ConsumerConnect | ipNX at NCC, commends Commission on efficient regulatory services

*The Management of ipNX have applauded the Nigerian Communications Commission for its effective and efficient regulatory activities, while soliciting the Commission’s support for expansion of Broadband infrastructure critical to national development

Gbenga Kayode | ConsumerConnect

Key members of the top echelon of the Management of ipNX, a licensee of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) Thursday, APtil 21, 2022, were at the Commission for a courtesy visit.

The telecoms regulatory Commission said that the delegation from ipNX, led by Ejovi Aror, Group Managing Director (GMD) applauded the Management of NCC for its superlative regulatory activities, describing the Commission’s actions as marked by efficiency and effectiveness.

Adeleke Adewolu, Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Management (2nd left), representing Prof. Umar Danbatta, Executive Vice-Chairman and CEO of NCC, during the iPNX visit to the Commission, in Abuja

Dr. Ikechukwu Adinde, Director of Public Affairs at NCC, in a statement said Aror also hinted at the company’s plan to expand its operations in Nigeria, in a manner that will heighten the role of the telecoms sector in the growth of the Nigerian economy.

On strategic importance of Broadband infrastructure

The GMD of ipNX, also notified the Commission that the operations of the company have come to a critical juncture, and that ipNX is happy to migrate from the stage where it is now to a more strategic stage where it will play a greater role in the efforts at expanding Broadband infrastructure in Nigeria.

Aror also stated: “Therefore, we are here to solicit your support for our plan to expand our businesses because we are at the threshold of closing a chapter and moving onto another, particularly in expanding broadband infrastructure which is critical to national development.”

He also informed the Management of NCC about some of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programmes.

The most central and significant of them, according to Aror, is the free Internet access to schools in Lagos and Oyo States.

Importantly, Aror emphasised ipNX readiness to extend such services to other parts of the country, particularly in schools, because of the importance of ICT to educational development.

NCC’s regulatory activities promote telecoms ecosystem, says Danbatta

Responding to the ipNX delegation, Prof. Umar Danbatta, Executive Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of NCC, represented by Adeleke Adewolu, Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Management (ECSM) of the Commission, commended ipNX for the visit and for the testimony about how NCC’s regulatory activities have caused growth in leaps and bounds in the fortunes of the telecoms ecosystem in the West African country.

Adewolu declared that NCC is, particularly, gratified by the remarkable and quantifiable impact of Commission’s activities on the economy, including increase in the sectoral contribution to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The ECSM as well pledged that the encouraging words of ipNX’s delegation would spur the Commission to put in more efforts towards achieving its regulatory mandate.

Contextualising the trajectory of landmarks in the telecoms sector of the economy, Adewolu also recalled the history of the evolution of the telecommunications industry in Nigeria, declaring that Decree 75 of 1992, which established the Commission, was a great feat.

RELATED: Danbatta Restates NCC’s Commitment To Broadband, Consumer Protection, Digital Economy

The NCC Executive Commissioner further noted the courageous deregulation and liberalisation of the telecoms sector by the Federal Government in 2000 was a masterstroke.

That action triggered uncommon liberalisation that caused a rare leap in the democratisation of access to telephone services, from a few hundred hitherto existing fixed lines in 1992 to over 200 million subscriptions today, said he.

Nudging ipNX to offer its best to the growth of the telecom sector, the ECSM stated that the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic and the capacity of the Nigerian economy to survive the contagion have demonstrated the importance of the telecoms sector because most social and economic activities simply migrated to online platforms.

Underscoring the importance and contribution of Broadband infrastructure to human survival in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic, Adewolu declared: “So, we are delighted about your interest in expanding broadband infrastructure.”

He informed the visiting iPNX team that the Commission, with the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, is ready and willing to partner with stakeholders to accomplish the objectives of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) 2020-2030; and the Nigerian National Broadband Plan (NNBP) 2020-2025.

Adewolu, reckoning the correlation between increase in broadband infrastructure and GDP of economies, asserted that the Management of NCC is all out to work with all stakeholders, including its licensed Infrastructure Companies (InfraCos), to expand Broadband access, especially to the unserved and underserved areas of the country.

At the reception of ipNX delegation at the NCC Head Office in Abuja were other Management Staff of the Commission, including Usman Mamman, Deputy Director, Licensing and Authorisation; and Afure Iloka, Special Assistant on Legal Matters to the EVC.

Others are Dr. Omoniyi Ibietan, Head Online Media, who represented Dr. Ikechukwu Adinde, Director Public Affairs; Abubakar Kurfi, Assistant Director, Licensing and Authorisation; and Quassim Odunmbaku, the Special Assistant to the ECSM.

Aror, was accompanied on the visit to the Commission by the Group Executive Director, Commercials, ipNX, Bimpe Olaleye; Divisional CEO, ipNX Infrastructure Division, Uche Nnakenyi; and Tunde Olorunyomi, Financial Controller, ipNX.

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ipNX at NCC, commends Commission on efficient regulatory services

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