NCC: FG Launches N16.7 billion Internet Access Initiatives
TECHDIGEST- More than 22 institutions in the country, comprising 18 universities, and six polytechnics, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), drawn evenly from the six geopolitical zones in the country, have benefited from a Federal Government’s broadband infrastructure projects designed to accelerate the Nigeria Digital Economy efforts.
At the recent unveiling of the initiatives being led by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in Abuja, Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, who presided over the event, stated that the initiatives highlight the significance of broadband connectivity.
According to a formal statement by the ministry’s director of public affairs, Reuben Muoka, the project is in line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s directives on economic diversification and job creation, and broadband access is essential to achieving the goals of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) 2020–2030 for a digital Nigeria.
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Pantami revealed that the project’s key infrastructure includes broadband infrastructure for MSME, broadband infrastructure for tertiary institutions of learning, distribution of 6,000 e-pad tablets, and provision of broadband connectivity to 20 markets as a pilot. Pantami was joined at the event by Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mallam Mohammed Bello.
According to him, the interest in assisting MSMEs is justified by the fact that they currently account for 96.7% of all businesses in Nigeria and contributed more than 50% of the GDP before the COVID-19 outbreak. As a result, he claimed, “any effort to develop our economy without bringing such important sector into the equation will amount to efforts in futility.”
A book written by Pantami titled “Skills Rather Than Just Degrees” with a foreword written by Brad Smith, President of Microso, was released at the event, which was attended by the Chairman of the Board of the NCC, Prof. Adeolu Akande; the Executive Vice Chairman of the Commission, Prof. Umar Danbatta; the Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC); and the Executive Secretary, National Board for Technical Education (NBTE).
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