NCC Hosts Stakeholder Engagement On 5G

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has announced plans to host a stakeholder engagement forum as part of activities lined up for the implementation of the Fifth Generation (5G) Technology Deployment.

Director, Public Affairs of NCC, Dr Ikechukwu Adinde said this in a statement issued in Lagos on Tuesday.

Adinde said the forum would afford industry stakeholders the opportunity to discuss the draft Information Memorandum (IM) for the upcoming auction of the 3.5 gigahertz (GHz) spectrum band.

He said the decision to host the stakeholder engagement was in line with the provisions of the Nigerian Communications Act (NCA) 2003 and NCC’s distinctive tradition of robust stakeholder consultation on all telecom regulation-related issues.

Adinde said that the commission inaugurated a committee in June to develop the IM for the auction of a 3.5 GHz spectrum band, which would be utilised for the early deployment of 5G technology services.

“The IM is a comprehensive document which defines the process emplaced by the commission for the auctioning of the 3.5GHz spectrum band.

“It also provides information on the Nigerian telecommunications market, details of the spectrum to be made available, the pre-qualification process, the auction process and the indicative timetable.

“The stakeholder engagement forum is, therefore, an important regulatory prerequisite for the planned auction of 3.5Ghz spectrum before the end of this year,’’ he said.

He said that in line with the objectives of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy for a digital Nigeria, the successful and timely deployment of 5G was crucial for the country.

According to him, the positioning of Nigeria as an early adopter of digital technology and a major participant in the growing global digital economy is crucial for the country.

The forum scheduled to hold at the Lagos Marriot Hotel, Ikeja, on Thursday is open to all interested stakeholders in the telecoms sector and beyond.

The 5G technology is expected to facilitate several emerging technologies, generate innovative new use cases, spur significant socio-economic growth and create jobs.