Nigerian Gov’t Approves Deployment Of 5G Network

The Federal Government has approved a national policy on the implementation of 5G network in Nigeria.

Following a presentation by the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, at the Federal Executive Council meeting on Wednesday, the policy was approved.

According to a statement issued by Pantami’s technical assistant on information technology, Femi Adeluyi, the policy’s implementation is with immediate effect.

“The national policy has been developed over a period of two years, due to the need for extensive stakeholder engagement and the need to ensure adequate public awareness and sensitisation. The stakeholder engagement was thorough and multi-sectoral in nature. It also took into account the report of the 3-month 5G trials that commenced on the 25th of November 2019. The report critically reviewed and studied the health and security implications of deploying 5G in Nigeria,” the statement said.

The statement said it has been confirmed that deploying 5G network will have no adverse health effects and that it offers a number of advantages compared with the current networks available.

“Leading international organisations such as the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), an organ of the United Nations, have confirmed that the deployment of 5G networks leave no adverse health effects and are safe. 5G networks offer significant advantages over the current technologies. Some of its advantages include much lower latency, higher bandwidth, greater device density, longer battery life for nodes and greater network flexibility. Several countries have already commenced the deployment of 5G and are enjoying its benefits. These countries include the United States, United Kingdom, Republic of Korea, South Africa and Lesotho, to mention but a few,” the statement said.

Adeluyi said the National Frequency Management Council (NFMC) will soon release the required spectrum for the network providers that meet required conditions.

“The NFMC, chaired by Minister Pantami, will soon release spectrum to the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) for the Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) that meet all the required conditions.

“The NCC, as the regulator of the telecommunications sector, will continue engaging stakeholders with a view to developing the regulatory instruments required for the successful deployment of the technology in Nigeria,” the statement said.