THE BUREAU

By Madaki Raphael



The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has verified the issuing of final letters of award for Fifth Generation (5G) Spectrum Licences to MTN and Mafab Communications, the winners of the Commission's 3.5GHz spectrum auction on Monday, December 13, 2021.

The Commission's Management, led by Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, confirmed this to the Board of Commissioners at the Board's Special Meeting on Wednesday, April 20 and Thursday, April 21, 2022, where the Board considered updates from Management on the spectrum auction's status.

According to a statement issued by the NCC and signed by Dr. Ikechukwu Adinde, Director, Public Affairs, with the issuance of the final letters of awards of 5G spectrum and in accordance with the Auction's Information Memorandum (IM), the two licensees are now expected to accelerate the deployment of 5G networks, ushering Nigeria into a more robust Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) and a more digitized Nigerian economy.

The licensees are slated to begin rolling out 5G services on August 24, 2022, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the 5G license.

When fully operational, the 5G network will provide a slew of benefits and opportunities for the country's fast growth and smart life. Significant network benefits are also promised as a result of the technology, including increased connection speed, mobility, and capacity, as well as low-latency capabilities.

The National Frequency Management Council (NFMC), chaired by Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, officially handed over the spectrum allocation for 5G deployment as well as the Federal Government-approved National Policy on 5G to the Commission on February 22, 2022, following a transparent, diligent, fair, and credible auction of 3.5GHz on December 13, 2021.

Following that, on February 24, 2022, the Commission validated the two spectrum winners' complete payment of $273.6 million each for the 5G spectrum license, in addition to the spectrum assignment fee paid by MTN.

The Commission is optimistic that effective implementation of the National 5G Policy will hasten the achievement of national targets set out in the Nigerian National Broadband Plan (NNBP) 2020-2025, the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) 2020-2030, and other sectoral policies aimed at accelerating Nigeria's digital transformation.

While licensees are expected to achieve their 5G network rollout deadlines, the NCC is requiring the private sector and government to work together to revolutionize every element of the nation's economy through 5G, which will usher in greater change than the 1G, 2G, 3G, and 4G networks.

Source: The Bureau

This was created at 2:15pm https://www.nairaland.com/7110149/5g-ncc-issues-final-letters.

It should be the one on the FP.