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Nigeria’s active mobile lines cross 200 million mark – Pantami
Nasiru Yusuf
The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, has told the global digital community that Nigeria has been witnessing phenomenal growth in its Information and Communication Technology (ICT) industry, thus enabling socio-economic development in Nigeria and across the African continent.
KANO FOCUS reports that Pantami stated this at a tea break hosted by Nigeria on the sideline of the 2022 International Telecommunication Union’s World Telecommunications Development Conference (ITU-WTDC) which started in Kigali Rwanda on Wednesday, June 8, 2022.
The tea break was attended by senior officials of the ITU, including the Secretary General, Houlin Zhao, as well as representatives and heads of delegations from different countries attending the annual conference.
Addressing delegates on behalf of the Minister, the Executive Commissioner, Technical Services at the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Ubale Maska, said that Nigeria had continued to record impressive growth in its ICT sector and acknowledged the support of the ITU in Nigeria’s strides in ICT.
Ubale Maska
“Nigeria has utilized ICT as a driver of socio-economic development not just for herself, but also for the benefit of the sub-region and continent, given its role as a founding member and strategic sponsor of the West Africa Telecommunications Regulators Assembly (WATRA),” Maska said.
Providing latest growth statistics in terms of the telecoms segment of the Nigerian ICT industry, Maska said in the last 20 years, Nigeria has achieved robust growth in its telecoms industry where it went from less than half a million connected telephone lines to over 200 million active mobile lines as at April, 2022. Importantly, the broadband penetration in Nigeria is now 42.79 per cent.
“As a country, we have grown from Second Generation (2G), to 3G, 4G and now the 5G is about to come on board after conducting a globally-acclaimed transparent auction and awards of two 5G licences. Also, the country has implemented vigorous financial inclusion initiatives riding on robust digital infrastructure,” he said.
Engr. Maska said many achievements of Nigeria in the area of ICT development have been possible through the successful launch and implementation of policies that foster use of ICTs across all sectors to enhance a digital economy.
Meanwhile, as a long-standing member of ITU Council, Maska said Nigeria has been playing remarkable roles in ITU, such as its chairing the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) 2022; chairing the World Radiocommunications Conference (WRC) 2015; and chairing of ITU Council Standing Committee on Administration and Management (SC-ADM) in 2019 and 2022.
He said Nigeria has also chaired the Ad-hoc Committee on ITU Regional Presence; served as chair and vice chair of several study groups; and provided financial support to the ITU headquarters. Maska assured the participants that Nigeria hopes to have the privilege and honour to continue to serve in the forthcoming ITU Council cycle (2022-2026). Maska commended the government of Rwanda for hosting this year’s edition of the conference on behalf of the African continent.
In his speech during the brief event, the ITU Scribe, Houlin Zhao, extolled Nigeria’s role and contributions as a member of ITU Council. He used the opportunity to seek the support of the other member countries for Nigeria’s membership in the next cycle, 2022-2026.
Maska, who participated as a panelist at the Partner2Connect Development Roundtable High Level Panel 8, warmly appreciated the ITU officials and delegates from other countries for honouring Nigeria’s invitation to the tea break to have important deliberations at the development conference.
Focused on “Connecting the unconnected to achieve sustainable development”, WTDC is a unique opportunity to develop innovative approaches and new models of collaboration for connectivity and digital solutions in this final ‘Decade of Action’ to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The WTDC, taking place in Kigali, Rwanda, from 6 to 16 June 2022, features the Partner2Connect Digital Development Roundtable from 7 to 9 June. It was preceded by the Generation Connect Global Youth Summit from 2 to 4 June.
The ITU, through its Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT), organizes the WTDC in the period between two Plenipotentiary Conferences (the supreme organ of ITU which takes place every four years), to consider topics, projects and programmes relevant to telecommunication development. The WTDC sets the strategies and objectives for the development of telecommunication and ICT, and provides future direction and guidance to the ITU Telecommunication Development Sector (ITU-D).
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
The staff of the Abuja Urban Mass Transport Company have protested the sacking of the agency’s Managing Director, Najeeb Mahmoud Abdulsalam.
