notice to their customers on the new billing system and airtime deductions for USSD services was misleading.
Also, Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) also denied that the directive was from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
USSD is done via shortcodes on mobile phones and allows bank customers to make transactions in places with limited or no internet service.
Recall that banks earlier this week claimed that NCC has directed them to begin charging them from their airtime rather than from customers’ accounts.
The notice from the banks read in part: “In line with the directive of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), please be informed that effective June 3, 2025, charges for USSD banking services will no longer be deducted from your bank account.
“Going forward, these charges will be deducted directly from your mobile airtime balance in accordance with the NCC’s End-User Billing (EUB) model.
“Under this new billing structure, each USSD session will attract a charge of ?6.98 per 120 seconds, which will be billed by your mobile network operator.
“You will receive a consent prompt at the start of each session, and airtime will only be deducted upon your confirmation and availability of the bank to fulfil this service.
“If you do not wish to continue using USSD banking under this new model, you may choose to discontinue use of the USSD channel.”
Reacting, ALTON, umbrella body of telecom operators in Nigeria, said the banks’ notice is a gross misinformation deliberately hatched to suit their selfish interests.
Hence they threatened to withdraw network support to the banks’ USSD services.
Engr Gbenga Adebayo, chairman of ALTON told Vanguard: ” I don’t understand why the banks are twisting agreements and distorting information just to favour their selfish interests. In the first place, the information wasn’t a directive from the NCC but a joint regulatory agreement between the NCC and the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN witnessed by the telcos and the banks. The agreement was that if the banks finally cleared all USSD debts owed to the telcos by June 2, 2025, they are free to migrate to the end-user billing method, so long as the model of migration is transparent and agreed upon by the telcos.
“The reason for that clause was because the telcos insisted that the process of migration is such that will not allow a customer to be billed twice; in other words, that a subscriber would not have his airtime deducted and also have his or her money deducted for same services from his or her bank account.
” As we speak, some of the banks have cleared their debts, but the majority are yet to do so. So, even if all the modalities of migrating to end-user billing have been perfectly carried out, the implementation cannot even begin because the banks are yet to clear the USSD debt owed to the telcos.
“Our position now is that if that is the way the banks want to treat the agreement, we may withdraw support for their USSD services. It is not a must-have. They can do without it. But, they should clear the debts as agreed,” he added.
MTN Nigeria has announced plans to embark on a massive capital expenditure (CAPEX) drive in 2025, committing nearly N900 billion to significantly enhance network service quality across Nigeria.
Dr. Karl Toriola, CEO, MTN Nigeria,
The substantial investment, more than double the combined CAPEX of approximately N440 billion spent in 2023 and 2024, underscored MTN’s aggressive strategy to address persistent service quality issues and meet growing customer and regulatory expectations.
Dr. Karl Toriola, CEO, MTN Nigeria, detailed this unprecedented financial commitment during a recent interview on Arise TV, emphasizing that improving service quality is the company’s paramount message for the year.
He highlighted a clear understanding and expectation from both the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and security agencies for improved network quality.
A primary focus of this increased CAPEX will be on putting additional capacity in a city like Lagos, particularly in Abuja, where you have a lot of buildings coming up, you need additional sites because there are coverage issues.
Beyond these critical urban centers, the investment aims to bolster network resilience and ensure power stability for its infrastructure nationwide.
This includes proactively addressing site outages by ensuring timely payment for operational necessities such as diesel for generators, a persistent challenge in the Nigerian operating environment.
Toriola outlined a comprehensive upgrade process, which involves placing orders formally, opening letters of credit, and then the equipment gets shipped in and installed.
He added that MTN will be acquiring new sites and laying fiber to the base station to create better stability” where necessary.
While the immediate CAPEX is geared towards improving existing service quality and capacity, this investment aligns with MTN’s broader goals of enhancing financial inclusion in underserved rural areas, suggesting a long-term vision for network expansion and service improvement that extends beyond metropolitan areas.
Subscribers can anticipate tangible improvements in service quality, with a significant improvement in quality of service expected by the end of the second quarter or early in the third quarter of 2025, according to Toriola.
“This year is all going to be about capital expenditure on an aggressive basis to fix quality of service issues (and) meet both the regulators’ and the public’s expectations,” he affirmed, reiterating MTN’s steadfast focus on customer experience through substantial capital investment.
Telecom regulators and industry leaders from across the Middle East and Africa gathered in Cairo last week to chart a data-driven future for the region.
In a region where digital transformation is accelerating at unprecedented speed, connectivity intelligence firm, Ookla and Egypt’s National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA) joined forces to organise the Telecommunications Regulatory Summit
Themed ‘Harnessing Data and Technology for Superior QoS’, the summit focused on how data, particularly crowdsourced insights, can transform regulatory strategies across the region.
The summit attracted stakeholders from over 30 countries, including delegates from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and World Broadband Association (WBBA), who engaged in high-level discussions on optimising network performance and accelerating digital inclusion.
Karim Yaici, lead industry analyst for the Middle East and Africa at Ookla, said the event set the tone for the growing value of data-driven decision-making.
“Access to and the use of crowdsourced data contribute to making more informed decisions, fostering transparency and ensuring that citizens in the MEA region benefit from high-quality, accessible and affordable connectivity,” he said.
The experts underlined that crowdsourced data is becoming a critical complement to traditional regulatory methods.
They agreed that it helps identify service gaps, prioritise infrastructure investments, and drive innovation.
With broadband speeds now closely tied to GDP growth and productivity, accurate performance data is seen as key to socio-economic advancement.
Dr. Hossam Abdel-Mawla, vice-president of technical affairs and quality of service at NTRA, stressed that the summit was pivotal in fostering regional collaboration.
“By actively sharing best practices and exploring innovative data-driven strategies, we are shaping a future where telecom regulations ensure digital inclusion and economic growth across the region,” he said.
In a key session, Ahmed Nabawy, director of client services at Ookla, presented findings on 5G performance in Egypt and Tunisia.
He demonstrated how Ookla’s unified data platform, powered by AI, enables operators to analyse 5G-capable device density and prioritise high-impact rollout areas.
The summit also explored the shift from conventional network quality metrics to more user-centric Quality of Experience models. These advanced analytics tools promise to enhance transparency, improve accountability, and ultimately deliver better connectivity experiences for all.
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