Telecom
Telcos, NCC Tackle NASS as Rep Seeks Rejig of Communications Act
Isiaka Ibrahim, member of the House of Representatives, has called for a review of the Nigerian Communications Act (NCA), which guides operations and regulations in the country’s telecommunications sector.
But telecommunications companies in Nigeria and the apex regulator are urging the National Assembly to designate ICT infrastructure as critical to make vandalism of such infrastructure punishable by law.
Continuing with his argument, Ibrahim, who is also a member of the House Committee on Communications, said the 16-year-old law had become archaic and not in tune with the realities of today’s telecommunications, hence, the need for a review.
He said the Act, which came into force in 2003, was due for review in view of the dynamism in technology world.
“We are elected to make laws for the good of the people and we are waiting for the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to bring a proposal for the amendment of the NCA because it has become old and needs to be fine-tuned in line with current realities,” he said.
However, reacting to the call, Senator Olabiyi Durojaiye, chairman of NCC said the sector was more concerned about the Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) Bill, which has been before the National Assembly for over two years.
Durojaiye, once a lawmaker, said the review of the NCA may not be necessary now as laws are made to last long.
“The National Assembly needs to first of all look at the Critical National Infrastructure Bill, which has been before them for over two years now. We need to protect the telecommunications infrastructure first before talking about changing our law. The act of wilful vandalism of telecommunications equipment must be criminalised and that is why we want the National Assembly to consider this first and pass the CNI Bill into law,” the NCC chairman said.
Several telecoms stakeholders had before now called on the government to come up with a policy to protect telecom infrastructure by declaring it critical national asset.
Among them was Engr Gbenga Adebayo, chairman of Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON).
According to him, telecommunication infrastructure should be seen as a critical infrastructure that makes vandalisation of such infrastructure a security risk highly punishable by law.
He recalled that there used to be a law against stealing of NITEL infrastructure and that helped in no small measure in protecting the assets of the company.
With the delay of the CNI bill, the ALTON chairman also called on President Muhammadu Buhari to issue an executive order proclaiming telecoms services as critical national security and economic infrastructure as prescribed by the Cybersecurity Act 2015.
Adebayo noted that the telecom industry supported many other sectors of the economy.
“We are also the first layer of critical infrastructure for socio-economic development and security. It is pertinent to state that unless telecoms facilities have first level of protection by government, it will be difficult to provide uninterrupted services to the citizenry,’’ he noted.
Also speaking, Olusola Teniola, president, Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), called on the Nigeria Police Force, National Security Adviser to the President and other security agents to assist the industry in protecting of critical Infrastructure that ICT infrastructure is now under.
“This will help improve QoS and reduce the costs of repairs in the industry to a nominal level,” he said.
The ATCON president noted that the infrastructure that was being rolled out for support broadband services needed to be fully protected from vandalism, theft, and destruction and therefore the enforcement of the CNI under the cybercrime bill needs to be enacted without any further delay.
According to Teniola, when base stations are shut down wilfully and telecom facilities are vandalised without bringing the culprits to book, not only quality of service is affected but investor confidence is eroded.
“We cannot achieve the national broadband target or improve quality of service with non-implementation of laws meant to protect facilities and infrastructures that are deemed to be national assets. This is another challenge that has impeded the growth of the sector in the sense that some miscreants have turned it to their businesses to destroy the telecom masts and towers.
“The cybercrime law treats telecoms infrastructure as a critical national infrastructure in Nigeria, but we are worried that nobody is implementing it,” he said.
Telecom
IHS Nigeria Hosts Telecom Industry Stakeholders to Discuss Protection of Critical National Infrastructure in Lagos State
IHS Nigeria, part of the IHS Holding Limited (NYSE: IHS) (“IHS Towers”) group, one of the largest independent owners, operators, and developers of shared communications infrastructure in the world by tower count, recently hosted a high-level meeting of stakeholders in the telecommunications industry including regulators and law enforcement agencies, at its corporate headquarters in Lagos.
The meeting was organized to develop a multi-stakeholder action plan for the protection of Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII) assets in Lagos state.
Recognizing the importance of communications infrastructure as the backbone of national security, economic growth and social cohesion, the stakeholders at the meeting convened under the umbrella of the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) agreed on the urgent need for collaborative solutions to ensure the protection of these vital assets.
The meeting was attended by senior representatives from the telecommunications stakeholder groups and regulatory bodies including the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) and the Lagos State Infrastructure Maintenance and Regulatory Agency (LASIMRA).
Also in attendance were representatives from the Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), and InfraCos as well as the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), the security agency tasked with the protection of Critical National Infrastructure across the country.
Following extensive deliberations, the stakeholders resolved to establish a working group dedicated to addressing key industry challenges, including the vandalization and theft of telecommunications infrastructure, arbitrary shutdown of base stations, fiber cuts due to road construction and the denial of access by unauthorized individuals by leveraging technology for real-time monitoring and protection, strengthening security measures around telecommunication sites and collaborating more with the security and regulatory agencies to mitigate these challenges.
The stakeholders underscored the need to prioritize deterrence and prevention of these incidents and highlighted the importance of public awareness campaigns to sensitize the host communities and public of the need to protect telecommunications infrastructure in their localities.