KANO FOCUS reports that the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike, had on Wednesday ordered the removal of heads of the FCT agencies and parastatals.
However, videos that emerged on Thursday night showed staff members of AUMTCO in tears, as they protested Abdulsalam’s removal.
The weeping protesters, who gathered around the sacked MD, are seen in a trending video chanting, “We want you back!”.
One of the protesters who shared the video on Twitter wrote, “#GovWike, Abuja Urban Mass Transport Company MD/CEO is just three months old in office and he has achieved what no past MD has ever dreamt or dare to achieve. It’ll be a loss on you sir and the entire #AUMTCO staff if you let him go. See us here protesting sir.”
A fellow of National Institute of Management, Abdussalam was Senior Special Assistant to Kano state Governor on students matters.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
The Kano State Government has appealed a Federal High Court judgement that ordered it to pay N30 billion as compensation to some traders for the demolition of their shops.
KANO FOCUS reports that a Federal High Court sitting in Kano and presided over by Justice Simon Anogede, had, while delivering judgement in the case filed by the Traders Association, said what the government did was barbaric and unconstitutional.
The court however awarded N30 billion as compensation to the traders, instead of the N250 billion they demanded from the government.
However, the Kano State government says it has appealed the judgement, which it described as miscarriage of justice.
Barrister Haruna Isa Dederi, the State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, explained that the court was not right in awarding judgement to the Traders Association because the Land Use Act is clear on the position of lands in every state.
He insisted that the court lacked the jurisdiction to even listen to the case because government is the sole owner of land, according to the Land Use Act.
Headlines
ACReSAL plans to increase city parks to 50 in Kano, laments indiscriminate felling of trees
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
The Kano Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL), has said that it will increase city parks to 50 in Kano.
KANO FOCUS reports that the Project Coordinator Dr Dahiru Muhammad Hashim made this known while addressing newsmen on Thursday in Kano.
He said the project is planning to recover and restore lost landscapes arising from natural causes and human activities.
”We are committed to addressing the environmental challenges that affect the state such as climate change, drylands, erosion and flooding, land degradation, and issues that affect the livelihood of communities which is mainly agriculture.
”The ACReSAL project is anchored on four broad components that speak essentially to the demand of the poor whose livelihoods have been distressed,” he said.
Hashim also said that the ACReSAL project has drilled solar-powered boreholes and established tree nurseries in some local government areas of the state.
He said that the intervention would boost agriculture and improve the standard of living of the people while the tree nurseries would help to combat desertification and soil erosion.
He expressed the commitment of the state in improving and protecting the Kano environment with priority and attention to the sector on issues of biodiversity conservation and restoration of degraded lands.
“ACReSAL plans to undertake Erosion control work in Rarin, Dawakin Tofa and Bulbula/Gayawa, Nassarawa, and Ungogo Local government areas.
“Construction of water conservation structure and provision of minor irrigation facilities in ‘Yartiti, Shanono, and construction of water conservation structure and provision of minor irrigation facilities in Fajewa, Takai Local government area.
“Establishment of 100ha individual farmer orchards and Woodlot plantations, 200ha of woodlot in communal forests and institutional plantings.
“440ha farmer-managed natural regeneration of indigenous tree species on individual farmlands and communal forests and promotion of climate-smart agriculture through FLID and CRF among others,” he said
KANO FOCUS reports that the World Bank’s 700 million dollar ACReSAL project is being implemented in collaboration with the federal government and the 19 northern states and the FCT was recently officially launched in Bauchi by Gov. Bala Mohammed, thus becoming the first among the participating states to unveil the project implementation.
The ACreSAL project is embarked on by the Federal Government to build community resilience as well as improve the sustainable productivity of its natural resources in Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Jigawa, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, Yobe, Zamfara, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Benue, Nasarawa, Kogi, Plateau, Adamawa, Taraba, Niger, Kwara, and Kaduna.
These northern states including the FCT, the federal government said are faced by rapid desert encroachment ranging from severe to moderate and marginal.
Other incentives of the project are the strengthening of the environment for integrated climate-resilient landscape management, fighting issues surrounding desertification, drought, landscape degradation, and deprivation at community levels as well as resuscitating the sectors of agriculture, environment, and water resources.
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