{"id":71793,"date":"2025-07-31T10:52:12","date_gmt":"2025-07-31T10:52:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/?p=71793"},"modified":"2025-07-31T10:52:12","modified_gmt":"2025-07-31T10:52:12","slug":"ncc-boss-unveils-telecom-reforms-seeks-legal-overhaul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/2025\/07\/31\/ncc-boss-unveils-telecom-reforms-seeks-legal-overhaul\/","title":{"rendered":"NCC Boss Unveils Telecom Reforms, Seeks Legal\u00a0Overhaul"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>By Onyeanya Ebere Immaculata<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Aminu Maida, has announced a reform-driven agenda aimed at transforming Nigeria\u2019s telecom sector and aligning it with global standards.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking at an industry engagement in Abuja, Maida outlined key priorities under his leadership, including data-driven regulation, improved compliance, and enhanced institutional efficiency.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are committed to strengthening the commission\u2019s regulatory processes, ensuring transparency, and boosting sectoral confidence,\u201d Maida said.<\/p>\n<p>His reform push comes with the backing of the Presidency, particularly as the NCC prepares to implement long-anticipated amendments to the Nigerian Communications Act (NCA) of 2003. The draft amendments currently under review aim to modernize Nigeria\u2019s telecom regulatory framework by addressing evolving challenges such as cybercrime, agency role ambiguities, and rapid technological change.<\/p>\n<p>Maida\u2019s approach signals a shift from the strategies employed by his predecessor, Prof. Isa Pantami (2019\u20132023), whose tenure was marked by major initiatives including the nationwide 5G rollout. Pantami had projected that 5G alone could add $11 trillion to the global economy by 2035.<\/p>\n<p>However, some of Pantami\u2019s policies, such as the NIN-SIM linkage initiative and the temporary Twitter ban, sparked controversy. The former resulted in the disconnection of over nine million lines, while the latter reportedly cost the Nigerian economy $366.9 million.<\/p>\n<p>To further support innovation and digital transformation, the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, has introduced complementary initiatives like the 3MTT digital skills program and an accelerated fibre optic expansion plan. These efforts support Maida\u2019s call for regulatory clarity, especially regarding infrastructure development.<\/p>\n<p>A critical issue currently under review is the protection of telecom infrastructure. Despite President Bola Ahmed Tinubu\u2019s designation of telecoms as Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII) in August last year, industry players continue to face significant challenges, including vandalism.<\/p>\n<p>According to the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), acts of vandalism in Lagos alone have resulted in damages exceeding N5 billion over the past year.<\/p>\n<p>As Maida\u2019s leadership takes shape, the NCC is expected to focus on restoring investor confidence, enhancing resilience in telecom infrastructure, and ensuring the sector contributes more significantly to Nigeria\u2019s digital and\u00a0economic\u00a0goals.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Onyeanya Ebere Immaculata &nbsp; The Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Aminu Maida, has announced a reform-driven agenda aimed at transforming Nigeria\u2019s telecom sector and aligning it with global standards. Speaking at an industry engagement in Abuja, Maida outlined key priorities under his leadership, including data-driven regulation, improved compliance, and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":71794,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[172,180],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-71793","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-technology"],"aioseo_notices":[],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71793","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71793"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71793\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71795,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71793\/revisions\/71795"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/71794"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71793"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71793"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71793"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}