Dapo Otunla, Senior Vice President & Chief Corporate Services Officer of IHS Nigeria, commented, “The protection of Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII) has been a critical concern for all industry stakeholders.
“We are experiencing daily losses of assets, which significantly impact on the quality of service delivered to subscribers. Addressing these issues is paramount to sustaining Nigeria’s digital ecosystem and meeting regulatory expectations.”
Over 1ooo athletes are already set to participate in the upcoming MTN Champs Continental Relays, taking place between April 9 and April 12 at the UNILAG and Yabatech Sports complexes. Organisers anticipate even more registrations before the April 2 deadline.
MTN Champs is Nigeria’s largest grassroots sports competition, a collaboration between MTN Nigeria and Making of Champs (MoC), providing a platform for young athletes to showcase their talents and potentially represent Nigeria on the global stage.
Osaze Ebueku, Senior Manager, Go-to-Market at MTN Nigeria at the opening ceremony of the MTN Champs Classics events in Benin had emphasised the long-term vision behind MTN Champs: “We’re building future Olympians for Nigeria. MTN Champs is about more than competition. It’s about changing lives.”
The continental relays mark the second leg of the MTN Champs Season 3, following the Classics competition in Benin, which saw 4,371 event entries from 2,056 athletes.
As of March 24, the Lagos leg had already recorded 2,821 event entries across different age categories, highlighting the growing enthusiasm around the competition.
The registered athletes are spread across four categories, with 174 in the Cadet (U-14) category, 388 in Youth (U-17), 270 in Junior (U-20), and 279 in the Senior category.
To ensure smooth participation, organisers have outlined important guidelines. Athletes in the Cadet, Youth, and Junior categories must submit a signed Parental Consent Form, while all registered schools and athletes must collect their competition bibs by April 8 at the competition venue to confirm their participation and secure their place on the start list.
Sports enthusiasts can look forward to an electrifying showcase of emerging talent, as young athletes seize the opportunity to prove their skills on a professional stage.
Telecom
Again, Labour Fumes, Threatens Shutdown of Telcos over Non-Implementation of 15 Percent Tariff Reduction
Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) is threatening to shut down operations of telecommunications companies over their refusal to comment on the 15 percent reduction in telecom tariffs.
Recall that that organised labour, through the NLC, forced the federal government and NCC to reduce the telecommunications tariff hike from 50% to 35% after threatening to shut down telecom operations and the NCC in response to what it saw as exploitative economic policies amidst excruciating suffering, hardship, and deepening poverty.
The government had previously formed a 10-member committee, consisting of five government and NLC representatives, to deliberate on the thorny topic of tariff hikes within two weeks and report back before making a final decision on the new telecom tariff structure.
Consequently, on Friday, February 21, 2025, the committee, at a meeting conducted in the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) that lasted nearly three hours, decided on a 15 per cent tariff cut.
According to reports, in accordance with the conditions of the agreement, an official communiqué announcing the tariff reduction was scheduled to be released on Saturday, February 22.
According to Chronicle,iIt was said that the meeting began at 4:00 p.m. and concluded around 7:00 p.m., during which NLC representatives insisted that the tariff hike be withdrawn.
According to sources, after significant pressure from NLC representatives in the 10-man committee, the government and NCC gave up and agreed on the 15% decrease, which the government or NCC should have announced the next day.
However, at the time of this report, no such announcement has been made.
Leaders of the labour union are not taking the government’s failure to announce or implement the 15% tariff decrease lightly, suspecting that they have been duped.
The Labour leaders have therefore resolved to directly confront the NCC and telecommunications operators next week.
Though it has been reported that the date for the start of the industrial action against the NCC and telecom providers has been set and mobilisation is underway, the information is being closely guarded.
One of the leaders of the NLC stated that “We have received directives to commence mobilisation since last week. In fact, the date for the commencement of industrial action against the NCC and telecommunication operators’ offices across the country has been fixed. We have been warned not to disclose the date because the plan is to take all concerned by surprise. We are not giving any notice because we thought we had resolved this matter over a month ago. It is as if we have been scammed. Therefore, we have decided to confront the matter head-on.”
On February 12, the NLC expressed outrage over telecommunications companies’ tariff hikes, despite an earlier agreement with the Federal Government and the NCC.
According to the Labour union, “If the telecommunications companies fail to revert to the old tariff by the end of February 2025, a total shutdown of their operations nationwide will commence on March 1, 2025.”
To demonstrate its seriousness, the NLC declared that, as a first step in resisting the arbitrary tariff hike, it directed that workers and other willing citizens boycott the services of MTN, AIRTEL, and GLO daily between 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. until the end.
On Tuesday, February 11, NLC leaders issued a communiqué at the conclusion of their Central Working Committee (CWC) meeting in Lokoja, Kogi State, urging workers and citizens to suspend data purchases from telecommunications companies, which have also become one of their most effective tools for exploiting Nigerian citizens.
The communiqué, signed by Joe Ajaero and Emma Ugboaja, Congress’ President and General Secretary, respectively, instructed NLC State Councils and industrial union affiliates to quickly sensitise and mobilise their members and the general public in their jurisdictions.
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