The Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, Prof. Umar Danbatta, says the move by the NCC to timely auction available spectrum for 5G services in Nigeria was primarily driven by the pursuit to join the global community to advance digital services and enhance quality communications infrastructure for the benefit of the citizens and not to attract revenue for the government.

Danbatta said this while speaking to a cross section of industry players during the Stakeholders’ Consultative Forum on the Draft Information Memorandum for the 3.5GHz Spectrum Auction hosted by the NCC at the Marriott Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos on Tuesday.

The NCC boss said there was need for stakeholders to understand the genuine vision of the commission to equip the nation with the latest technologies and services which is the focus of the efforts to deploy 5G services nationwide.

He said: “I want to disabuse the mind of those who feel that the objective of the NCC to auction the first and the second rounds of the 5G spectrum bands is to generate money for the Federal Government. This is not correct.

“The overriding consideration is not to generate money for the Federal Government but principally to ensure deployment of 5G services that enhance better life for Nigerians and the growth of the nation’s economy as a whole through provision of qualitative high-speed Internet services that increase productivity and efficiency across sectors.

“For those who are conversant with developments in the industry, the proactive regulatory approach of the commission in transiting Nigeria from 1G, to 2G, 3G, 4G and now to 5G has brought remarkable socio-economic developments, transforming lives and businesses.

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“This clarification is very important at this stage to put to rest the insinuations and misconceptions being bandied in certain quarters. Our intent is purely to digitally transform Nigeria and Nigerians towards becoming a leading digital economy not only in Africa but globally and where telecoms continue to be a major enabler and contributor to the nation’s economic growth.”

According to a statement issued on Tuesday by the NCC spokesperson, Reuben Muoka, Danbatta added that following the successful auction of the initial two lots of the 5G spectrum in December 2021, the NCC received requests to administratively licence the remaining lots at the exact fee the initial two lots were auctioned.

He noted that the commission, in exercise of its powers under the Nigerian Communications Act 2003, decided to licence the available lots in the 3.5GHz band through the Auction Method which he said was a transparent and efficient approach that could open opportunities for new entrants as well as deepen competition in the industry.

“The commission has committed enormous resources to ensure that harmonized Spectrum is secured and released in a timely manner for present and future rollout of services that will unleash the potentials of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), including International Mobile Telecommunication (IMT-2020) services.

“We have kept ourselves abreast of developments at international fora, including ITU-R Study Groups to enable the allocation of strategic Spectrum to IMT services especially the IMT-2020 which has been on the front burner in the last two ITU-R Study Cycles.

“Hence, it is important that we ensure the timely release of the Spectrum bands necessary for 5G deployment to the industry to enable us reap the immediate and envisioned benefits of 5G technology and facilitate the development of Nigeria’s Digital Economy to foster national growth,” the NCC boss stated.

The Star