Apex body says broadband penetration now at 13%

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August 29, 2016 4:29 PM

Increasing from a 10 percent penetration which was recorded last year, current estimates put penetration at about 13 percent.

Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, NCC CEO/EVC

Umar Danbatta, EVC and CEO of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on Friday said that broadband penetration in the country is now at 13 percent.

Danbatta made the statement during ‘The 2016 Nigeria ICT Impact CEO Forum and Awards’, organised by ICT Watch Network in Lagos. The form was themed ‘How can broadband deployment impact on Nigeria’s economic recovery?’

Mr. Tony Ojobo, director of public affairs at the NCC, who represented Danbatta at the event, said the National Broadband Committee had projected a target of 30 percent broadband penetration by the year 2018.

According to Ojobo, the country needs to put in more effort towards achieving the broadband target by 2018.

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Increasing from a 10 percent penetration which was recorded last year, current estimates put penetration at about 13 percent.

Danbatta says the World Bank has stated that with every 10 percent increase in broadband penetration in Nigeria, there is a 1.3 percent increase on Nigeria's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The NCC's EVC said the NCC's strategy was to facilitate and support availability of broadband services by promoting the deployment of universally available, fast and reliable network infrastructure.

The NCC boss stated that the industry had 149.8 million as at June 2016, with a teledensity of 107.1 percent, while the internet subscription also grew to about 97 percent.

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