The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) – the government agency that regulates the telco industry – says it has surpassed its estimated earnings from spectrum license fees of US$ 87,3 million for 2021. The Commission stated it had collected almost US$ 364 million from this source of revenue within the first five months of the year. Dr Ikechukwu Adinde, the director of Public Affairs, said this in a statement on Sunday in Abuja.
According to Dr Adinde, “the amount reflects a 400 per cent improvement in revenue budget performance in terms of spectrum fees generated by the Commission, between January 1 and May 31, 2021.” He claimed that this represented a significant contribution to the federal government’s revenue-raising efforts.
According to him, the government has received the US$ 364 million in spectrum revenue earned in the first half of the year per the requirements of the Nigerian Communications Act (NCA), 2003. The act requires the Commission to deposit all earnings from spectrum resources in the federal government’s Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF). He highlighted that the NCC had established an effective regulatory environment over the years, which had aided substantial improvements in the country’s telecoms industry.
The director also stated that it increased Gross Domestic Product (GDP), enhanced licensee operations, and government revenue generation. Prof. Umar Danbatta, executive vice-chairman (EVC) of NCC, commented on the income performance, saying that the substantial increase in spectrum fees resulted from the telecom sector’s favourable turn of events.
Mr Danbatta added that the Commission’s predictions for the 2021 Budget were unclear due to the devastating impact of COVID-19 on the global economy. However, he noted that the 10-year spectrum fees of several major operators had a beneficial effect on the expected spectrum fee.
