Telecoms Sector Contributed N500billion to Federation Account in 10 Years

The Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, has said the telecommunications sector contributed over N500 billion to the Federation Account in the last 10 years.

NCC’s Executive Vice Chairman, Umar Danbatta, made this known on Thursday, March 18, when the executive members of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators (ALTON) visited the headquarters in Abuja.

Danbatta said apart from the monetary contribution, about 2.5 million direct and indirect jobs were also generated by the sector in the same period.

“We are in no doubt about what impact the telecom sector can make to the economy of the country. It has created 2.5 million direct and indirect jobs in the last 10 years; no sector has done that except may be the oil and gas. No sector except for oil and gas has succeeded in contributing N500 billion to the Federation Account in the last 10 years. No sector has contributed 10% to the GDP except for oil and gas. In 2014 alone, the investment in the sector hit $10 billion. So, the telecoms sector has contributed more than any other sector to the economy”, he said.

He called on the federal government’s economic team to relax its Forex policy as it was affecting investments in the telecom sector.

“I want to join in the call for government to reconsider and revisit its fiscal and monetary policy as it relates to Forex. The operators are facing a hard time doing business,” he said.

Earlier, ALTON chairman Engr Gbenga Adebayo appealed to NCC to do something urgent on the problem of multiple taxes in the sector and the proposed telecom tax on consumers.

He said the gains in the sector may be eroded if the telecoms tax law is enacted as it would affect many poor subscribers.

3 COMMENTS

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here