News
Gwandu Urges Ethiopia to Learn from Nigeria’s Telecom Deregulation
Dr. Bashir Gwandu, non-executive chair of the Commonwealth ITU Group (CIG) and the former commissioner of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has advised Ethiopia to learn from Nigeria as it moves ahead to liberalize its telecommunications industry for private sector investment.
Dr. Gwandu stated this while delivering his lead keynote speech at the opening of the Innovation Africa Digital Summit (IAD) 2019 in Addis Ababa last week graced by telecoms executives and governments from Africa and around the world.
Senior executives from Vodacom Group, MTN Group, Etisalat, Safaricom, France Orange, Vodafone, ZTE, Huawei, Ericsson, Cisco, Airbus, Helios Towers, OneWeb, Mastercard, Intelsat, Thuraya, IBM, IFC, and several others attended the summit which also attracted Ministers from Africa, most especially the West and East Africa sub-regions.
The summit was opened by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed accompanied by some of his Ministers. It was anchored by Extensia of the UK -co-organiser of the IAD Summit. The period of the conference coincided with the time a proclamation is being tabled before the Ethiopian Parliament for debate and consideration to liberalise the country’s telecom sector.
According to Reuters, Ethiopia’s telecoms market is considered to be ‘the big price’ and the last greenfield site in a push to liberalise, and end a state monopoly as well as open-up one of the world’s last major closed telecoms markets.
In his speech at the conference, Dr. Gwandu dissected the telecoms market privatisation and liberalisation processes breaking the issues logically from the point of producing succinct legal frameworks for both the privatisation, and that of the telecoms regulation, right down to the market design and to the choices available to the government when it comes to competition planning up to the spectrum management and eventually service providers regulation.
He stated the need for strong and good regulatory framework, encompassing sensible set of rules that encourages investment and protects the consumer and requiring, effective, professionally competent and sufficiently empowered as well as sufficiently financed regulatory institution.
He emphasize that “Good enable laws are not just sufficient but government support must be total and not half-hearted, coupled with adequate funding that would attract good manpower to the regulator.”
Dr. Gwandu, a former acting executive vice chairman at NCC opined that government role should be restricted to policy formulation whilst a strong, independent regulatory authority should provide stable, transparent, fair, and non-discriminatory access to telecommunications resources in a timely manner.
He said the legal framework apart from guaranteeing independence of the regulator, must enable flexibility of the regulator whist remaining predictable, efficient, effective and accountable. “It should be the role of the regulator to ensure the existence of competition in all segments of the market devoid of market abuse or the exercise of significant market power by the participants” he said.
Gwandu emphasized that, “Liberalization of telecom market is essential for rapid network growth as experienced by other countries and private sector participation is essential for attracting investment. Innovation and new technologies in the telecoms sector is fast moving, it cannot wait for slow government bureaucracy to be approving investment funding and yet compete effectively.”
Bashir Gwandu stated that in looking holistically at the telecoms market, international segment should be examined where the complimentary options of international optical fibre and satellite links can be made available in a competitive manner.
According to him, international gateway liberalization and national backbone planning should ensure ubiquitous availability, open access, and finally on the last mile the spectrum remains key in view of the lack of sufficient last-mile fixed infrastructure.
He further stated that “Mobile is the largest technology platform in human history and mobile broadband is the most dynamic segment of the last mile market. Spectrum is a critical resource for mobile broadband but is only valuable if it is effectively deployed to enable appropriate networks and services for socio-economic benefits to citizens.”
Gwandu emphasised further that as wired infrastructure is limited in Africa except perhaps in South Africa, it is expensive to install. Wireless technology on the other hand is easier and faster to deploy and remains critical to expanding broadband access, and spectrum access is critical for wireless broadband deployment, and capacity.
“Robust wireless broadband requires various bands and appropriate slots size for assignment, the slot size determines how many towers an operator will need to cover the area, or re-use pattern or indeed how soon break-even will happen, how sustainable or profitable the telco will be etc” he said. He cited the mistake made by Nigeria in providing just over three megahertz (MHz) to Code Division Mobile Access (CDMA) operators and expected them to perform.
At the international level, he encourage Ethiopia to participate actively in the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and African Telecommunications Union (ATU) activities to enhance regulatory harmonisation, thereby promoting economies of scale and enhancing cooperation on roaming, interoperability, Internet exchange points, and development of backhaul infrastructure.
He posited that Ethiopia should align spectrum release and technology neutrality roadmap to enable flexibility in investment, and in spectrum auction process, he advised the government to set objectives properly and to balance pricing of spectrum with rollout obligations.
“For rapid expansion of networks, Ethiopian government which controls land across the country should streamlined approval for Right of Way (RoW) and site acquisition, and to make the process a simple and one-stop shop activity” he admonished.
