Telecom
Telecom World 2014 Highlights Innovations, Technologies to Shape Future of ICTs

ITU Telecom World 2014 closed its doors yesterday following four busy days of high-level debate, networking, knowledge sharing and showcasing.
A dynamic and truly diverse line-up of participants from around the world attended the event, including Cisco, Huawei, Intel, LS telcom, Nokia, Ooredoo, Rohde & Schwarz, Vodafone and ZTE, with pavilions from Argentina, Azerbaijan, Cameroon, Chad, China, Hungary, Nigeria, Malaysia, Qatar, Tanzania, Thailand and Zimbabwe, while Kenya, Uganda, South Sudan and Rwanda came together within the Smart Africa zone on the show floor.
“Over the last few days I’ve seen the evolution of a roadmap that provides an immersive, interactive and deeply informative view of the future of ICTs,” said Hamadoun I. Touré, ITU secretary-general.
“This has been evident in the Leadership Summit and Forum, bringing insights into industry shifts and macro trends from top names on the show floor and looking at new technologies developing in The Lab. I was also deeply impressed by the bright sparks who are building the future of technology and business, in the Young Innovators Programme.”
Organized by ITU, the United Nations Specialized Agency for ICTs, the event was hosted by the Government of Qatar, with the support of leading international communications company, Ooredoo.
“Ooredoo was delighted to work with ITU to organize ITU Telecom World 2014, on behalf of the Government of Qatar,” said Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammed Bin Saud Al Thani, chairman of the Board of directors Ooredoo Group.
“Helping host this unique platform, for global experts to share views and insights on how we can use ICTs to enhance lives, is in line with Ooredoo’s and Qatar’s strategic vision, and it has been an inspirational experience. We were also very pleased to be able to showcase our latest technologies to this global audience, and to shine a spotlight on Qatar as a global technology hub.”
“Huawei was delighted to showcase its visions of “Building a Better Connected World”, outlining a more convenient and smarter lifestyle featuring futuristic 5G connectivity technologies, ubiquitous broadband connectivity, connected smart cities and smart homes to the global audience convened at ITU Telecom World 2014.” said Mr Ken HU, deputy chairman of the Board and Rotating CEO, Huawei.
“At the event, Huawei also shared views and insights on technology, business and investment model innovation and called for collaboration among stakeholders to rejuvenate global broadband development.”
The event showcased sponsored sessions from Alcatel-Lucent, BBC, CNN, ESOA, Geddes Consulting, Huawei, IPv6 Forum, ITU-D, Nokia, TDIA, TCCA, and tm-forum, and covered a range of different areas from ‘Big Data to universal broadband’, ‘enabling the digital future’, ‘hidden risks’, ‘unexplored opportunities from circuits to packets’, ‘LTE for public safety’, ‘ICTs for saving lives’, and more.
Telecom
Fines: Meta Threatens to Shut Down Facebook, Instagram in Nigeria

Meta may shut down its Facebook and Instagram services in Nigeria in protest against the substantial fines imposed by multiple government agencies.
The tech giant has been ordered to pay nearly $300 million in fines in Africa’s most populous nation, following regulatory demands which Meta described as “unrealistic.”
In July 2024, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), imposed a $220 million fine on Meta for allegedly discriminatory and exploitative practices against Nigerian consumers.
The commission stated that Meta had failed to engage a Data Protection Compliance Organisation and had not submitted a Nigeria Data Protection Regulation audit report for two consecutive years.
Similarly, the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON), demanded $37.5 million over unapproved advertising, while the Nigerian Data Protection Commission (NDPC), announced a $32.8 million fine for an alleged data privacy breach.
Meta challenged the decisions at the Federal High Court in Abuja but was unsuccessful, as the court upheld the fines in a ruling delivered last week.
The court directed the company to comply with payment by the end of June, but Meta has indicated it may not do so, according to the BBC.
“The applicant may be forced to effectively shut down the Facebook and Instagram services in Nigeria in order to mitigate the risk of enforcement measures,” the company stated in court documents.
Responding to the NDPC’s assertion that Meta’s data processing could expose Nigerian users to health and financial risks, the company said the agency had failed to “properly interpret the laws guiding data privacy.”
Telecom
Telecoms Services Resume in Kogi State as Telcos, Govt Resolve Dispute

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.
Telecom
Banks Settle ₦160Bn USSD Debt to Telcos, Ending Five-Year Dispute

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.
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