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Minister
of Communication Technology, Dr Mrs Omobola Johnson has said that the country
has witnessed an upsurge in mobile money transactions, insisting that Nigeria
could actualise the National Broadband Plan to increase penetration rate from
six per cent to 30 per cent by 2018, reports ITRealms.
The
CommTech minister made this disclosure while speaking at the Pat Utomi Center
for Values and Leadership celebration of the ICT sector, noted that 11 million
transactions worth $600 million have been recorded under the mobile money
platform.
According
to her, the mobile money platform has an estimated one million subscribers
under 18 mobile money operators and 67,000 registered agent.
On
broadband penetration in the country, Johnson stressed that facilitating
increased investments in ICT infrastructure, spectrum auctions, regional
Infrastructure (fibre) companies (Infracos), Smart States initiative (to reduce
cost of infrastructure deployment) were some of the priorities set by her
ministry to raise 3G/LTE Wireless Broadband Coverage to 80 per cent of
Nigeria’s population; and Fixed broadband to 16 per cent of population based on
fibre by 2018.
“More
people in Nigeria have a mobile phone than have a bank account. 75 per cent of
adults living in urban areas and 39 per cent of them living in rural areas have
access to a pre-paid mobile phone. 18 Mobile Money operators have been
registered in Nigeria and since the commencement of operations, there are
approximately 1 million subscribers, about 67,000 registered agents and Over 11
million transactions worth US$600 million have been conducted,” she said.
Chukwudi
Obi
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