The Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, has launched a public consultation process for the review of the 25-year-old National Telecommunications Policy, NTP, 2000, inviting stakeholders across the communications sector to submit their inputs.
The Commission has set March 20 as the deadline for all written submissions, which should be addressed to the Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of the Commission or sent via email to stakeholders@ncc.gov.ng.
The consultation marks the first formal step in updating the policy framework that has governed Nigeria’s telecommunications sector for over two decades. Dr. Aminu Maida, Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, emphasized the significance of the review in the published consultation paper.
“The NTP 2000 has been instrumental to advancing Nigeria’s telecom sector from where it was 25 years ago – from a mere 500,000 lines to almost 180 million active mobile connections as of December 2026,” Maida stated. “One of the gaps that the revised policy seeks to address is the increased demand for data services and its externalities.”
The consultation process is being conducted in exercise of the Commission’s functions under the Nigerian Communications Act, NCA, 2003, specifically Section 24 (1), which mandates public consultative processes before policy formulation or review.
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The initiative follows the inauguration of a Ministerial Steering Committee and a Ministerial Technical Committee by the Honourable Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, to oversee the review process.
Specifically, NCC said the policy review will align with the Minister’s Strategic Blueprint – “Accelerating Our Collective Prosperity through Technical Efficiency” – and will address critical contemporary issues including as spectrum management, universal access, broadband penetration and Net neutrality Quality of service. Also listed are issues around emerging technologies, national security and industry sustainability and regulation.
The consultation paper outlines 15 key policy proposals that form the baseline for the review, providing context and policy purpose for necessary changes to the existing framework.
Dr. Maida assured stakeholders that this is just the beginning of an inclusive process. “This is a first step in the consultation process and there will be other layers of engagements, to ensure that the final draft accommodates varied expertise, feedback and inputs from a cross section of stakeholders,” he explained.
The first draft of the NTP 2026 will be developed from this initial consultation and will subsequently undergo further consultations before being subjected to statutory policy approval and validation processes.
The EVC urged broad participation in the consultation, noting that the process is open to licensees in the Nigerian communications sector, consumers, government agencies, international agencies and partners, Civil Society Organisations, individuals, and other interested stakeholders.
“We implore stakeholders to take this opportunity to participate in developing the policy that will take the communications sector to the next level after the immeasurable successes attained since 2000,” Maida added.
The NTP 2000, which replaced the 1998 Policy, marked a major progression in Nigeria’s telecommunications landscape, ushering in liberalization, modernization, and competition under the country’s then nascent democratic government. The policy successfully paved the way for the explosive growth of mobile telephony and the eventual enactment of the NCA 2003.
With the sector having evolved dramatically over the past quarter-century, stakeholders now have less than a month to contribute their perspectives on shaping the future of Nigeria’s communications industry.
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