Telecoms investment now $77bn, impacting economy positively – NCC

The Executive Vice-Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission, Prof. Umar Danbatta, says telecoms investment inflow grew from $38 billion to $77 billion as of the second quarter of 2023.

Danbatta spoke at a parley with Media stakeholders in Kano on Saturday, pointing out that  that the sector had contributed about 16 per cent to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product within the second quarter.

He said that the statistics by the NCC was based on the computation by the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics.

“From about eight percent contribution to GDP in 2015, when I came on board as the EVC of NCC, quarterly GDP has increased significantly to reach its current threshold of 16 percent.

“And this has continued to positively impact all aspects of the economy.”

According to him, telephone users in Nigeria had hit 218.9 million, internet subscribers 159.5 million, while broadband users in the country now are 88.7 million within the period under review.

Danbatta listed issues of Right of Way (RoW), fiber cuts, the high capital requirement for deployment, multiple taxations, and regulations, among other frustrations constituting barriers to broadband deployment in the country.

The EVC said that the commission would establish an emergency communication center in each of the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.