The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has advised Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) in the country to explore the opportunities availed by their co-located telecommunications infrastructure to reduce their surging cost of operations.
The management of the commission made the call against the background of current moves by the major telecommunications services providers’ plans to review their tariffs upwards based on what they termed the inclement fiscal and other economic indices challenges they are currently contending with.
Last week, the two major operator groups, namely the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) and the Association of Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria (ATCON, hinted of their plans to hike tariffs effective from May 1 this year.
The groups, in a joint press statement issued by their leadership, had accused the government of frustrating efforts to review prices despite the rising cost of operations.
However, speaking during the 2nd edition of the West African Telecoms Infrastructure Summit and Exhibition on Friday in Lagos, the Executive Vice-Chairman of NCC, Aminu Maida, said operators in the telecommunications sector could reduce their cost and enhance service delivery through partnerships.
Represented at the forum by the commission’s Head of Next Generation Technology and Standards, Mr Victor Adoga, the NCC boss while noting that the challenges being complained about by the operators are there but that collaborating on infrastructure will reduce their costs and improve their services.
According to him, collaboration among the government, industry stakeholders and the academia, could lead to sharing infrastructure models that reduce costs and improved service delivery.
Maida pointed out that developing telecoms infrastructure required Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs), infrastructure funds, and innovative financing models like Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), in order to meet the financial demand in the fast-growing industry.
He further clarified: “Another thing is to build our infrastructure, and sustainability must be a priority. This includes not only environmental considerations but also building systems that are economically and socially sustainable.”
“Integration with AI and Machine Learning (ML) to optimise network management, predict maintenance needs, and enhance customer service through automation and advanced analytics is also necessary.
“Another strategy is developing smart infrastructure, because as cities become smarter, telecom infrastructure must evolve to support an array of smart city applications, from traffic management systems to public safety solutions”, the EVC added.
Speaking on how to frontally tackle the challenges in the industry, Maida explained that though Nigeria had over 219 million mobile subscribers and a burgeoning tech-savvy population eager to harness digital technologies, the issues of uneven service distribution, infrastructure deficits, and regulatory uncertainties have occasionally hindered the nation’s progress.
Even then, he maintained that each challenge also presented a unique opportunity for growth and innovation and that the manner of navigating this path would determine the role Nigeria will play in the global digital space.
