Telecom
Telecoms Key To Economic Diversification in Nigeria – Danbatta

Prof. Umar Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman/CEO, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has described as key the role of telecommunications to the diversification of the nation’s economy.
Prof. Danbatta made this assertion in his presentation to Course 29 Participants at the National Defence College, Nigeria, on Monday.
Speaking on a theme, “The Telecommumcations Industry and Nanonal Development in Nigeria: The Roles of the NCC in Promotmg Digital Economy”, he said, telecoms sector is the life-wire that will drive the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) of the Federal Government.”
He noted that the sector plays a dual role of contributing to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and being an enabler to other sectors of the economy.
“Telecommunications is key to the diversification of the Nigerian economy, as the telecom sector played a dual role of contributing to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and being an enabler to other sectors of the economy,” he said.
The EVC informed that the commission remitted over N362.34 billion as revenue in five (5) years to the Federal Government’s consolidated revenue account.
He listed fixed broadband Infrastructure gap, Right of Way (RoW), Foreign Exchange, Vandalism of telecoms infrastructure, Electric Power Supply, Multiple Taxations and regulations as some of the challenges bedeviling the industry.
On fixed broadband infrastructure gap, he said, the commission will bolster the exiting fibre optic infrastructure across the country by 38,296 km through the infraCo project Initiative.
On Row, the NCC boss said, the engagement with the Nigeria Governors Forum on adoption of N145/m as RoW fees has yielded results in Kaduna, Katsina, Imo, Ekiti and Plateau State.
He urged other states governments to key into the success of the digital economy drive by reducing RoW fees and other charges targeting telecom service providers.
Danbatta’s paper delved into a range of issues, including the correlation between broadband and GDP, telecom contribution to national development, telecom investment trend in Nigeria, telecom contribution to digital economy, conceptualisation of digital economy among others.
In his remarks, the Commandant of the National Defence College, Rear Admiral Mackson Kadiri, appreciated the EVC, describing his paper as indepth, incisive and timely, giving the pivotal role the telecom sector plays in ensuring National Security and National Development.
Telecom
PAT Taps Osi as CEO

Pan African Towers (PAT), a Nigerian infrastructure provider serving 9mobile and Spectranet, has appointed Echezona Osi as chief executive officer.

Echezona Osi
Adefolarin Ogunsanya, company’s, board chairman, explained in a statement that Osi would succeed Oladipo Badru, whose tenure lasted nine months in acting CEO position. Osi has more than 28 years of experience in the telecommunications sector across various regions of Africa.
Prior to his appointment as CEO, he had served as the head of network deployment at Airtel Nigeria, operations director and chief technical information officer at MIC Tanzania, chief technology officer roles at IPT PowerTech Nigeria, Rhino Niger Networks and Biswal Nigeria.
He obtained a degree in electrical/ electronic engineering from the University of Benin and a postgraduate diploma in data science and business analytics from the University of Texas.
Telecom
NCC Introduces N10m Licence Fee for Bulk SMS Service

Companies sending bulk international text messages, also known as Application-to-Person (A2P) messages, will now have apply for a licence that costs N10 million.
This is part of new rules introduced by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) aimed at cleaning up the system, fighting fraud, blocking spam messages and stopping money from leaving the country unchecked.
These A2P messages are the kind customers get from banks, online stores, hospitals and political campaigns, automated texts sent from apps to their phones.
According to the commission, the bulk international text message system has been poorly regulated, allowing misuse and invasion of privacy.
“The International SMS Service Ecosystem in Nigeria has not been fully brought under regulatory control. It has been observed that the excessive use of the Short Message Service has led to fraud, spam and illegal activities,” the NCC said.
The regulator warned that without action, the problem would worsen as more people use mobile phones and digital services.
To solve this, the NCC is creating a central platform, or gateway, through which all international bulk text messages must pass through.
The agency said this would help to monitor messages in real time, ensure proper fees are paid, and make sure the money stays in Nigeria where it can contribute to the economy.
As part of the incoming change, service providers must follow strict rules, including strong data protection, spam filters, and message encryption.
Also, they must also work with local mobile networks and make sure all messages come from a verified sender
The NCC warned that any message without a proper sender ID will be blocked and not delivered to users.
To protect users from unwanted texts, the new rules say companies must get clear permission before sending any promotional content.
The rule also says people must also be able to choose whether they want to receive such messages or not.
Companies are now required to keep records of all messages for at least six months and must clearly state all charges involved.
The NCC said fees for help requests, cancellations, or service info must be transparent and not include hidden charges.
The commission will issue licences to several providers to encourage healthy competition but may limit new licences if needed.
Only companies that show they can stop fraud and safely deliver messages will be allowed to operate. They must also regularly report their message traffic and finances to the NCC.
It warned that any company that breaks the rules risks getting fined, suspended, or having its licence revoked.
Offences like charging illegal tariffs, ignoring security rules, or avoiding taxes will be punished, the NCC said.
The commission added that the new rules follow the Nigerian Data Protection Act 2023 and support the federal government’s goal of strengthening cybersecurity and controlling Nigeria’s digital space.
The framework will also be reviewed from time to time to keep up with new technology and market trends.
Telecom
MTN Nigeria Targets $1Bn Cloud Market with Largest Modular Data Centre

MTN Nigeria has launched what it claims is the country’s largest prefabricated modular data centre, marking a bold push into the country’s fast-growing cloud market and taking aim at global giants such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud.

Karl Toriola, CEO, MTN Nigeria.
The shift comes as demand for cloud services in Nigeria soars — driven by the uptake of mobile apps, fintech tools and e-learning platforms — while foreign providers have become costlier in the wake of the naira’s sharp devaluation.
“This is one of the biggest data centres in West Africa and probably one of the biggest in Africa,” said Karl Toriola, CEO, MTN Nigeria.
He described the new Tier III-certified facility, with locally hosted cloud services, as “transformative for the technology ecosystem in Nigeria and very supportive of the federal government’s agenda”.
MTN Nigeria, the country’s largest telecoms provider, has so far invested $120m in the first phase, delivering an IT load of 4.5MW. A second phase, set to double capacity to 9MW, is budgeted at $135m.
“We already have data centres that are running our existing capacities,” Toriola said.
“We will go to 9MW in short order, possibly 14MW, and we can expand even further.”
He said the facility would allow local hosting for tech developers, large enterprises including banks and oil companies, and government agencies — markets long dominated by foreign cloud providers.
“Multinational companies such as Netflix, Facebook and Instagram can also host a lot of their data here. That improves the quality of service and reduces the cost of storage,” he added.
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