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Nigeria Needs N15trn To Bridge Digital Infrastructure Gap -ATCON
The Association of Telecommunications Companies in Nigeria (ATCON) says Nigeria requires over N15trillion to bridge the infrastructure funding gap for the telecom/ICT industry.
The President of the Association, Mr. Ikechukwu Nnamani, disclosed this, yesterday, when he led other newly elected National Executive Council of the Association on a familiarization visit to the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Pantami, in his office in Abuja.
He said that the visit was predicated on the need to introduce and familiarize with the minister, who had shown a lot of commitment and determination in addressing issues that the ICT industry is saddled with and to deliberate with the minister on key issues affecting the industry and the economy.
Nnamani, who commended the minister for his loadable initiatives that have brought unprecedented growth to the industry, urged the minister to do more in ensuring that the digital infrastructure gaps are closed and to enable the country to tap into the huge benefits of the digital economy.
The ATCON President further explained that the primary objective of the association targeted programs is to compliment the concerted efforts of the ministry in respect of making broadband pervasive and ubiquitous as well as to encourage state governments and private sector to aid the growth and development through strategic investment in technology and broadband in their respective states.
He said, ‘‘Your timely intervention has led to the growth and development that the ICT sector has witnessed since you were sworn in as minister.
‘‘This visited as put together to demonstrate the respect that we have for you and your office as records are there to show that the development of the sector is highly paramount in your strategic plans. Challenges that have plagued the industry for a very long time are now being addressed by you and your team. Notable among this is the progress made in the National Identity Number (NIN), Right of Way (RoW) and the Nigerian National Broadband Plan (NNBP), and digitization of the economy.
‘‘More recent is the groundbreaking of the National Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship Centre in Abuja. The new NEC and the entire ATCON members are poised to work with you and your ministry to make your tenure a highly remarkable one in the history of the Nigerian telecom and ICT sector.
‘‘The primary and strategic objective of our targeted programs is to compliment your concerted efforts in respect of making broadband pervasive and ubiquitous as well as to encourage state governments and private sector to aid the growth and development through their deliberate and strategic investment in technology and broadband in their respective states.
‘‘We remain committed to contributing our quota to the growth and development of the country and looking forward towards working closely with you.’’
He listed some of the ATCON’s goals and request for support for 2021/2022 as full implementation of the 2020-2025 NNBP; development of the strategic plan to bridge the over N15trillion infrastructure funding gap for the telecom/ICT industry; full implementation of the RoW policy and to address multiple taxations and other regulatory challenges.
The ATCON was formally inaugurated on December 10, 1993, as a professional, non-profit, non-political umbrella organization of telecommunications companies in Nigeria.
Responding, the minister said his ministry decided to reactivate the NIMC Act on NIN after many years of neglect because it remains key to our national planning, budget planning, security and social development and many more.
He insisted that the NIN remains mandatory and the primary means of the identity of our citizens and all legal residents and there’s no other identity that can define citizens more than that number, it is mandatory.
‘‘I’m excited at your presentation why the Association was established and your willingness to join hand with the federal government of Nigeria through the office of the minister in charge of communications, most importantly in the area of NIN which is a mandatory number based on NIMC Act of 2007 that has actively been neglected for years it is also the foundational ID for building a digital economy.
‘‘It is key to our national planning, budget planning, national planning, security and social development, and many more. But it was neglected to be a mandatory one. So, we’ve come up with so many policies trying to ensure our citizens obtain the number, it is important beyond SIM registration, it is important for whatever you do.
‘‘Because it is the primary identity of our citizens, there’s no identity that will define you are a citizen more than that number, it is mandatory. And it is mandatory for the transaction, as an opening bank account, like paying tax, voter registration, and many more.
‘‘If you look at section 27 it is clearly stated even to partake and enjoy government services without that number it is an offence, you must obtain before you engage the government in any business.
Section 29 of the act says that if you fail to do that and you do transactions you have committed a crime that will lead to imprisonment.
‘‘We will always ensure that citizens obtain it, the law only gives you 60 days to obtain from the time it was approved.
‘‘On achievement on RoW, as I earlier said, when there is any lack of compliance with our agreement through Nigerian Governor’s Forum under the chairmanship of the governor of Ekiti State when there is such let me know I will engage the Nigerian governor’s forum and National Economic Council, don’t compromise. If you compromise in one state there is a high probability you will compromise in another state, but if you resist it is better for us.
‘‘I don’t believe in one-man business, we are all stakeholders and we must work together for the success of the industry. I can’t do it alone and I can never deceive myself that I can do it alone. It is because of this I always urge stakeholders to let us work together to undo the best we can to take the sector to greater heights. Most probably it is the most important sector in the country; it could be the most important.
‘‘Our contribution to the GDP is always unprecedented; we are making a huge difference. Just ICT alone not to talk of the digital economy, if you add ICT sector plus digital services then definitely there is no doubt that no sector will contribute half of what we’ve been contributing to the GDP.
“But today, and some of them are neglected, not computed, some of them are added to financial services but they are supposed to be under digital economy so, that it will be digital economy plus ICT sector. We will try to ensure that it is corrected.’’
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
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RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.