The Punch reports that the Federal Executive Council, on Wednesday, approved the procurement of telecommunication equipment that would be used to detect and block fraudsters using different SIM cards.
The approval of the new regulatory system is expected to support the country to address the challenges of insecurity, among others.
The Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, disclosed this to State House correspondents at the end of the virtual Council meeting presided over by the President, Major Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Pantami explained that the deployment of the system would help to monitor, detect and block SIM cards, thereby fighting what he called “voice traffic termination fraught.”
He said, “I am here to present two memos approved by the Federal Executive Council. And these two memos are to be implemented by the Nigerian Communications Commission.
“The first memo that has been approved by the Federal Executive Council is for the deployment of regulatory systems in the telecommunications industry, which is to be implemented by the NCC. “These regulatory systems have two components. Component number one is the deployment of a regulatory system to monitor, detect and block SIM box traffic.
ThisDay reports that with the planned 5G network rollout in Nigeria next year, coupled with the high speed of internet connectivity with low latency that come with 5G technology, telecoms operators have called for quick regulatory intervention on the part of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), in order to facilitate early approval for the installation of additional telecoms masts for 5G rollout.
The telcos raised fears about the regulatory tussle between the National Environmental Standard Regulatory Agency (NESRA), the Federal Ministry of Environment and the NCC, over the regulation of telecoms masts installation, a situation, which the telcos said, had brought about unnecessary delay in getting approval for the installation of telecoms masts.
The telcos who spoke at the ‘Talk to The Regulator Forum’ organised by NCC in Lagos, insisted that the NCC must intervene fast in the regulatory tussle, to enable the operators obtain early permit for 5G network rollout within the shortest time frame, since 5G network rollout comes with faster interconnection speed.
The Sun says that the crises rocking the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) over a loan default by the majority shareholder/core investor, Kann Utility Company Limited, may have taken a new dimension as the lender, United Bank for Africa (UBA), has appointed a receiver/manager for the troubled Disco.
AEDC is one of the 11 Discos unbundled from the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) and handed over to its core investor on November 1, 2013.
The utility arm serves customers in its franchise areas covering Kogi, Nasarawa, Niger and the Federal Capital Territory.
Giving further insights into the crises rocking AEDC, Chairman of Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Mr. Sanusi Garba, and the Director General of Bureau of Public Enterprises(BPE), Mr. Alex Okoh, in a joint statement made available to Daily Sun, explained that there has been an ongoing dispute among competing factions of Kann, which eventually spilled over to a dispute with the lender (UBA) that provided the acquisition loan to Kann for the acquisition of majority shares during the privatization exercise in 2013, over Kann’s inability to service its debt to the bank.
The newspaper reports that Economic experts have urged insurance and pension operators to leverage opportunities presented by the COVID-19 pandemic to boost the nation’s financial inclusion rate and expand growth in key sectors of the economy.
Those who spoke at a recent conference for stakeholders noted that although the pandemic brought severe disruptions to lives and businesses, it equally has its advantages which operators need to seize to boost the industries.
Former Director-General, Lagos State Pension Commission (LASPEC), Folashade Onanuga, speaking on ‘COVID-19 Impact on Financial Inclusion: Opportunities for Insurance & Pension Sectors’ said: “while the pandemic has caused severe disruptions, opportunities have also been created to grow customer base on account of the obvious fact that there is no real social security arrangement by government in the event of sudden and unexpected events and so citizens need to make plans by themselves for wellness both in business and family life.”
According to Onanuga, economic shocks like sudden loss of job, illness or death can send people living just above the poverty line into abject poverty.
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