BUSINESS ICT contributes N1.6tr to GDP quarterly – NCC
UBA declares N42.3bn half year profit, proposes 20k dividend
The quarterly contribution of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has increased to N1.6 trillion from N1.4trn, the Nigerian Communications Commission has said.
The NCC’s Executive Vice Chairman, Professor Umar Danbatta, who disclosed this yesterday when he paid a courtesy visit to the Minister of Federal Capital Territory, also said the ICT sector is now contributing close to 10 per cent to the GDP annually.
The country, he added, recorded an increase in internet users hitting 92 million as at June.
He said that broadband penetration was expected to hit 30 per cent next year, and that would further increase the number of internet users in the country.
“Telecommunications has attracted more than $68 billion in private sector investment since 2001,” he said.
He, however said the sector faced some challenges like lack of collocation guidelines, increase in fees for building permits, retrospective FCTA laws, activities of road construction, delayed approval for installation of base stations/fibre deployments among others in the FCT.
The FCT Minister, Malam Mohammed Musa Bello, however promised that the capital city’s administration would collaborate with the NCC to overcome those challenges.
“Part of our job is to ease businesses and increase investment in the city and the country at large. We would support you in ensuring there is always increase in broadband penetration across the country,” Malam Bello said. FLIGHT
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