He also stated that tax holiday has proven to be useful in some markets but even more importantly, multiplicity of sector specific taxes should be avoided and that the multiplier effect of deferred-taxation will lead to more tax revenue from the sectors that are supported by the telecoms.
Furthermore, Gwandu stated that competition planning should be examined carefully so that resulting companies should remain sustainable –and in selling spectrum, the regulator should ensure appropriate sizes, and also not to sell out all available spectrum at once, which will reduce chances of corrective measures in respect of future competition corrective-intervention.
The Ethiopian government thought it wise to invite telecoms experts from around the world, potential Investors and other market players to partake in the unique forum that examined the best practices that the country can learn from, in its quest to restructure and open its telecoms market for foreign participation.
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has called on Mr. Bayo Bashir Ojulari, group chief executive officer, Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPCL) Limited, to provide clarification regarding the missing N500 billion.
According to the World Bank, this sum was not remitted to the Federation Account between October and December 2024.
SERAP is urging accountability and transparency in addressing this financial discrepancy.
SERAP urged Mr Ojulari “to identify those suspected to be involved, surcharge them for the full amount involved, and hand them over to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for investigation and prosecution.”
SERAP also urged Mr Ojulari “to invite the EFCC and ICPC to investigate the spending and whereabouts of the N500 billion, and to ensure the full recovery and remittance of the money to the Federation Account without further delay.
Last week, the World Bank disclosed that out of the N1.1 trillion revenue from crude sales and other income in 2024, the NNPC only remitted N600 billion, leaving a deficit of N500 billion unaccounted for. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) also recently called for the subsidy removal savings to be transferred to the national budget.
In the Freedom of Information request dated 17 May 2025 and signed by Kolawole Oluwadare, SERAP deputy director, the organisation said: “There is a legitimate public interest in explaining the whereabouts of the alleged missing N500 billion oil money and grave violations of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended]’
“The country’s oil wealth ought to be used solely for the benefit of the Nigerian people, and for the sake of the present and future generations.”
According to SERAP, Nigerians have the right to know why the NNPCL failed to remit the subsidy removal savings to the Federation Account.
“We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within 7 days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter. If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall consider appropriate legal actions to compel the NNPCL to comply with our requests in the public interest,” the letter read in part.
“Without the full recovery and remittance of the missing N500 billion of oil revenue, the dire economic situation may worsen and Nigerians will continue to be denied access to basic public goods and services,” it read.
“The Freedom of Information Act, Section 39 of the Nigerian Constitution, article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights guarantee to everyone the right to information on the whereabouts of the missing N500 billion of oil revenue.”
Hannatu Musawa, Minister of Arts, Culture, and the Creative Economy, has revealed that the ministry has secured over $300 million in investment commitments.
Musawa disclosed this at the Ministerial Press Briefing Session held on Friday in Abuja.
She emphasised that the government has set a goal of creating at least two million jobs within the creative industry by 2027.
According to her, “In just 18 months, we have secured over $300 million in investment commitments and established innovative funding mechanisms, including the Creative Economy Development Fund (CEDF).
“We have also initiated the development of key infrastructure projects, which are projected to generate at least two million jobs by 2027.”
The Minister further noted that President Bola Tinubu plans to unveil creative hubs across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones in the coming months, positioning Nigeria as a global hub for creativity.
“Beyond the numbers, we have elevated Nigeria’s global cultural standing while ensuring inclusivity, empowering rural communities, women, and young people to participate meaningfully in the creative economy,”.
The Minister highlighted the significant role the creative economy will play in Nigeria’s future, particularly the music industry.
She pointed out that the government has identified five key segments within the music value chain production, marketing, sales, and others—that can generate over 500,000 new jobs by 2030, representing a transformative opportunity for Nigeria’s economy.
“A key initiative in this drive is the $200 million Creative Economy Development Fund (CEDF), managed by the African Export-Import Bank (AfreximBank).
The fund aims to provide affordable financing to creative businesses and entrepreneurs, empowering them to innovate, expand their operations, and contribute to job creation across multiple sectors such as film, music, fashion, and tourism.
The minister said in addition to funding, the ministry is working on the Abuja Creative City project, which seeks to transform the capital into a vibrant hub for the creative sector.
“This project is expected to foster economic growth, create job opportunities, and showcase Nigeria’s diverse cultural heritage.
The Minister also emphasized the importance of effective policy formulation to foster the growth of the creative sector. Currently, the Ministry is evaluating 49 sub-sectors within the creative industries, with priority given to key areas such as music, film, fashion, art, and gastronomy.
“This targeted approach is aimed at driving sustainable development and further enhancing Nigeria’s cultural and economic standing on the global stage.
“Through these initiatives, the Nigerian government is taking significant steps to harness the untapped potential of its creative industries, paving the way for a more dynamic and inclusive economy.
