The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), have passed vote of confidence on Professor Umar Garba Danbatta the Executive Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).over his outstanding achievements as the leader of the Nigerian apex telecommunications regulator.
Usman Baba kankia NANS National Secretary General in a statement made available to newsmen on Thursday, commended Prof. Danbatta “for the role the NCC played in the successful conduct of the 2023 general elections by ensuring successful transmission of results and defending the INEC server from hackers and intruders during the collation process.
“It is worthy of note that under Prof. Danbatta’s leadership, the NCC has achieved remarkable milestones that have positively impacted the telecom industry and the economy at large.
“We are moved by the unprecedented transformation he has brought to the NCC, some of his include the successful auction of 3.5 gigahertz (GHz) spectrum broadband for the deployment of the 5G network in Nigeria to boost internet speed and connectivity across the country.
“Regulatory strides that have continually created a level playing field for investors, this has helped to reflate telecom-induced growth of the economy in the post-pandemic era.
“Prof. Danbatta has also repositioned the ICT sector to contribute 17% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with a target of 20% in the future helping to bridge government revenue deficit.
“Under Prof. Danbatta, the NCC has ensured continuous SIM registration audit to provide security and curtail incidences of banditry, kidnapping, and armed robbery thereby improving on the security situation of the country.
“Creation of Emergency Communications Centres (ECCs) in more states of the federation and execution of the counterpart funding agreements with the licensed Infrastructure companies (InfraCos) to facilitate the digital transformation of the economy.
“Statistics from the commission shows that when Mr Danbatta came on board, 217 access gap clusters were identified in the country, with 40 million Nigerians excluded from access to telecoms services. Five years after, however, the access gaps have reduced to 114 clusters with an additional 15 million Nigerians now connected.
“He also oversaw the successful licensing of six Infrastructure Companies (InfraCos) to deploy fibre infrastructure across the six-geo political zones that will also help to galvanize increased connectivity and improve broadband penetration. This single move have brought about a reduction in the cost of data from N1000, per gigabyte of data to around N390 with a broadband penetration target of 70 per cent to cover 90 per cent as contained in the new Nigerian National Broadband Plan (2020-2025).
“On capital importation, as at 2015, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the telecom sector stood at $1 billion but declined to $212 million by 2018. However, through improved regulatory framework, the FDI in the sector has picked up again, reaching $930 million according to figures of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).”
The apex student body urged “the incoming administration at Federal level to continue to work with the NCC Executive Vice Chairman, Prof. Umar Danbatta, to deliver good governance to the people of Nigeria. We are confident that his leadership acumen and experience will continue to take the telecom industry and the economy to greater heights. Thank you all for coming.”
