Telecom
Danbatta Says NCC Plans to Develop Local Content Policy to Reduce Youth Unemployment
Prof. Umar Danbatta, executive vice-chairman (EVC), Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has said that the commission is ready to fully develop local content policy in the country, to reduce youth unemployment.
Local Content Policy is an Act which defines a Nigerian Company to mean a Company registered in Nigeria in accordance with the provisions of the CAMA.
With not less than 51 per cent equity shares owned by Nigerians mandates investors in the sector to consider Nigerian content is an important element in project development.
Danbatta, represented by Mrs Felicia Onwegbuchulam, Director of Consumer Affairs Bureau, NCC stated this on Tuesday in Abuja when members of the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry visited the commission.
He said that NCC was happy about the entrepreneurial training programme that the chamber had in place for youths.
“We just came back from a retreat and one of the high points is that we hope to have local content fully developed in the country.
“If you notice, most of the things we used in the Telecom industry are imported and we believe that the industry has developed to a point that we should begin to produce those things.
“One of the ways we can achieve that is by harnessing the potential in our youths.
“It is quite interesting that your organisation has put something in place as a number of youths graduated from the training recently, “ he said.
Danbatta said that training of youths was one area the commission would partner with the chamber, as one of the things the commission was looking forward to in ensuring drastic reduction in unemployment rate.
He said that NCC goal was to empower the youths by making them employers of labour rather that allowing them to stroll the streets in search of jobs not available.
“ We have creative minds, as most people go out of the country and excel with enabling environment they can also do well here. ‘’
Danbatta said that NCC would continue to partner with the chamber, adding that strategic partnership was one of the strong pillars of the commission.
“We partner with people that add value to what we do and organisations that support our endeavour to ensure we deliver on our mandate as a commission and your chamber is one of them.
Earlier, Alhaji Abubakar AI-Mujtaba, first Deputy President, Abuja, Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that the chamber had been in existence for 31 years with about 3,000 members.
“Our coming here is not only on a courtesy visit, but also to consolidate on the relationship we have built over the years between NCC and the chamber.
“The more of people like you we have, the stronger we become.
“We are also inviting the EVC to become an honourary council member, he had accepted and we are happy with that, ‘’ he said.
Mrs Tonia Shoyele, Director –General of Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that the chamber had four centres: Abuja Trade Centre, Dispute Resolution Centre, Policy and Advocacy Centre and Business Entrepreneurial Skills and technology Centre.
Shoyele said that the chamber trained people on vocational skills, adding that a month ago, it graduated about 240 youths in photography, website design, drawing and other things.
She said the chamber had an Information Communication Technology (ICT) Incubator hub where it could partner with NCC as part of its Corporate Social Responsibilities(CSR).
“We assist in the training of youths for phone repairs and get things right in the telecommunication sector.
“We ask for more support to ensure the success of our upcoming trade fair later in the year, “he said.
National Association of Telecoms Subscribers (NATCOMS), a telecoms subscriber body, has warned Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) not accede to demands by telecommunications companies in the country to hike tariff, insisting that such increase would unleash further hardships on its members.
Chief Deolu Ogunbanjo, president, NATCOMS said in statement that the group in a recent emergency meeting over the planned tariff hike of telecommunication services, unanimously voted against any tariff hike.
Ogunbanjo, said telecoms services are taxable services under the Value Added Tax Act.
The Act was amended in 2019 by the Finance Act of that year to raise the tax rate from five per cent to 7.5per cent which was 50per cent increment and the increment has been borne by the consumers of rateable telecom services.
“That increment brought about untold hardship to our members many of who have been forced to cut back on their telecom requirements.
“As if that was not bad enough, the Federal Government got the National Assembly to enact the Finance Act of 2020. Section 37 of the Act amended Section 21 of the Customs, Excise Tariff etc. (Consolidation) Act by imposing an excise duty charge on Telecommunication Services. The then president, President Muhammadu Buhari by an order prescribed five per cent as the rate of the excise duty charge, chargeable for telecommunication services. The additional tax burden was greeted with public outcry and this association, at the prompting of our members, challenged the excise duty charge in court, in the case of Registered Trustees of National Association of Telecommunications Subscribers (NATCOMS) V MTN Nigeria Communications Limited and Others – Suit No: FHC/L/ CS / 189) 2023 on the ground of double taxation which is illegal and unconstitutional.