As part of this effort, the Ministry, in collaboration with the private sector and led by the Nigerian Economic Summit Group, is working on creating a clear policy framework not just for the creative economy but also for the art, culture, and tourism sectors.
The Nigerian government is working on a series of policy reforms National Intellectual Property Policy, which will soon be presented to the Federal Executive Council.
This policy aims to foster industry growth by securing intellectual property rights for creators. Additionally, the government is reviewing key policies such as the National Policy on Incentives for the Arts, Culture, and Creative Economy, which is designed to offer incentives and boost confidence among creative businesses.
Another important update is the review of the 2005 National Tourism Policy, intended to better support the tourism sector, which plays a crucial role in Nigeria’s cultural economy.
The government is updating the outdated 1988 National Policy on Culture and introducing a new Policy on Monetary and Credit Solutions to ensure financial support for creative businesses.
Alongside the Creative Economy Development Fund, these reforms aim to create a supportive environment for the sector to grow and position Nigeria as a major force in the global creative economy.
Musawa also announced the implementation of the Creative Economy Development Fund (CEDF), which aims to provide funding to creative businesses, drive innovation, and create jobs across multiple sectors.
Additionally, a global standard arena is under construction in Nigeria to host major music and cultural events, aligning with the country’s ambition to become Africa’s cultural hub.
Husk Power Energy Systems Nigeria Ltd (Husk Nigeria), a subsidiary of solar mini-grid operator Husk Power Systems Inc., has received a $5 million investment from The International Finance Corp. (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, with the support of the Government of Canada.
L-r: Ethiopis Tafara, Regional Vice President for Africa, International Finance Corporation (IFC), and Olu Aruike, Country Director, Husk Power Systems, Nigeria during the signing of a $5m investment meant to expand access to reliable, renewable energy in Nigeria through IFC’s $250m DARES platform in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire
The financing will support the rollout of Husk’s portfolio of solar hybrid mini grids in Northern Nigeria, helping address one of the country’s most urgent development challenges: access to electricity.
It marks the first investment under the IFC Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) Platform, a $200 million debt facility approved in November 2024 to catalyze private sector solutions across West and Central Africa.
The DARES Platform complements the World Bank-financed Nigeria DARES Project, a $750 million initiative launched in December 2023 and implemented by Nigeria’s Rural Electrification Agency.
Together, these efforts aim to provide over 17.5 million Nigerians with new or improved electricity access through decentralized renewable energy (DRE) systems.
IFC’s financing package will enable Husk to develop and operate up to 108 mini-grid sites, resulting in around 28,750 new electricity connections and delivering clean, affordable energy to around 115,000 people and businesses.
The total project cost is estimated at $25 million. IFC’s $5 million package includes a $2.5 million senior loan from its own account and a $2.5 million concessional subordinated loan from the Canada-IFC Renewable Energy Program for Africa.
The facility is structured as a revolving loan, allowing Husk to repay and redraw funds multiple times during the project’s implementation.
“The DARES Platform is an innovative approach to tackling one of Africa’s most pressing challenges—energy access. By partnering with Husk, a leading renewable energy developer globally, through the first project under the DARES Platform, we are not only addressing the immediate electricity needs of underserved communities in Nigeria but also laying the foundation for a scalable model that can be replicated across the continent,” said Ethiopis Tafara, regional vice president of Africa, IFC.
“This innovative debt facility is exactly what the minigrid industry needs to scale — blended, long-term and affordable capital,” said Manoj Sinha, Husk co-founder and CEO.
“Access to working capital is critical for sustained and rapid growth. Adding 108 new communities to our minigrid portfolio with IFC support is an important step toward our goal of deploying at least 250MW of decentralized renewable energy projects in Nigeria.” said Olu Aruike, Manager, Husk Nigeria.
FG Verifies 2m Households for Cash Transfer
NOTAP Urges South Eastern Entrepreneurs to Embrace Franchising as Business Model
SERAP Asks Ojulari, NNPC CEO to Account for Missing N500Bn or Face Legal Action
FG Launches Online Citizenship, Business Management Platform
MTN’s Digital Lending Arm Disburses $592m Loans in Q1
Telecom2 days ago₦800 Billion Infrastructure Plan Set to Boost MTN’s Network Quality Nationwide
E-Business2 days agoNITDA, CISCO Empower Youth with Digital Skills
News2 days agoCreative Economy Ministry Secures $300M Investments Commitment
E-Financial2 days agoFidelity Bank reclaims trillion-naira market cap as stock rises to ₦21
Telecom2 days agoAfrican Women Hit Hardest as Mobile Internet Gender Gap Persists
General News2 days agoNITDA DG says its Community IT Centres Should be a Catalyst of Change
Telecom2 days agoRemita’s Bold Leap: Nigeria’s Fintech Giant Expands Across Africa
E-Financial2 days agoKuda Co-founder Urges Young Developers to Build Tech with Purpose @NACOSS 2025