ATCON Applauds Government’s Telecommunication Hike Rate

In addition to investing in the sector’s infrastructure, the Government’s move to raise call and data rates was praised by the Association of Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) on Thursday.

In Lagos, ATCON President Mr. Tony Emoekpere stated that while the rise was long overdue, it was nonetheless welcome and a work in progress.

According to Emoekpere, the pricing increase should take place in the first quarter of the year, as previously suggested, so that MNOs may begin making plans.

An umbrella group for Nigerian telecom businesses, the Association of Telecommunications Businesses of Nigeria (ATCON) is non-political, non-profit, and professional.

Additionally, it states that during a stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja on Wednesday, Dr. Bosun Tijani, Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, stated that telecom rates would rise, but not by 100% as the operators had proposed.

Tijani stated that discussions and conversations on the matter are still going on, following the stakeholders’ meeting with the operators (MNOs).

The minister added that the Government would no longer rely solely on private enterprises to fund infrastructure projects in the industry.

Although the decision to raise tariffs was a little late, Emoekpere stated that a 100 percent tariff rise was not a significant factor because tariffs had been unchanged for years.

“Like I said, the issue is a work in progress. Although it’s still a bit late, considering how many years the tariff has remained stagnant, a 100 percent hike will not be a big leap.

“However, if the federal government’s decision had been delayed longer than this, a 100 percent tariff hike would have been a lot worse.

“We Telcos will have to see what’s best. We have to look at how well to do this work in development,” the ATCON president said.

As was the case in other countries, Emoekpere went on to say that the federal government’s plan to invest in telecommunications infrastructure was typical procedure.

“Telecommunications is actually a critical national infrastructure, and it is always important that the government have a say in telecommunications infrastructure.

“In other countries, the government still invests in infrastructure, It is also a welcome development.

“This will boost the operations of the sector because if the government has a vested interest in the sector, it will ensure that the infrastructure is actively protected,’’ he said.

Emoekpere claims that because the nation’s telecom infrastructure was not being actively guarded, vandalism has been successful throughout the years.

He stated that he thought vandalism would decrease to the bare minimum with government intervention.

NAN