NCC remits N35bn to Federation Account in Dec 2015

THE Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, said it remitted N35 billion into the Federal account in December 2015.

The commission also said that since the oil price started its downward movement the regulator had stepped up efforts to increase earnings for the country.

According to the Executive Vice Chairman of the Commission, Prof Umar Garba Danbatta the telecoms operators paid 2.5 per cent of their total turnover every quarter to NCC and the regulator in turn remits 40 per cent of it to the federation account while it used 60 per cent for staff salaries and running of the commission. “It goes without saying that ICTs have the potential to combat poverty, be it rural or urban poverty. It will also foster sustainable development if appropriately deployed and made to address the diverse discrepancy in the ICT needs of people of all locations, age group and economic status”, he said. The head of the Commission, who made this known at the 38th Senior Executive Course of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), kuru, Jos, Plateau State while speaking on the subject, Mainstreaming ICT for poverty reduction in Nigeria”, said that the frequency spectrum auction in Abuja will finally result to about N300 billion remitted into Federal Government account from licensing since the deregulation of the telecoms sector. He said that the NCC is targeting over N40 billion alone from the sale of the 2.6Ghz spectrum as part of its efforts of bridging the digital divide in the country through the provision of broadband internet. He noted that the ICT sector is gradually turning to Nigeria’s cash cow billions and billions of naira are expected to be earned by the country from the sector on a yearly basis.