The Federal Government is determined to reverse the trend of importation of all types of telecommunications products, especially where production in Nigeria is possible.
This was disclosed by the Minister of the Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Ali Ibrahim Pantami.
A statement by spokesperson of the Nigerian Telecommunications Commission (NCC), Rueben Mouka on Wednesday said the minister spoke at the first Indigenous Content Expo (NTICE), 2022 held at the Landmark Centre in Lagos.
The expo was organized as part of effort to vigorously pursue the objectives of the National Policy for the Promotion of Indigenous Content in the Nigerian Telecommunications Sector (NPPIC), through the National Office for Developing Indigenous Telecoms Sector (NODITS) domiciled in the NCC.
Pantami emphasised that the government had put efforts towards the protection of the telecom industry, which contributes impressively to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), by insisting on the drastic reduction in the reliance on foreign products. He, consequently, warned against importation of such products like Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards that can be produced in Nigeria.
Also, the Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Prof. Umar Danbatta, told the audience that the minister’s efforts and support have spurred the commission to take certain steps that have yielded immediate results that were being showcased at the expo.
He said the efforts of the commission to pursue indigenous content in the industry, EVC of NCC, Prof. Danbatta, said the objective of the NPPIC is to transform the enormous strides achieved by the telecom industry in the last two decades into long-term indigenous economic development outcomes for Nigerian companies and citizenry.
