NCC committed to protection, expansion of Broadband connectivity in digital economy –Maida, EVC

*Dr. Aminu Maida, Executive Vice-Chairman and CEO of the Nigerian Communications Commission, discloses connectivity has advanced economic inclusion, productivity, and national resilience in the emerging digital economy, as the country attained 48.81 percent Broadband penetration rate with over 140 million Internet consumers

Gbenga Kayode | ConsumerConnect

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has reiterated the strategic importance of Broadband connectivity to advance economic inclusion, productivity, and national resilience in the country’s emerging digital economy.

ConsumerConnect reports Dr. Aminu Maida, Executive Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of NCC, stated this in his remarks at the Business Roundtable on investments in Broadband connectivity and protection of the Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII) in the West African country.

The forum with theme: “Right of Way and Protection of Broadband Infrastructure – The Road to Success in Broadband Investment and Connectivity”, held Wednesday, October 8, 2025, at the NCC Digital Economy Complex, in Abuja, FCT.

Emphasising the importance of connectivity to national development, Dr. Maida said connectivity really matters in driving modern economies.

The EVC/CEO of the Commission explained that connectivity is not limited to merely faster downloads or smoother video calls, as the technology tool is far beyond these in scope and impact.

Speaking on the importance of stakeholder engagement, collaboration, and focus to deepen Broadband penetration in the Nigeria Digital Economy, he declared that “prosperity in 21st Century lies in data, connectivity, human potential.”

The NCC Executive Vice-Chairman also stressed that connectivity today equals economic inclusion, productivity, and national resilience.

Nigeria attains 48.81 percent Broadband penetration rate

In regard to how Nigeria has fared in Broadband deployment, Maida disclosed that as of August 2025, the country had achieved a Broadband penetration rate of about 48.81 percent with over 140 million people having Internet access in the ecosystem.

He stated: “The ICT/telecoms sector is already one of the leading contributors to Nigeria’s GDP.

“Research shows that a 10% increase in broadband penetration can drive approximately 1.38% GDP growth in developing economies so imagine what a 20%, 30%, 40% increase in broadband penetration would do: (there would be more billions in economic output, new jobs, new services, and innovation hubs across our states).”

The EVC/CEO of NCC further said for individuals and small businesses, Broadband access had turned local markets into national and global ones.

Maida explained: “It transforms opportunities for our graduates from local to global digital earning possibilities.

“It transforms a state economy from being dependent on traditional revenue streams to fostering an innovation-driven ecosystem.”

Comparative analysis of Broadband connectivity in select economies

Referencing the Broadband connectivity experience in India and Rwanda, Maida said Rwanda had positioned itself as an African hub of digital services by investing heavily in backbone fibre and digital governance.

He disclosed that the Indian outsourcing and Information Technology (IT) services industry is worth over $240 billion annually.

According to him, this was enabled largely by early and consistent investment in digital infrastructure and human capacity.

He as well noted that with over 200 million people and a median age of 18, Nigeria cannot only follow these trajectories but surpass them, if the country equips the youths with reliable, affordable, high-speed connectivity.

It terms of the economic benefits of an hour of connectivity, the Chief Executive of the Commission asked the audience to consider the industrialist in Enugu, South-East Nigeria, closing an overseas shipment; the miner in Zamfara consulting geologists remotely; the entrepreneur in Lagos running an online store; the technician in Yenagoa checking real-time dashboards; the merchant in Kano coordinating cross-border payments; and our security services relying on live intelligence feeds.

“In each case, connectivity is the quiet enabler. When it fails, opportunities evaporate, productivity stalls—and in critical situations, lives can be put at risk,” he averred.

Maida equally opined that economies that have embraced steam, rail, and electrification surged ahead with sustainable connectivity.

In the modern world, data, Broadband and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are the new engines, he declared.

Maida, however, warned that those who seize the moment prosper while hesitation carries “a heavy cost” in today’s socioeconomic space.

Stressing the urgency for the stakeholders to join on the bandwagon of deployment of Broadband connectivity, Maida urged the State Governors, Ministers, and colleagues, that “time is not on our side.”

Benefits of AI and other new techs to global economy

He atoned that the global digital race is accelerating.

He also noted that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming industries, while outsourcing is shifting to low-cost, high-connectivity environments.

The EV/CEO said: “If our Broadband backbone is weak, our youths will be marginalised, and our economy will likely not achieve its full potential.

“In today’s world, a community without digital connectivity is invisible.”

Maida restated: ” We must act decisively—state by state, community by community—to ensure no one is left behind.”

He restated that every Governor and State Government represented at the Business Roundtable in Abuja “holds a strategic lever” in this regard.

Maida said waiving Right of Way (RoW) charges, protecting telecoms infrastructure, and proactively supporting fibre deployment are decisions that could determine the prosperity or stagnation of their respective states within the Nigeria Digital Economy.

In states that have waived RoW and supported infrastructure protection, operators are expanding networks with greater confidence, stated he.

Stating the digital revolution does not wait for anyone, Maida urged the stakeholders: “Let us align, invest, and protect, for the prosperity of our people and the future of our nation.”

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