Airtel Nigeria is supporting a new plan to declare Nigeria’s telecom facilities ‘Critical National Infrastructure’ (CNI). The telecommunications company urged the government to move quicker on establishing the law in order to enhance security within the telecom industry, which has been heavily impacted recently by floods and militant action.
The operator urged the government “to draw attention to the harmful impact of terrorist operations in the North, floods in the South and Middle Belt, the challenges posed by multiple taxation and levies as well as damage to telecom infrastructure.”
Airtel Nigeria’s Director of Regulatory Affairs and Special Projects Osondu Nwokoro said “fast-tracking the declaration would confer priority and protected status for telecom facilities in the interest of overall national development.”
He added that the company “appreciates efforts led by the ICT ministry in conjunction with the Ministry of Works to articulate a national Right of Way policy. Nwokoro added that the government should collaborate with the states and local governments to ensure an agreed framework for right of way issues and eliminate the current multiplicity of policies.”
Nwokoro said the government “is imposing various taxes and frustrating efforts by Airtel to add fibre cables to expand and improve the quality of service. Other challenges are the damage caused by terrorist activity in the North and the recent flooding in parts of the country.”
Airtel hopes that by having CNI established, telecom operators will be able to push forward with expansion efforts, including infrastructure development in rural areas.
David Eto
