Shittu Pledges Support for Glo

Barrister Adebayo Shittu, minister of Communications, has pledged that his ministry will provide the enabling environment for Globacom to provide first-class services and rule the continent.

Barrister Shittu made the pledge when he paid a courtesy call on the management of the company at the Mike Adenuga Towers, Victoria Island, Lagos, on Monday.

He noted that Globacom started on a commendable note in 2003 by breaking a long-standing jinx in the industry to make telecommunications services available to the vast majority of Nigerians.

The minister said Globacom had consistently introduced a string of innovations in the telecom industry which had aided the telecom revolution in the country.

“Nigeria owes a debt of gratitude to Glo and we shall support you until you become an Octopus on the African continent. Given what you have done in Nigeria, I am not surprised that Glo is conquering Africa now. I urge you to continue to play your role, and Africa will continue to show appreciation to you for liberating the space for telecommunication services,” Barrister Shittu stated.

The minister also called on Globacom not to relent in its aggressive investment drive in order to cover emerging communities.

“There are so many new settlements around where GSM connectivity is not available at all and people still have to travel long distances. I appeal to Glo to investigate this very quickly and take steps to remedy the situation. This may not be peculiar to Ikorodu; I know that many new communities are growing in leaps and bounds and such situations exist.

“I am happy with the giant strides you have made in continental interconnectivity of cables across the Atlantic. I want to commend you on this, and I believe that, having succeeded with continental interconnectivity, within Nigeria there are still challenges in many communities. There is need for you to make more investments to ensure that the entire country is connected,” said Barrister Shittu.

The minister also requested Globacom’s support for technological hubs and connectivity centres government is building in several cities such as Ibadan, Katsina and later in Bayelsa, Plateau and other states.

“Sustainability is always the problem after the first period of free internet. Please see what you can do to support the establishment and sustainability of such hubs,” he said.

Earlier, in his welcome address, Mr. Adewale Sangowawa, head of the Globacom delegation,  recalled that Globacom introduced per second billing at a time that other operators said it was not possible and also crashed the cost of acquiring SIMs from N20,000 to as low as N100.

“According to the International Telecommunications Union, the revolution in the Nigerian telecoms industry is due principally to Globacom's push and the ingenuity of government to deregulate the telecoms sector. Nigeria today boasts of over 100% teledensity, and over 150m active telephone lines,” he said.

“Beyond the statistics, however, is the massive contribution this proudly Nigerian network with global footprints has made in transforming social, educational and business life in the country. From multimedia messaging service to mobile internet, mobile banking, tele-conferencing, vehicle tracking, e-learning and other innovations, Globacom has ensured that Nigerians enjoy the benefits of technological advances available elsewhere around the world by pioneering the introduction of such services in the country,” Mr. Sangowawa said.