Internet cost still high in Nigeria – NIG

[Mirror]

Despite the increase in the number of Internet users in Nigeria, the Nigerian Internet Group, a non-governmental orgainsations promoting internet penetration since 1995, has decried the high cost of internet service in the country.

Speaking at the body's Annual Conference and Exhibition which held in Lagos yesterday, its Vice President, Mr. Destiny Amana, said, "In as much as we now talk about having increased access to the internet, people are still complaining about high cost of internet access in-country."

He stated that with estimated population of 174 million currently in Nigeria, having an internet user profile of 47 million at present was still unacceptable, saying efforts needed to be strengthened to drive ubiquitous broadband in the country.

Amana said the need to focus on ubiquitous internet access has informed the theme of this year's NIG conference titled, "Broadband as Tool in Nation Building."

He, however, noted that factors responsible for the high cost of internet in the country such as exorbitant Right of Way charges by the government at all levels, vandalism and theft of cable infrastructures.

"We need to address these issues as it cost more money to deploy network from Lagos to Abuja than it cost to link Nigeria to London," he said.

Though the forum witnessed as poor turnout just as it did in 2012, few key stakeholders who attended the forum also made major contributions on issues surrounding internet access and governance.

Meanwhile Chief Executive Officer, Vodacom Business Nigeria, Guy Clarke, has said the comatose state of the Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) is creating a lacuna in the nation's Information and Communications technology industry, especially in the areas of help in to drive cost of services down for the growing telecoms consumers.

Speaking during an interaction with media executives in Lagos, Clarke, said the current inactive state of NITEL has aggravated service delivery in Nigeria, stressing that if there had been a functional national operator such as NITEL on ground, "It would have been easier to connect the entire country and engender fair competition among operators."

He said in every country, there is a national operator that ensures to moderate service cost for telecoms consumers, though he said, some of this national operators like the Orange Telecoms in the United Kingdom and others, are managed by private individuals on behalf of such countries for efficiency.

National Mirror