The Commission established a group in June to prepare the IM for the auction of the 3.5 GHz frequency band, which will be used for the country’s early rollout of 5G technology services.
This week, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) will convene a stakeholder engagement forum.
According to Dr. Ikechukwu Adinde, head of Public Affairs at NCC, this is one of the activities planned for the country’s Fifth Generation (5G) Technology Deployment Plan.
“The forum will provide an opportunity for industry stakeholders to debate the draft Information Memorandum (IM) for the next auction of the 3.5 gigahertz (GHz) spectrum band,” said Dr. Adinde.
The Commission has confirmed that attendance at the event, which will take place on Thursday, November 4, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. at the Lagos Marriot Hotel in Ikeja, Lagos, is open to all interested stakeholders in the telecoms sector and beyond.
The decision to host the stakeholder engagement is in line with the terms of the Nigerian Communications Act (NCA) 2003 and the Nigerian Communications Commission’s (NCC) unique tradition of extensive stakeholder consultation on all telecom-related topics.
The Commission established a group in June to prepare the IM for the auction of the 3.5 GHz frequency band, which will be used for the country’s early rollout of 5G technology services.
The Information Memorandum (IM) is a detailed document that outlines the Commission’s procedures for auctioning the 3.5GHz spectrum band.
It also includes details about the Nigerian telecommunications sector, as well as specifics on the spectrum that will be made available, the pre-qualification procedure, the auction process, and an estimated timeline.
As a result, the stakeholder engagement forum is a critical regulatory requirement for the 3.5GHz spectrum auction scheduled at the end of the year.
As a result, the Commissions have invited interested parties and members of the public to engage in and contribute to discussions surrounding this critical draft document.
The successful and timely deployment of 5G is critical for the country, in line with the objectives of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) for a Digital Nigeria, and the positioning of Nigeria as an early adopter of digital technology as well as a major participant in the growing global digital economy.
Several emergent innovations are predicted to benefit from 5G technology, as well as new use cases, major socioeconomic growth, and job creation.
