*Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice-Chairman and CEO of the Nigerian Communications Commission, is committed to raising the bar of digital inclusion, security of cyberspace, and innovation in the country’s ecosystem

Isola Moses | 绿帽献妻

As the West African country intensifies efforts at leveraging the telecommunications infrastructure to boost social services, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has said the telecoms sector regulator is committed to raising the bar of digital inclusion, enhanced security of cyberspace and innovation in the digital ecosystem.

绿帽献妻 reports Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of NCC, stated this in his Keynote Speech at the just concluded Parliamentarian Africa Internet Governance Forum (AIGF) the regulatory Commission hosted in Abuja, FCT.

The theme of the 2023 AIGF, which held September 19-21, was: “Transforming Africa鈥檚 Digital Landscape: Empowering Inclusion, Security and Innovation鈥�.

Nigeria’s financial inclusion strategy is Telco-driven

Danbatta further disclosed in today’s Nigeria, the financial inclusion strategy of Federal Government is Telco-driven.

The EVC/CEO of NCC explained that the idea of leveraging the telecoms infrastructure strategy to offer social services, including financial inclusion, results from the pervasive nature of such telecoms infrastructure in the digital ecosystem.

鈥淏efore, the mobile money penetration was 1 percent, but not anymore because after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), gave licences to four of our network operators.

鈥淎s we speak … the Payment Service Bank (PSB), the digital financial inclusion index had risen to about 70 percent,” stated he.

How NCC facilitated use of USSD codes: Danbatta

As regards the effort of the Commission in advancing financial inclusion, Danbatta said NCC facilitated the deployment of Unsupplementary Structured Service Data (USSD) code, which drives transactions in the banking sector in Nigeria till this day.

The Executive Vice-Chairman stated: “Nowadays, Nigerians do transfer without having to go to the banking halls to fill tellers which used to be the way we were doing it before.
鈥淭his important intervention was provided in all the six geopolitical zones of the country.
“It is a continuous exercise and intervention.鈥�

On driving national system of innovation in ecosystem

In respect of evolving innovation in the digital ecosystem, Danbatta noted that the Commission has a number of initiatives driving the national system of innovation in Nigeria.

According to him, the NCC has empowered the younger ones, the middle ages, and mature Nigerians outside these brackets to innovate by providing Interventions of computer systems and MiFi.

About the enhanced security of the cyberspace, Danbatta as well stated that NCC has the Nigerian Computer Emergency Response Team (NCERT).

The NCERT, he said, has provided an advisory on how telecommunications companies could take measures to protect themselves from malicious attack within the cyberspace.

Danbatta said: “We even grade the nature of attack to malicious, light, heavy.鈥�

Speaking at the forum in Abuja, Hon. Samuel George, Secretary-General of AIGF and member of Ghanaian Parliament, said it was important to have a unified African cybersecurity approach to an African problem.

George disclosed the African Union (AU) data and policy framework had the synchronised ability to share information with the Nigeria and other African countries.

鈥淥ur military and security intelligence that just deal with security, intelligence gathering and all of that should be able to share critical information with the Nigerian military sector.

鈥淚f there is a risk that covers Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria and they do not have similar protocols, then it affects this conversation,” Secretary-General of AIGF stated.

He explained “that鈥檚 why as an African continent we need to ratify this convention because the things that were topical eight years ago in 2015 are mundane now, technology has moved on. So we will need to catch up with it.鈥�

Lillian Nalwoga, Chairperson of AFIGF, said at the regional level, there had been the Africa cybersecurity conventions, and more countries were needed to be able to ascend.

Nalwoga said: 鈥淲ithout determination, it will be a little bit difficult to be able to address cybercrimes at a regional level.鈥�
African countries needed to have some sort of harmonisation of cybersecurity laws in their various countries to aid fight cybercrimes, she said.

Nalwoga noted: “We need countries that have not been able to ratify this convention to be able to resolve this and also for countries that are still lagging behind in terms of coming up with the right cybersecurity laws.

鈥淚t is not just about cybersecurity. We also need to have countries adopting data protection and privacy laws because it allow the government to do some level of surveillance.”

She urged the stakeholders that to formulate cybersecurity laws in the same framework as data protection for the rights of the citizens.

Nalwoga restated cybersecurity is important because it protects the citizen from non-state actors themselves, expose citizens to risk and then from the state itself from surveillance.”

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