working on ensuring that the access gaps to telecommunications
services in the rural areas in the country are reduced from 20 years
to about three to four years. T
This was as the commission stated that it has come up with a Rural
Technology Solution to bridge this gap and make telecoms services
available in Nigeria's countryside.
We reports that the Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Prof. Prof.
Umar Danbatta made this known to newsmen in Abuja on Thursday,
explaining that the commission was before now partnering with service
providers to deploy base stations in areas without network, but that
this was done at the rate of 10 locations per annum.
"The NCC in partnership with stakeholders deploys base transmission
stations in those places without reach, that is access gaps. We are
doing this at the rate of about 10 per annum and going by the number
of access gaps, it is going to take the NCC about 20 years to bridge
all the access gaps," he said.
While noting that the rural population of Nigeria do not have the
patience for 20 years without access to telecommunications services,
Danbatta stated that this led the NCC to come up with ingenious ways
of bridging this gap within a shorter period of time.
He said, "So there is what is called rural technology solution which
we have deployed in a pilot scheme in about three locations in the
country and we are very happy about this deployment even though it is
a pilot one. We are in partnership with those in possession of this
technology and they are here in Abuja to reciprocate the deployment
beyond the pilot so that we can cover about 20 of those access gaps,
then we see what happens.
"But my estimation is that we can through the introduction of this
rural technology solution be able to bridge the gap in about three to
four years. When you want to bridge gaps, you would need to have a
spectrum and the spectrum belongs to the operators so we are
leveraging on this important resources by facilitating some kind of
partnership between the owners of the solutions with the operators.
"Therefore, the NCC is right there ensuring that the partnership
becomes effective and I'm happy to report that most of the operators
are favourably disposed to this solution."
The NCC boss at the 84th edition of the Telecom Consumer Parliament,
TCP, where the commission's Deputy Director, Consumer Affairs Bureau,
Ismail Adedigba unveiled the theme as: 'Improving service delivery to
telecom consumers: Key to industry sustainability', added that the
topic was carefully chosen to look at the totality of issues around
telecoms service delivery.
"It is instructive to note that every edition of the Telecoms
Consumers Parliament chooses a distinctive but industry-relevant topic
issue for discussion in a way that suggestions made and solutions
proffered are utilised by the regulator in its policy formulation
activities for the advancement of the telecommunications industry."
The Deputy Director continued, "On a daily basis, the commission
receives complaints from telecoms consumers about service delivery.
Therefore, as a responsible regulator that wants topnotch service
delivery by operators, we will continue to do everything within our
regulatory mechanisms to ensure that constant improvement in telecoms
service delivery is sustained."
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