The Nigerian Communications Commission is currently working to ensure the safety of 5G networks in Nigeria by having multi-stakeholder approach in environmental impact analysis on the use of 5G and the Electromagnetic Fields impact on humans in Nigeria.
The Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Prof. Umaru Danbatta, who disclosed this at a virtual parley with Nigeria Information Technology Reporters Association on Wednesday, noted that once the environmental impact analysis is done, “Nigerians can safely utilise 5G and reap all the economic, human and material benefits of 5G”.
Danbatta added that the NCC is also working with multi-sector stakeholders to establish a policy for 5G deployment in Nigeria.
The stakeholders include the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, Nigerian Society of Engineers, Nigerian Medical Association, The Academia, Office of the National Security Adviser, Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria, Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria and Industry Consultative Advisory Forum.
“Our goal is that when the Federal Government is able to establish a policy that will drive 5G, all the benefits of 5G will be properly harnessed by Nigerians,” Danbatta said.
He explained that the economic benefits of 5G to Nigeria after the COVID -19 pandemic will be huge, especially as almost all businesses and activities of government are migrating and offering their services online.
According to him, 5G will enable a new kind of network for Nigerians designed to connect virtually everyone and everything together including machines, objects and devices.
He added: “It will usher in the era of Internet of Things and faster innovation in Artificial Intelligence applications.
“The socio-economic benefits of the expansion in telecommunications capabilities embarked upon by the Commission would be of immense benefit to the country, especially with the roll out of the 5G technology, which currently is being test run in about 40 countries.
“This will be a significant upgrade for networks and will be the backbone for the ICT industry post-pandemic recovery.”
According to the International Telecommunications Union, 5G technology is expected to connect people, things, data, applications, transport systems and cities in smart networked communications environments.
5G is meant to seamlessly connect a massive number of embedded sensors in virtually everything through the ability to scale down in data rates, power, and mobility – providing extremely lean and low-cost connectivity solutions, Danbatta noted.
He observed that Nigeria’s vibrant youth population stands to benefit immensely from the deployment of 5G as it will offer technopreneurs, technology enthusiasts, SMEs and Tech-startups the platform to expand and network with other global players on a scale that has never been witnessed before.
He said: “With high speeds, superior reliability and negligible latency, 5G will expand the mobile ecosystem into new realms.
“5G promises to impact every industry, creating safer transporting systems, improving access to healthcare for our rural populace, increasing output from the agriculture sector, and digitized logistics among others.”
According to an economy study conducted by QUALCOMM, 5G will affect the global economy and drive growth exponentially.
The study stated that 5G’s full economic effect will likely be realised across the globe by 2035 – supporting a wide range of industries and potentially enabling up to $13.2 trillion worth of goods and services.
Further making a case for deployment of 5G technology in Nigeria, the NCC boss added: “5G promises to provide increased speed and bandwidth as well as providing deeper coverage to reach people in rural or challenging locations.
“n addition, 5G will provide strong security for the various sectors of government and private organisations.
“Due to its sheer scale and scope, the ITU predicts 5G will accelerate the achievement of all 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) from affordable and clean energy to zero hunger.”