The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has initiated the process to review the Nigerian Communications Act (NCA) of 2003, in a move aimed at aligning the regulatory framework with the current realities of digital innovation and Nigeria’s long-term digital transformation goals.
Speaking at a colloquium held recently in Lagos, Aminu Maida, the executive vice chairman (EVC) of the NCC, emphasised that the 22-year-old legislation no longer sufficiently addresses the demands of a rapidly evolving technology ecosystem.
The event themed “The Nigerian Communications Act 2003: 22 Years After — Challenges, Opportunities and Future Directions for a Digital Nigeria,” served as a platform to reflect on the Act’s relevance in the face of transformative advancements.
Speaking at the event, the NCC’s Executive Vice Chairman, Aminu Maida, described the meeting as an opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of the Nigerian Communications Act, address its key shortcomings—including its failure to cover emerging technologies like AI, 5G, and IoT, its lack of strong cybersecurity and rural connectivity provisions—and redefine the Act’s role in driving Nigeria’s digital transformation in a rapidly evolving economy.
“We envision a revised Nigerian Communications Act that not only addresses today’s challenges but anticipates tomorrow’s opportunities—a framework that positions Nigeria as a leader in the global digital economy,” he said.
Beyond emerging technologies, Maida highlighted several persistent infrastructural and operational challenges that must be addressed through legislative reform. These include unreliable electricity supply, prohibitive costs of Right of Way (RoW) approvals, escalating operational expenses, and inadequate broadband coverage, particularly in underserved rural areas.
Despite these gaps, Maida acknowledged that the existing Act had played a transformative role in the sector’s growth. It helped dismantle monopolies, foster competition, and open up the telecommunications industry to private investment, contributing to explosive growth in mobile subscriptions—from fewer than 300,000 in 2001 to over 150 million currently.
This surge, he noted, has powered significant advances in internet penetration and enabled a thriving digital economy.
Enacted in 2003, the NCA was a landmark policy that liberalised Nigeria’s telecommunications sector, dismantled the defunct Nigerian Telecommunications Limited’s (NITEL) monopoly, and established the NCC as an independent regulator.
It paved the way for widespread mobile phone adoption, internet penetration, and growth across industries like e-commerce, mobile banking, telemedicine, and fintech. However, the digital economy has evolved dramatically over the past two decades, and the law has struggled to keep pace.
