By Ikechukwu Jonathan
A compendium of landmark speeches and presentations of the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer[EVC/CEO] of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta,will be unveiled to members of the public on September 7,at the Communications & Digital Economy Complex, Mbora, Abuja.
The epoch-making event will also feature the unveiling of two other strategic initiatives of the Commission captioned, “Catalyzing Nigeria’s Socio-Economic Transformation through Broadband Infrastructure”.
The NCC Director of Public affairs, Dr Ikechukwu Adinde, in a press statement to signal the launch said the book is a compilation of carefully-selected, seminal speeches and presentations of Prof. Danbatta, touching on all strategic areas of the nation’s telecom industry development and the entire digital economy ecosystem, since his assumption of office as the EVC/CEO of NCC in August, 2015.
Dr Adinde described Danbatta as a Professor of telecommunications engineering, accomplished academic, and seasoned administrator who has made extensive speeches and presentations on a wide-range of subjects in telecom and ICT at important national, regional and international events since leaving the ivory tower to become the EVC of NCC in 2015.
Adinde stated, “His landmark speeches and presentations from 2015 till date have, thus, been codified in a concise collection, as a compendium, providing useful information that will significantly add value to the existing body of knowledge in the telecom sector, and by extension, the entire Information and Communication Technology (ICT) industry.
He disclosed that the foreword to the book was painstakingly written by the late former Chairman, Board of Commissioners of NCC, Alh. Ahmed Joda of blessed memory. The book will serve as a useful reference material not only for existing and prospective investors in the sector but also for researchers in the academia as well as policy analysts and others interested in any aspects of the telecom industry and regulation.
The book which also chronicles important milestones attained by the Commission under Danbatta’s leadership is a compelling read. He stressed that other strategic projects to be unveiled by the Commission alongside the compendium are the NCC’s new five year Strategic Vision Plan (SVP) 2021-2025 and the Commission’s new social media channel, the NCC’s Global Connect Podcast.
The new SVP will enable cross-functional infrastructure, ubiquitous services and deepen consumer engagement to consolidate the growth of the telecoms sector and expand the possibilities of the digital economy.
The need to develop another SVP, as a five-year implementation roadmap for the Commission, followed the expiration, in 2020, of the first SVP unveiled by Danbatta in 2016.
He stated, ‘It has been widely acknowledged that the diligent execution of the first SVP initiative, under Danbatta, has helped to consistently lift broadband penetration, increase telephone access, boost the sector’s contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), enhance healthy competition in the industry, improve quality of service (QoS), as well as put the sector’s overall investment profile on an impressive growth trajectory, among others’.
The ‘NCC Global Connect,” podcast is the third initiative enlisted for unveiling during the launch. The latest addition to the NCC social media spectrum will help in enhancing the Commission’s corporate communication activities within the online space.
The podcast initiative was conceived in keeping with NCC’s core values of innovation and excellence; It adds to the existing media channels, providing an inclusive medium to broaden our media platforms to educate external stakeholders on its regulatory activities irrespective of their circumstances, through audio contents’.
According to the NCC Director of Public Affairs, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, will be the Special Guest of Honour at the occasion. While Senior government officials, Captain of industries, other stakeholders as well as several dignitaries from various parts of the country are expected to attend the landmark event.
