*The Nigerian Communications Commission receives 185 students on industry excursion tour, commending Dr. ‘Bosun Tijani, Minister for Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, for championing initiatives to empower the younger generation, particularly girls with digital knowledge and skills
Alexander Davis | ConsumerConnect
The Nigerian Communications Commission receives 185 students on industry excursion tour, commending Dr. ‘Bosun Tijani, Minister for Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy (FMCIDE), for championing initiatives to empower the younger generation, particularly girls with digital knowledge and skills in the country.
ConsumerConnect reports the NCC recently played host to about 185 young students, who were on an industry excursion tour of its facility located in Abuja, FCT.
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Dr. Aminu Maida, Executive Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of NCC, Thursday, June 4, 2026, conducted the 185 contestants of the 2026 National Girls in ICT (NG-ICT) Competition on a tour of the National Communications Museum domiciled at the Commission, in Abuja.
Speaking during the tour of the student contestants, Dr. Maida said the initiative also aligned with the Commission’s digital literacy advocacy in Nigeria.
As regards the composition of the 185 qualified contestants for the 2026 NG-ICT Competition, the Commission disclosed the contestants were selected by the Ministry across the country’s geo-political zones.
It is noted the objective of the competition is to promote digital inclusion, and inspire greater participation of girls in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and other Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines in the West African country.
The agency said the students’ visit to the Commission formed part of activities organised by the Minister under the National Girls in ICT Programme.
The NCC described the digital literacy initiative as one aimed at bridging the gender gap in the technology sector by equipping young girls with digital skills, mentorship opportunities and exposure to innovation.
Maida, represented at the event by Babagana Digima, Director.of Research and Development Department at NCC, noted that the museum tour was designed to create a link between the old and new generations in Nigeria’s telecommunications journey.
The Commission explained the facility would help young people to appreciate the telecoms sector’s transformation from analogue systems to the current digital revolution.
During the study tour, NCC officials also guided the visiting students through exhibits and historical artefacts that documented key milestones in the Nigeria’s telecommunications history and the evolution of the communications sector to date.
Maida emphasised the need for understanding the industry’s history, to inspire the participants to contribute meaningfully to the future of digital innovation in Nigeria.
The EVC/CEO further noted that exposing young people to the history of technological advancement and innovation is essential to building a new generation of leaders for the growing Nigeria Digital Economy.
Mrs. Nnenna Ukoha, Director of Public Affairs at NCC, as well stated Dr. Maida said: “The whole idea behind this is that we are looking at the younger generation.
“We want to show them what communication is all about.
“This place is a museum meant to preserve the history of what has gone before and to keep the artefacts, ensuring that people see the evolution from the postal system to telegraphy, from analogue systems to the digital era.”
He equally stated: “This is essentially what we are showing them in the shortest amount of time and, of course, to excite the curiosity of the young ones.
“When they see what happened in the past and how it has progressed into the future, they can also take it up from here and think about what it will look like going forward. “That is the whole essence of having them here.”
The statement explained that during the tour, the participants learned about generational trends in telecommunications development, dating back to 1886 when the colonial administration established first communication facilities primarily to support administrative functions.
The top officials of the telecoms sector regulatory Commission took the visiting students through the history of the country’s early telegraph services.
It disclosed services, at the time, linked Lagos to other parts of West Africa and Europe through submarine cable connections.
The Director of Public Affairs stressed the tour highlighted the state of telecommunications at Independence in 1960, when Nigeria had only 18,724 telephone lines serving an estimated population of about 40 million people.
The officials as well briefed the students on various development plans that followed Independence, the operations of the former Department of Posts and Telecommunications (P&T), Nigerian External Telecommunications (NET) Limited, as well as the establishment of the Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) 1985 to coordinate the provision of internal and external telecommunications services in Nigeria.
The Commission said a major highlight of the visit was the display of rare historical artefacts preserved at the NCC Museum.
Mrs. Ukoha stated that among the exhibits were a Post Office Counter, dating back to 1852, Sorting Racks introduced to Lagos in 1852, the Grand “T” Key used at the Lagos Post Office in the nineteenth century, leather mail bags dating back to 1863, Drop Bag fittings from the late 20th Century, a 511A Letter Scale from the mid-20th Century, an Improved Dynamometer Scale from the 1920, Telegram machines, Teleprinter T100, Cordless PBX, Digital Card Phone, among other historical artefacts.