Telecom sector contributed N1.4trn to Nigeria’s GDP in Q3 – NCC

The Nigeria telecommunication sector contributed N1.4 trillion in the third quarter of 2016 according to Umar Danbatta, the Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

 The NCC director made the disclosure in Abuja when the Senate Committee on Communications led by its Vice Chairman senator Olamilekan Adeola paid a courtesy visit to the commission’s headquarters.

 “The contribution to GDP for three years is well above N1.4 trillion per quarter.

“In fact, it was exactly N1.4 trillion in the third quarter of this year. The contribution in percentage terms in GDP has ranged between 7 and 10 per cent at different times,’’ Umar said.

 Danbatta added that under the senate committee oversight, NCC had attained a broadband penetration of almost 21 per cent.

“When we give figures, we are careful to say what the source is. This 21 per cent was given by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) UNESCO Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development,’’ he said.

The NCC boss said that the commission had intervened to provide regulatory policies to safeguard the right of consumers by issuing out the ‘Do not disturb’ (DND) directive for unsolicited text messages.

“Consumers have a number they can call to stop unsolicited text messages and NCC is at the stage of enforcing that the directive,’’ he said.

Danbatta said that the consequence for breaching the directive of DND would attract a fine of N5million.

He said that NCC had intervened and provided emergency communication centres in 36 states of the federation.

“In order to allow citizens of the country in distress to use emergency number 112 to call for help through the various agencies of government that provide such help,’’ he said.

Sen. Olamilakan Adeola said that the committee was in NCC to look into the 2016 budgetary performance.

Adeola called on the NCC boss to ensure that work on its 2017 budget began in earnest to ensure that once the budget was completed by the presidency in the next one or two weeks, the committee could approve that of the NCC.

“So that by the first, second month of the year through the senate, the budget can be returned to NCC,’’ he said.

Adeola commended Danbatta for quickly intervening in the issue of the data tariff price hike.

“I want to appreciate your prompt attention and coming before the senate to make the issues clear to us on the data tariff increase.

“Since that information and statement from you, I can vividly say that the issue had died down and Nigerians are seeing NCC as being on their side and not against them,’’ he said.

FRANK ELEANYA with Agency report