EditorThe Nigerian Communications Commission says it has exceeded its projected N36 billion revenue for 2021 within the first five months of the year.
The commission said it recorded the figure through spectrum license fees of over N150 billion.
According to the commission, the figure represents over 400 per cent increase in revenue budget performance in respect of spectrum fees generated between January 1 and May 31, 2021, reflecting significant contribution to the revenue drive of the Federal Government.
“The N150 billion spectrum revenue achieved in the first half of the year has been remitted to the Federal Government in line with the provisions of the Nigerian Communications Act (NCA), 2003, which mandates the Commission to remit proceeds from spectrum resources wholly into the government’s Consolidated Revenue Fund,” the NCC said.
In its 2021 budget which was considered and approved by both chambers of the National Assembly in December, 2020, the commission projected a revenue of N36 billion from spectrum fee for the year 2021 but has sensationally surpassed this estimate.
In his remarks on the revenue performance, the Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, said the impressive slight increase in spectrum fee was as a result of the favourable turn of events for the telecom sector, which as at the time of preparing the estimates for the 2021 Budget of the Commission was not clear due to the impact of COVID-19 on the global economy.
According to Danbatta, the 10-year spectrum fees made by some of the major operators directly impacted the projected spectrum fee favourably.
He said the enthronement of effective regulation would continue to improve the general performance of the telecom sector.
During an oversight function to the NCC, Danbatta had informed members of the House Committee on Telecommunications that the commission had generated and remitted N344.71 billion to the Federal Government’s CRF in the last five years.
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