Telecom
NCC Commits to Developing Digital Skills for Realization of Digital Economy
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has reiterated its commitment to developing digital literacy skills required for the realization of full digital economy in Nigeria.
Mrs. Freda Bruce-Bennett, Head, Digital Skills and Services, stated this at AfricaNXT tech event under a theme: ‘The NCC Mandate Towards Realization of Full Digital Economy in Nigeria’. According to her, “when you have basic foundation for communications such as connectivity, data among others. What is next is digital innovation, entrepreneurship and digital skills.
“If we have all the Apps and solutions such as eHealth, eAgric and the populace does not know how to use them, we have achieved nothing.
“So, the next core area of the digital economy department in NCC is development of digital skills across all Nigerians, including children in primary, secondary, NYSC, mothers among others. In that way we have ubiquitous availability of digital skills across Nigeria for digital economy”.
She said the development of digital skills for Nigerians has become necessary following the creation of the Nigerian Office for Developing Indigenous Telecoms Sector (NODITS), whose mandate is to encourage indigenous participation in the telecom sector.
The creation of the NODITS, according to her has started yielding desired results as indigenous have now been engaged in the production of products and services that were hitherto imported. She noted that this move is boosting the government’s digital economy pursuit.
One of such products is the production of SIM cards, which she disclosed has helped the Nigerian government to save about $12 million owing to the ban of whole Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) importation.
“As we speak, six indigenous companies were licensed by the NCC to manufacture SIM cards, four out of these six are operational and have manufactured over 100 million SIM cards, saving Nigeria about $12 million from the importation of SIM cards, between August 2022 and now” she said.
Also speaking on what the NCC is doing to drive the digital economy, Mr. Abraham Oshadami, the Head of Spectrum Administration at the NCC, said the Commission has slashed licensing fees for Internet Service Providers to as low as N500, 000.
“This is an effort to the rollout of telecoms infrastructure across the country to achieve the National Broadband Plan of the Government”.
, Mrs. Aderonke Sola-Ogunsola, Head of Financing and Stakeholder Management Team, NODITS at the NCC expressed optimism that it is possible for the country to continue to make progress in the banning of more telecoms device such as Smartphone, phone chargers and SIM card, adding that before the ban, SIM was imported into Nigeria.
According to her, Nigeria has the capacity to manufacture SIM in Nigeria stressing that with the ban and the manufacture of SIM in the country, there will be the provision of more jobs and the saving of FOREX for the nation.
Mr. Reuben Muoka, Director, Public Affairs, NCC, who moderated the panel session in his opening remark stated that digital literacy skills is one of the pivotal focus of the Commission, stressing that without digital stills citizens will not be able to reach maximum derivation of the digital services and innovations- resulting from the efforts of the digital economy.
“There should be an effective regulator of the industry in order to achieve digital economy and digital literacy skill is one of the key focus of digital economy policy, because if you don’t have the skills to implement and exploit technologies and services that are available, you will not reach the maximum benefits,” he stated.
Telecommunications services disrupted in Kogi State have resumed following a resolution of the dispute between MTN Nigeria and the state government, the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) has said.
Gbenga Adebayo, chairman of ALTON, told TVC News that the issues that led to the shutdown of telecom masts in the state, primarily affecting MTN, had been addressed, paving the way for service restoration.
TVC News earlier reported that businessmen and women were counting their losses as they suffered the impact of a shut down of telecommunication service in Kogi State
Over the past two weeks, telecoms connectivity had been erratic, with competing brands experiencing glitches, particularly in the Lokoja metropolis.
The State government suspended the operations of some telecom services citing unpaid taxes and fibre-related dues.
The shutdown stemmed from a compliance dispute between MTN and the Kogi State Utility Infrastructure Management and Compliance Agency, which accused the telecom giant of violating operational rules and under-declaring the extent of its optic fibre network coverage in the state.
The protracted Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) debt misunderstanding between the Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) and telecommunications operators appears to have been resolved.
This was confirmed by the Chief Executive Officer of MTN Nigeria, Karl Toriola, Thursday, March 1, when he appeared on Arise TV to speak on the firm’s first-quarter 2025 result, where the telecommunications company reported over N1 trillion in revenue earnings.
Recall that the USSD debt had been a major issue between the DMBs and telcos and had lasted for about five years.
In the third quarter of 2024, the telcos had threatened to withdraw their service over the lingering debt, which was around N200 billion at the time. This led to the swift intervention of the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), and an agreement was reached on payment.
As of November 2024, the NCC put the debt at N160 billion. However, earlier this year, when it appeared the banks were not forthcoming with payments, the NCC directed the telcos to withdraw the USSD services from debt-owning DMBs, where about 18 banks were listed.
This directive prompted the banks to look inward and start to comply with an earlier circular signed by the CBN and NCC, which articulated the payment patterns for the debt.
Speaking, on Arise TV this morning, May 1, Toriola confirmed that the matter has been fully resolved and that banks have made payments.
“I can confirm that the matter has been fully resolved. We have received payments in full. Special thanks to the CBN, NCC, the banks, and other stakeholders that intervened in the matter,” the MTN CEO stated.
Sterling Bank, Leading commercial bank and Africa’s most agile company has announced the introduction of AlwaysOn by Sterling, a bold new feature on its OneBank platform that will give eligible customers up to ₦1 million extra every month -even when their account balances are running low.
Launched on Workers’ Day 2025, the initiative is part of an ongoing movement to remove structural barriers to financial freedom and empower everyday Nigerians to move boldly, even in uncertain times.
AlwaysOn is a specialised, invitation-only feature for customers who maintain an active OneBank account for a while. It provides an advance to settle bills or make payments without delays, or any of the friction associated with traditional credit systems.
“This is not just about funds,” said Abubakar Suleiman, Chief Executive Officer of Sterling Bank. “It’s about freedom and dignity. It’s about backing our customers with the trust and tools to act boldly when life demands it.”
Suleiman emphasised that the new feature is not a product, it’s a logical shift in how the bank supports its customers.
“We’re building a financial ecosystem designed for momentum -for people with grit, urgency, and dreams too big to wait. If you’ve banked with us, you’ve earned our confidence. Now you’ll have our backing to match,” added Suleiman.
The introduction of AlwaysOn marks the next chapter in Sterling’s growing movement to create a fairer and more responsive financial system. It follows the Zero Transfer Fees initiative in April, which returned an estimated ₦13 billion to Nigerians by eliminating transfer charges across the OneBank platform. It also builds on Sterling’s Free Bus Ride initiative, which helped commuters get home from work for free during a time of intense economic pressure.
Together, these efforts reflect the bank’s bold, people-first approach to customer impact, now made possible by its adoption of SeaBaas, Nigeria’s first indigenous core banking platform.
“We’re not the kind of bank that stands on the sidelines while Nigerians hustle,” said Obinna Ukachukwu, Growth Executive for Retail and Consumer Banking. “We removed the fees that slowed them down. Now we’re giving Nigerians the financial freedom to seize opportunity when it shows up. We’re on the pitch with them.”
Sterling’s actions have sparked widespread public support and national recognition as they have continued to push the boundaries of what corporate citizenship can mean to everyday Nigerians.
Notable icons from various fields have canvassed their support and praised the bank’s stance in redefining financial services, inspiring other institutions to follow suit.
Nigerians are encouraged to apply to join the waitlist for the scheme when it goes live in later this month and ultimately, eligibility for up to N1M extra in relief advances.
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