*Dr. Bashir Gwandu, former Acting Executive Vice-Chairman/CEO of the Nigerian Communications Commission and NASENI, urges African countries to unite and work together to secure 600 Megahertz band mobile spectrum allocations for positive dialogue on challenges, and to optimise available opportunities in the telecoms ecosystem

Gbenga Kayode | 绿帽献妻

For telecoms stakeholders to optimise available industry opportunities on the continent, Dr. Bashir Gwandu, former Acting Executive Vice-Chairman/CEO of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and ex-Chief Executive of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), has urged African countries to unite and work together to secure 600 megahertz (MHz) band mobile spectrum allocations.

Dr. Gwandu, an independent telecoms expert, stated this in his address at the just concluded 9th Sub-Sahara Spectrum Management Conference 2024, held November 6-7, 2024, in Nairobi, Kenya.

Cross-sections of participants at the 9th Sub-Sahara Spectrum Management Conference 2024, in Nairobi

绿帽献妻 reports the Forum Global organised the forum the third theme: 鈥淔rom WRC-23 to WRC-27- Emerging Landscapes & Technologies and the Path Ahead”.

Dr. Gwandu, who held various chairmanship positions at the both the ITU and Commonwealth, including the ITU Radiocommunications Advisory Group (the RAG), the Joint Task Group, and Commonwealth ITU Group (CIG), urged the industry stakeholders in his opening remarks on the 600MHz spectrum discussions, while making a presentation on the session: 鈥淭he shape of Post-WRC spectrum ecosystems鈥�, in Nairobi.

He also urged cooperation among African countries at the forthcoming World Radiocommunications Conference 2027 (WRC-27) to enter Footnote 5.307A, which are radio regulations used to make spectrum allocation for a country or some countries.

Dr. Gwandu, who played a key role in founding the ATU (African Telecommunications Union) WRC coordination meetings, equally expressed disappointment that the continent鈥檚 focus on collaborative efforts was waning.

The need for Africans’ collaborative efforts

In his address at the event, Dr. Gwandu further said at the core of the discussions was the 600MHz (3GGP n71) band.

The former EVC/CEO of NASENI described the band as a key frequency range that several countries worldwide are increasingly allocating for IMT to support 4G and 5G networks.

According to the expert, while several economies in Regions 2 and 3, as well as some in ITU Region 1 have designated this band for mobile, some African countries are not yet ready to make the switch to co-primary allocation.

He related that 11 African countries had sought request at the WRC-23 for primary mobile allocation of spectrum and IMT identification in the 614-694MHz band.

He, however, discloses only Egypt was granted while countries, such as Rwanda, Guinea, Benin Republic, and Cameroon, blocked requests from 10 other African countries with similar aspirations.

10 African countries blocked

Dr. Gwandu enumerated the 10 countries that were blocked to include Nigeria, Senegal, Mauritania, Libya, Chad, Gambia, Sudan, Namibia, Somalia, and Tanzania.聽 Dr Gwandu posited that fighting for status quo to remain or 鈥楴o Change鈥� in this case is akin to refusing an available front seat and fighting for a back seat.

He stated: “Therefore, colleagues, something clearly went wrong at WRC23, and we as Africans need to address it. “We must work together, have positive dialogue on challenges, and optimise the use of opportunities. “Reasonable countries have always found solutions to accommodate the needs of their neighbours instead of blocking them.”

The former EVC/CEO equally urged African Telecommunication Union (ATU) to remain effective by following its rules.

The 600MHz band issue is clear, said he, noting that “the world is moving towards IMT in this band, with some countries ready now and others later.”

He further observed: “Eventually, most of us will adopt it. Many region 2 and Region 3 countries have taken primary allocation to mobile in the band, and even in region 1, a number of countries have already changed the use status of this band to include either primary or secondary mobile.”

Dr. Gwandu urged those not ready not to obstruct others that are prepared to move forward.

Countries develop at different rates, and the ITU Resolution 26 that requires consent before amending footnotes is intended to promote harmonisation, not to delay a clear direction, or block progress, he stated.

According to him, there is a need to provide regulatory certainty to different industries.

If several countries in other regions and Africa have not taken the steps to upgrade the mobile service in the band, Gwandu said 鈥渢hen yes, we can try to convince colleagues in Africa to hold, but, this is not the case.

“The direction is now clear – 600MHz band will be allocated on a primary basis to mobile. It is almost black and white.”

“When we meet as a family, we must be honest with ourselves.”

He noted: “Some of us who helped to initiate the ATU WRC coordination meetings are disheartened by how we, as Africans, continue to fight each other in order to win the occupancy of the back seat, whilst neglecting each other’s interests.

“When making decisions, we must consider the unique circumstances of each country, such as geographical size, population and data demand, the capital expenditure required for coverage, the dispersed nature of our rural settlements, the 50 per cent urban to rural connectivity-divide in Africa and the energy costs to power the high throughput systems in rural areas.”

These factors differ for each country, and thus the frequency allocation solution for a smaller country like Rwanda or Benin cannot be the same for larger nations like Nigeria or Namibia, Gwandu asserted.

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