‎NCC begins two-day workshop to overhaul 26-year-old telecom policy‎

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‎By Chioma Obinagwam
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‎The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on Thursday opened a two-day Stakeholders’ Policy Review Workshop at the Marriott Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, focused on overhauling the National Telecommunications Policy (NTP) first enacted in 2000.
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‎Confiance News gathered that the workshop brings together key players in Nigeria’s digital ecosystem to assess the sector’s growth over the past 25 years, identify policy gaps, and chart a new course for the country’s telecommunications future.
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‎Speaking at the opening, the NCC’s Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Aminu Maida, said the communications sector had outgrown its original boundaries, transforming from a standalone vertical into the foundational infrastructure of modern economic life.
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‎”Modern regulatory tasks must expand to urgently address Cybersecurity, Data Governance, Digital Financing, and Online Safety,” Dr. Maida said.
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‎Confiance News learnt that he identified a cluster of emerging technologies demanding urgent policy attention, including Artificial Intelligence, Satellite Broadband, the Internet of Things, Critical National Information Infrastructure, and Digital Sovereignty.
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‎Dr. Maida also cited data from the global mobile industry body, GSMA, projecting that the strategic digitisation of agriculture, manufacturing, transport, and trade could add 2 per cent to Nigeria’s GDP, create two million jobs, and generate N1.6 trillion in additional tax revenue.
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‎The workshop’s technical panel sessions are examining the 26-year legacy of the NTP 2000, strategies for closing Nigeria’s digital divide, frameworks for balancing innovation with security and trust, and global best practices in telecommunications policy. Stakeholder feedback on the Commission’s published policy proposals is also being reviewed.
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‎The NCC says the outcome of the workshop will inform a modernised policy framework designed to deliver a more resilient, inclusive, and future-ready digital economy.