NIGERIA ELECTED INTO WORLD
TELECOM BODY IN GENEVA

  Nigeria has been elected as Vice Chairman of two of the strategic committees of the International Telecommunications Union in Geneva, Switzerland.

The Committees are the Steering Committee, with Mr Festus Dawodu as Vice Chairman and the Specified Agenda Items Committees, having Mr Olabode Sunday Oroge as Vice Chairman.

The election of Nigeria, which delegation was led by the Minister of Information and Communications, Mr John Odey, was conducted at the opening of the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-07), which opened in Geneva Monday.

The ITU Committees will be responsible among other things for the coordination and  consideration of all matters relating to the activities of the Union.

The Specified Agenda Items Committee will specifically consider sharing criteria and regulatory provisions for the protection of terrestrial services in particular the terrestrial television service.

The Committees will also consider frequency related matters for the future development of IMT-2000 and systems beyond IMT-2000 taking into account the results of ITU-R studies.

They will also consider spectrum requirements and possible additional spectrum allocations for aeronautical telecommand and high bit-rate aeronautical telemetry.

Part of the terms of reference of the Committees is to review the allocations to all Services in High Frequency band between 4Mhz and 10 Mhz.

In his statement to the ITU conference the Minister of Information and Communications highlighted the achievements made by Nigeria in the area of telecommunications and the Information Communications Technology sector.

He stated that the present administration in Nigeria was committed to implementing a total coverage of Nigeria under the rural telephony scheme.

Below is his address; 

STATEMENT BY JOHN ODEY, MINISTER OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA AT THE INTERNATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATION UNION (ITU) 2007 WORLD RADIO COMMUNICATION CONFERENCE (WRC – 07) GENEVA, SWITZERLAND 22 ND OCTOBER TO 16 TH NOVEMBER, 2007 

PROTOCOL

1. Your Excellencies, distinguished delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen, I have great pleasure in addressing this great assembly of statesmen and women.

2. I bring you greetings from our leader, Alhaji Umaru MusaYar’adua, GCFR, President and Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

3. Specifically, our compliments go to the Management and Staff of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) who have prepared excellently well for this Conference.  We are appreciative of the support the Government and people of Switzerland have been giving to the ITU as well as their contribution to the global Information Communication Technology (ICT) development and bridging of the digital divide.

4. We in Nigeria can also say with all sense of humility that much progress has been achieved in the ICT industry since the World Radio communication Conference 2003(WRC-03) held in this very same place.  Nigeria’s achievements have been acknowledged globally within the industry. Briefly, we wish to note that:

-  We have in place a National Communications Act 2003 that has given legal backing for a strong, Independent Regulator for the Telecommunication Industry;

-  A Frequency Management Council, also legally backed and which includes key stakeholders in frequency spectrum utilization has been put in place. This Council has developed a Frequency Spectrum Management Policy with necessary Regulations for the country;

-  An Investor friendly environment has been established such that the investment to the industry has grown tremendously from year 2002 to date and the market potential is still considered virgin;

- The number of telephone lines has increased from five hundred thousand in year 2002 to over forty million as at today.  Nigeria has been acclaimed as one of the fastest growing mobile markets in the world;

-  A disaster monitoring satellite as well as a communication satellite have been launched;

-  We have embarked on a  comprehensive Rural Telephony Scheme to ensure that the underserved and unreached areas are included in the information society;

-  A National Information, Communication and Education Project (NICEP) has also been embarked upon;

-  A National Internet Exchange Points is being established to improve internet penetration just  as the computer for All Nigerians Initiative (CANI) programme is in place;

-  The Africa Regional Office of the Digital Solidarity Fund has been established in Abuja in fulfillment to the pledge made by the President during the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) process;

-  Initiatives in e-health and Telemedicine are being encouraged;

-  Wire Nigeria (WIN) and State Accelerate Broadband Initiative (SABI) projects to improve on broadband availability  are in place;

-  Private initiatives in Information Communication Technology (ICT) are being encouraged.

5. The above are a few of the many programmes that have been initiated by Nigerian government to demonstrate our commitment to the development of the industry. 

6. Government continues to pursue a regime of increased transparency, improved efficiency and accountability in governance.  

7. We envisage a union that will continue to be alive and responsive to the needs of its members and to fulfill its increasing mandate.  We pledge our commitment to this at all time.

8. Nigeria as a member of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) recognizes the need to have an efficient, dynamic and Vibrant Union where all member nations have equal rights and opportunities in all affairs of the union.

9. Standing by the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) and the World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC) declarations, Nigeria believes that it is absolutely necessary for ITU to expand its mandate to ensure that all issues assigned to it are well covered. 

10. Nigeria is committed to ensuring that this union, which is very relevant to the development of ICT, continues to grow from strength to strength and to provide an avenue for all members. 

11. We wish us all a successful Conference.

12. Thank you for listening.

       John Odey

Honourable Minister of Information and Communications

Federal Republic of Nigeria.