On October 23, the Nigerian Senate confirmed Idris Olorunnimbe as Chairman of the Board of Commissioners of the Nigerian Communications Price (NCC), along with eight completely different members. The affirmation, following President Bola Tinubu’s nominations in August, restores a very constituted administration on the nation’s prime communications regulator after over a yr of working with an incomplete board.
Totally different confirmed board members embody Abraham Oshidami (Authorities Commissioner, Technical Suppliers), Rimini Makama (Authorities Commissioner, Stakeholder Administration), Maryam Bayi, Col. Abdulwahab Lawal (Rtd), Senator Lekan Mustafa, Chris Okorie, and Princess Oforitsenere Emiko, along with the Board Secretary.
The appointment ends a administration vacuum that began after the tenure of the sooner board, led by Adeolu Akande, expired in 2023 beneath former President Muhammadu Buhari. All through that interval, the NCC functioned with out its full governance building, a distinct segment that many consultants talked about restricted its means to supply sturdy protection oversight amid speedy shifts in Nigeria’s digital financial system.
The Senate’s affirmation moreover completes the reconstitution of the Frequent Service Provision Fund (USPF) Board, chaired by Bosun Tijani, Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Monetary system, with Olorunnimbe serving as Vice Chairman. The switch restores compliance with Half 5(3) of the Nigerian Communications Act (NCA) 2003, which mandates that the Price ought to always hold a duly constituted Board of Commissioners.
Governance restored on the NCC
The model new administration crew positions the NCC for renewed stability and strategic focus. Olorunnimbe assumes the chairmanship, whereas Aminu Maida has been reappointed as Authorities Vice Chairman (EVC) and Chief Authorities Officer (CEO), guaranteeing continuity on the prime of the regulator’s govt arm. Collectively, they oversee Nigeria’s $75 billion telecommunications sector, at a time when digital transformation and regulatory reform are converging.
The NCC’s administration model, established by the NCA 2003, separates governance from operations. The Board of Commissioners presents strategic and protection path, whereas govt administration handles day-to-day regulation, licensing, and enforcement. This building was designed to safeguard the NCC’s independence and cease political interference whereas sustaining accountability to the Nigerian public.
Beneath this framework, the Chairman performs a non-executive, policy-focused perform; guiding deliberations, guaranteeing governance concepts, and aligning regulatory actions with nationwide priorities. The EVC, in distinction, leads operational execution, directing departments equivalent to Licensing, Spectrum Administration, Consumer Affairs, and Technical Necessities.
The non-executive Commissioners, usually missed in public discourse, are equally crucial. Drawn from quite a few expert backgrounds, along with telecoms, finance, laws, and public protection, they characterize public and commerce pursuits all through the Board. Their perform is to verify transparency, steadiness competing pursuits, and cease every firm seize and bureaucratic inertia.
Meet the model new board members
Abraham Oshadami, appointed as Authorities Commissioner, Technical Suppliers, is a seasoned telecommunications engineer and regulator with 20 years of experience in spectrum administration, group planning, and technical protection formulation at NCC. He has carried out a key perform in advancing Nigeria’s broadband enlargement and guaranteeing atmosphere pleasant use of spectrum sources.
Rimini Makama, serving as Authorities Commissioner, Stakeholder Administration, is known for her work in public protection, firm communications, and digital inclusion. As a former public affairs lead throughout the experience sector, she brings priceless experience in bridging the outlet between regulators, private sector operators, and customers.
Maryam Bayi, an organization governance and human capital development educated, has held administration positions in every the non-public and non-private sectors. She is known for championing institutional reforms, strategic planning, and workforce functionality developing talents that may be pivotal in strengthening the NCC’s inside governance. She was recalled to hitch the board after she retired from the Price in 2019, after over 20 years of service.
Col. Abdulwahab Lawal (Rtd) is a retired navy officer and communications specialist. Lawal has a distinguished occupation in nationwide security and regulatory compliance. Sooner than his appointment, he served as a result of the Chairman of the Kwara State Education Perception Fund (KwaraETF).
Senator Lekan Mustafa is a former legislator with experience in public administration and policymaking. He represented the Ogun-East Senatorial District of Ogun State. Mustafa brings an understanding of the legislative course of and its intersection with digital regulation.
Chris Okorie, a experience entrepreneur and enterprise strategist, has expertise in licensed practices and is anxious in ICT-driven enterprises centered on connectivity, digital commerce, and youth innovation.
Oforitsenere Emiko is an entrepreneur and an advocate for women’s empowerment in experience. Emiko has labored on quite a lot of initiatives promoting digital literacy and inclusion. Sooner than her appointment, she was Managing Director of Kian Smith Agency in Nigeria, a mining shopping for and promoting agency.
A reform-driven administration transition
Olorunnimbe’s appointment has sparked dialogue regarding the Tinubu administration’s path for telecom regulation. Known as the founder and Group CEO of The Temple Agency, a world full-service creative agency, headquartered in Lagos, Olorunnimbe brings experience in administration and strategic communications. His appointment is broadly seen as a switch to inject current vitality, visibility, and reform-oriented oversight into the Price.
Public expectations are extreme that the model new Chairman will convey a stronger take care of protection innovation, digital inclusion, and stakeholder engagement. His administration may be examined by challenges equivalent to balancing nationwide security concerns with shopper privateness, managing the rollout of 5G, and driving broadband enlargement to underserved areas.
The EVC, Maida, continues to information the NCC’s modernisation efforts, along with initiatives on spectrum effectivity, shopper security, and data-driven regulation. Beneath Maida, the Price has championed evidence-based policymaking, such as a result of the publication of quarterly telecoms effectivity information experiences, and nearer collaboration with commerce players on 5G deployment, Correct-of-Method harmonisation, and quality-of-service necessities. The whole reconstitution of the Board is predicted to strengthen his functionality to ship on these reforms by a clearer governance mandate.
Why the board points
The NCC’s effectiveness depends upon intently on the synergy between its Board and govt administration. The Board models strategic path, the EVC drives execution, and the directorates ship outcomes. This layered model ensures autonomy, transparency, and alignment with nationwide ICT protection goals.
Financially, the Price stays self-sustaining. Its revenues, drawn from licence fees, spectrum product sales, and regulatory bills, are managed by an neutral funds permitted by the Nationwide Assembly. However independence doesn’t equal isolation; the NCC works intently with firms equivalent to NITDA, the Nigeria Internet Registration Affiliation (NiRA), and the Ministry of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Monetary system to kind Nigeria’s broader digital financial system.
A totally helpful Price is predicted to boost investor confidence, strengthen oversight, and velocity up Nigeria’s push in the direction of ubiquitous broadband and digital inclusion.
Because the model new administration settles in, the telecom commerce, which contributes virtually 16% to Nigeria’s GDP, may be watching intently. With the NCC now once more to full functionality, stakeholders anticipate a additional coherent and decisive regulatory regime capable of addressing rising factors from AI protection to cybersecurity and infrastructure sharing.
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