Nigeria’s economic experts and stakeholders in the telecom industry have warned that the sector’s decline could have far-reaching consequences for the country’s economic growth and development.

The experts gave the warning at a breakfast session hosted by the Lagos Business School, Pan-Atlantic University on Wednesday, June 5, 2024.

Keynote speaker Bismarck Rewane, who is the CEO of Financial Derivatives Company, emphasised the telecom sector’s critical role in driving economic growth, innovation, and productivity across various industries.

Rewane, who highlighted the sector’s challenges, including rising inflation, high operating costs, and limited access to foreign exchange, stressed that these challenges are threatening the sector’s growth and development, citing MTN’s reported loss in the 2023 financial year.

Rewane, according to a statement issued on Sunday, June 9, emphasised that the current situation has been having a detrimental impact on the sector’s growth and development, warning that the revenue potential from telecoms may start falling, leading to a ripple effect on other sectors.

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He said: “Big push theory posits that growth in one sector can stimulate growth in others through backward and forward linkages. The telecom sector has both forward and backward linkages to various sectors.

“This linkage to other sectors is vital for economic growth, innovation, and productivity across various industries making it a key enabler and driver of development in modern economies. If the telecom industry collapses, all other sectors will follow.”

Other speakers, including Prof. Ali Bongo echoed Rewane’s position, stressing the need for government support and deregulation to ensure the sector’s survival.

They highlighted the sector’s growth potential, citing its 8 per cent outperformance of GDP growth rate between 2019 and 2023.

The event examined the telecom sector’s critical role in Nigeria’s economic growth and development, with stakeholders urging the government to provide support and create an enabling environment for the sector’s growth.

The Star