Stories By Charles Ebi
Nigerian Communications Commission ,NCC, has joined forces with the Association for Progressive Communications ,APC, and other institutional stakeholders to address the persistent challenges hindering rural network connectivity in Nigeria.
The collaboration culminated in a two-day policy-focused workshop held in Abuja.
The event was aimed at developing a policy framework that would support the growth of community networks to bridge the digital divide and boost socio-economic development in underserved and unserved areas across the country.
The forum brought together key players including regulators, community leaders, technical experts, and potential foreign investors to identify policy and regulatory bottlenecks, explore innovative funding solutions, and promote sustainable, renewable energy models that can power network infrastructure in remote regions.
Addressing participants, the Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, described the workshop as a crucial step in achieving nationwide digital inclusion and equitable economic development.
“This workshop is an opportunity for all of us to harness the expertise, insights, and experiences of diverse stakeholders present here which includes the regulators, community leaders, technical experts and potential foreign providers to address the critical challenges such as affordable devices, access, licensing, spectrum allocation, infrastructure development, sustainability and institutional monitoring”, said Maida, who was represented at the event by the NCC’s Executive Commissioner, Technical Services, Abraham Oshadami.
He emphasized the Commission’s dedication to connecting remote communities and empowering them through accessible digital infrastructure. “At NCC, we recognise the transformative potential of community center networks in achieving this important goal”, he said.
Reiterating NCC’s long-term commitment, Maida added: “This journey and this workshop is a catalyst for meaningful change. The expertise, perspectives and commitments shared here will help shape a future where every Nigerian, regardless of his or her status, will have meaningful access to opportunities from digital connectivity”.
In her remarks, Kathleen Diga, Co-manager of the Association for Progressive Communications’ Local Network ,LocNet, initiative, said the workshop was designed to confront real-world obstacles to digital inclusion.
“This is a space where we can be open and exchange ideas of possibilities, opportunities that will remain in realising values of a diversified ecosystem”, she said.
Diga noted the importance of local participation in solving connectivity issues: “I believe this workshop presents a moment in time that we can explore the bottom-up approach in local communities, small social enterprises, cooperatives among others, which have the ability to fill some of the digital gaps that remain unfilled”, she further stressed the growing relevance of community connectivity efforts across the Global South. “They are a strategic response to digital exclusion”, she said.
The workshop featured presentations from the NCC, APC, and other key agencies such as the Rural Electrification Agency ,REA, and the Central Bank of Nigeria ,CBN. Discussions were geared toward designing a collaborative and inclusive policy roadmap for expanding digital access in rural Nigeria.
The Association for Progressive Communications, an international network with over 35 years of experience, has focused its LocNet initiative on encouraging digital inclusion in under-connected communities, particularly in the Global South. Its collaboration with NCC aims to help craft a regulatory environment that supports sustainable community networks in Nigeria.
