From Our Correspondent
Dr Bosun Tijani, the Minister of Communication, Innovation and Digital Economy has announced that telecom operators plan to hike telecommunications tariffs.
TheNewsZenith reports that Tijani announced the plan tariff hike after a meeting with Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) on Wednesday in Abuja.
He said the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) is finalizing the process and will soon make the new tariffs public.
“You have seen, over the past weeks, that some companies have been agitating for a tariff increase.
“They are requesting a 100 per cent tariff increase. But it will not be by 100 per cent.
“We are still looking at that study and NCC will come up with a clear directive on how we will go about it,” TheNewsZenith quoted the minister as saying.
He assured Nigerians that the government would strike a balance between protecting consumers and ensuring that telecom operators remain profitable.
Tijani said the federal government would no longer rely solely on private companies to invest in telecommunications infrastructure.
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According to him, there is a need for “meaningful connectivity” that ensures quality service for Nigerians.
“Over time, we have left this investment in the hands of the private sector. They typically invest where they can see returns in the short to medium term.
“We will not want this conversation to just be about tariff increases.
“The consumers may not be aware of the investment that needs to go into the infrastructure in being used to deliver these services,” he added.
The NCC’s Executive Vice-Chairman, Dr Aminu Maida, remarked that the commission was working to simplify telecom tariff structures to make charges clearer to Nigerians.
“We are moving away from the regime where you will have a main rate and then have a bonus at a different rate.
“It makes it often complicated for Nigerians to understand what the telecoms are charging them for,” Maida said. (TNZ)
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