From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has dismissed claims of widespread data depletion on mobile networks in the country, following its recent audit of telecom services.
According to the NCC, the audit revealed no significant issue of data depletion, contrary to reports and complaints from subscribers.
The Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Dr Aminu Maid, made the statement while reviewing the Commission’s activities for 2024.
He clarified that the audit, which was completed in the third quarter of the year, found only minor network issues. These minor discrepancies, he added, are currently being addressed by the regulator in collaboration with telecom operators.
According to him, “We had a hypothesis that it isn’t true that there is a data depletion issue in the industry. It could be perception.
“So the first thing we did was that we immediately conducted a billing audit on the systems of the major MNOs, using reputable auditors. That exercise was completed in Q3 of this year and surprisingly, we didn’t find any major issues.”
Maida said another major milestone for the telecom regulator this year was the successful completion of the implementation of the federal government’s policy on linking the National Identification Number (NIN) with SIM cards.
He stated that the initiative presents significant opportunities for both the digital economy and national security. He added that with the conclusion of the process, every SIM card in the country is now linked to a verified NIN.
Maida explained that the linkage provides the telecom regulator with a strong security foundation, enabling it to work closely with law enforcement agencies and reliably provide information on the ownership of SIM cards.
He emphasized that more importantly, the NIN-SIM linkage lays a solid foundation for the development of Nigeria’s digital economy.
“You would agree with me that almost every transaction we perform today, in one way or the other, links back to your mobile number, whether it is your e-commerce or whether it is your registration for JAMB, or just generally any service that wants to reach you for customer support.
“So having the ability to be able to clearly identify who knows what would instil a lot of confidence and integrity in the system, which would lay the right foundations for the digital economy,” the EVC said.