Google To Crash Retail Data Price As Undersea Cable Arrives April

Google has expressed interest to work with the Nigerian Communications Commission to drive national targets for ubiquitous broadband access, the regulator has said.

The NCC disclosed the development in a document seen on Thursday after Google Global Services Nigeria led a delegation to the commission in Abuja.

The regulator is working to achieve Nigeria’s digital transformation policy which targets high broadband penetration, quality of service and the advancement of a digital economy by 2025.

Among the regulator’s targets is to reduce the cost of retail data in the Nigerian market.

The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, told Google that the partnership would speed up the digital economy and commitment to improving national security targets of the country through technological advancement.

Danbatta, represented by the Executive Commissioner, Technical Services (ECTS), NCC, Engr. Ubale Maska, expressed optimism that Google’s investment in the subsea cable, Equiano, will accelerate NCC’s ongoing implementation of the Nigerian National Broadband Plan (NNBP), 2020-2025.

Google began deployment of its $1bn subsea fiber optic cable system dubbed Equiano in 2019.

Google will land its Equiano cable system in Nigeria by the end of April 2022, according to the NCC. It had already landed in Togo.

Equiano is part of Google’s plan to invest $1bn in Africa in the next five years to support Africa’s digital transformation.

According to the regulator, Equiano will reduce the cost of retail data in the country.

“I am hopeful that Equiano will have additional landing points in the hinterlands through collaborative efforts with the licensed Infrastructure Companies (InfraCos) to reduce retail data prices significantly and thereby complementing the Commission’s efforts at ensuring affordable Internet services are available to boost the Commission’s ongoing broadband policy drive,” Danbatta said.

“Nigeria is a major landing point for the Equiano cable and the launch of this major milestone is expected to take place in April 2022,″ the Director, Google West Africa, Juliet Ehimuan.

She said the demands for internet services have increased the need for players to increase capacity as well as sustainable collaborations with all relevant stakeholders.