Telecommunication infrastructure remains one of the major issues affecting technology deployment required for growth and development in Nigeria. There has however, been massive improvement in infrastructure over the past few years. Nigeria has certainly left the telecomm state where there were only a few dial-up e-mail providers and Internet service providers (ISPs) and when Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) was the only Telecommunications operator. It was a dark era characterized by slow Internet links, poor service, high cost, lack of infrastructure and an unprogressive telecoms monopoly. Things have certainly changed.
Deregulation of the telecommunications sector led to the introduction of major Global System of Mobile Communications (GSM), mobile phone providers MTN Nigeria, V-Mobile, Globacom and Mtel.
Nigeria's government had earlier provided the impetus for liberalization by setting up the
Nigerian Communications Commission. Although NCC became the regulatory body for Nigeria's telecom sector in 1992, it is the present government that dealt with the telecom policy, interconnection agreements and the empowerment of NCC. NCC issues licenses to private telecoms companies providing a variety of telecom services to the Nigerian populace.
According to NCC, deregulated telecommunications services include:
"Sales and Installation of Terminal equipment (Mobile Cellular Phones, Satellite Communication and Switching equipments etc); Public Payphone Services; InternetServices; Prepaid Calling Card Services; Community Telephony with exchanges; Paging Services; Trunk and 2-Way Radio Network Services; Fixed Telephony Services, employing cable and Radio; Satellite Network Services (e.g. Domestic VSAT networks); Repairs & Maintenance of telecommunications facilities; Cabling services; TeleCenters/Cyber Cafes".
ICT boom - Combined Effort
But Nigeria's telecom infrastructure story and growth has not been due to GSM alone. For example, GSM doesn't have much to do with the upsurge in Internet usage and access. In essence it is the combined activities of Nigeria's telecoms providers GSM, FWA, PTOs, telephony and VSAT operators and NCC's regulatory efforts that has led to increased competition and availability of a wide range of voice, data and internet applications and services. The improvement in the telecom situation in Nigeria has made significant impact in all sectors - commerce, social and educational. Although most of the impact is presently felt only in the urban centers, NCC has announced plans to ensure the telecommunications revolution also touches the rural populace. As noted by one of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) publications, there is "a direct correlation between access to telecommunications, economic wealth, and social development".
The telecommunications boom has resulted in greater usage of Internet Technology, growth and availability of cyber cafés, increased Internet provision by ISPs and PTOs, increased communications services (mobile telephony, e-mail, VOIP), reduction of Internet costs, online information gathering and research, e-learning, Internet business opportunities, online advertising opportunities as well as developments in e-banking. Growth has been phenomenal because Nigeria’s size is massive and Nigerians have been starved of such access for decades.
While there might be an IT or unication downturn in the rest of the world, the ICT sector in Africa especially in places like Nigeria continues to boom.
A few years ago, "cyber café" was a strange word from another world. Today cyber cafés exist in virtually every neighborhood especially in the urban centers. Because cost of ICT is still relatively high for most individuals, the cybercafé has significantly improved accessibility to the Internet in Nigeria.
This is particularly significant as the ITU publication, states: "if information is power, then the internet must be the easiest way of empowering those that have traditionally been left behind."
The facts are there for all to see. There has been substantial improvement in access to telecom facilities and unprecedented growth in the telecoms network. So has night turned to day? Not quite. In view of Nigeria's size and requirements telecommunications infrastructure is still grossly inadequate. Nigeria is regarded as "one of the biggest telecommunications markets in Africa and the world". But does size determine quality? It should be more about growth and qualitative infrastructure than just having a big or the fastest growing market.
With the opening up of the telecoms space further dramatic growth is expected as service and reliability demands increase. However, in-depth penetration and qualitative infrastructure growth is critical.
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