NCC and other Federal Bodies are parties to the suit and the Federal Government as represented by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) entered an appearance and filed processes opposing the suit. The case is now pending before Hon. Justice Aluko, sitting at the Lagos Division of the Federal High Court, and the case is slated to come up in the court on the 13th March, 2025,” Ogunbanjo said.
Mafab Communications, a Nigerian telecommunications company that acquired a 5G license in 2021, is set to begin operations by the end of the first quarter of 2025, according to Adebayo Onigbanjo, chief operating officer of the company.
Onigbanjo who shared this update with TechCabal, this launch will mark the first time Mafab’s services will be available commercially, nearly three years after the company entered the 5G market.
The company plans to roll out its 5G services with 102 operational sites located in Kano and Abuja.
Subscribers will need to purchase routers to access the network. Mafab is also working with multiple vendors to develop these sites in phases as part of its strategy for deployment.
Mafab Communications obtained its 5G license on the same day as MTN.
However, while MTN launched its 5G services within eight months, Mafab, being a newer entrant, experienced delays in deploying its network due to insufficient telecom infrastructure.
These challenges were further exacerbated by the company’s delay in receiving its Unified Access Service License (UASL) and numbering plan, which was only granted in July 2022.
This situation led Mafab to seek an extension from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), postponing its initial rollout deadline to January 2023.
Following its launch event in January 2023, the company began promoting the sale of 5G routers on its website.
However, buyers quickly discovered that they could not activate the service, as uncovered by TechCabal.
Consequently, the sale of these routers has been suspended while the company focuses on completing its infrastructure buildout.
Despite the early stage of the 5G market in Nigeria, these delays have put Mafab at a disadvantage, leaving it to catch up with competitors like MTN and Airtel, particularly in Lagos, the country’s bustling commercial hub where most 5G subscribers are currently concentrated.
Although Mafab is actively working on its Lagos sites, the company has yet to announce when services will officially launch in the city.
According to Onigbanjo, foreign exchange (FX) fluctuations have posed a significant challenge, leading to higher rollout costs than initially projected—a difficulty faced by many telecom operators.
Since its commercial introduction in August 2022, Nigeria’s 5G market has experienced steady growth, spearheaded by MTN Nigeria.
By October 2024, 5G services accounted for 2.33% of the nation’s internet subscribers, with MTN Nigeria commanding a 79% market share and Airtel Africa holding roughly 20%.
Mafab’s anticipated rollout in Q1 is expected to further drive 5G adoption, particularly in cities beyond Lagos and Abuja.
The company has prioritized building robust infrastructure and extending its coverage in Kano and Abuja to support broader access to 5G services.
According to Onigbanjo, this includes developing a Radio Access Network (RAN), transport systems, and intelligent networks designed to connect various user devices—ranging from smartphones to IoT gadgets—to the company’s core telecom network.
Telecommunication companies in Nigeria are lobbying their regulator for permission to double price tariffs to weather harsh economic conditions and inflation running near a three-decade high.
“We’ve put forward requests of approximately a 100% increase” to the regulator, Karl Toriola, chief executive officer of MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, told Lagos-based Arise TV.
“There’s no way that the industry could continue to sustain itself and provide the required quality of service under the present structure,” he said.
The industry has been stepping up efforts for permission to relax pricing rules that have been in place for 11 years, amid surging annual inflation that touched 34.6% in November, and the steep depreciation of the naira against the dollar.
If the pricing issue is resolved, Toriola is optimistic 2025 will be a good year for operators.
The unit of MTN Group Ltd. plans to grow voice and data revenue this year by increasing coverage of rural areas as well as 5G broadband penetration, he said.
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