The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO), of the Nigerian Communications Commission, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, has said latest studies show Nigeria falls among the list of Countries with the cheapest cost of communication; a survey by ETN24 shows this to be true.
The Director, Policy and Regulation Issues, NCC, Mrs. Josephine Amuwa who represented Prof Danbatta, during the 30th Lagos International Trade Fair, stated that NCC recognises that consumers of telecommunications services in Nigeria need to get value for their money, and be treated as very important stakeholders.
Prof Danbatta explained that NCC’s vision is to protect consumers from unfair practices, through availability of information to make informed decisions in the use of ICT services.
He also noted that the commission was working very hard to ensure consumers of telecommunications services in Nigeria are not over-billed.
Meanwhile, NCC’s Head of Media and Public Relations, Reuben Muoka, said consumers who are in doubt that Nigeria is among countries with the cheapest rate of communication, could go to other countries to experience their rates.
According to him, service providers who carried outsharp practices would be sanctioned appropriately, as NCC is concerned about the welfare of consumers, urging consumers to forward complaints about such service providers to the NCC.
He pointed out that the NCC had launched two codes to cater for the needs and efficiently attend to the complaints of consumers.
“The first code is the 622 toll-free complaint platform, where people can call to make their complaints. The second is the 2442 ‘Do-Not-Disturb code’ that consumers can send prompt commands to”.
According to a research by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the average phone plan with 500MB of data costs $85 (about 31,000 Naira) in the U.S., compared to $24.10 (about 8,000 Naira) in China and $8.80 (about 3,000 Naira) in the U.K.
In Botswana, Angola and Morocco, it can cost $80 (about 29,000 Naira) to $110 (about 40,000 Naira) to have a phone with 500MB of monthly mobile data.
The cheapest data collected by the ITU was in Austria, where $4.70 (about 1,739 Naira) gets you a phone plan with 500MB of mobile data. Other cheaper countries around the world, to pick up a phone plan with data are India, Indonesia, Germany, Italy, and the U.K., each costing around $10 (about 3,700 Naira).
The benefit of such subscriptions in the above countries include access to calls, SMS and data.
In Nigeria, consumers buy airtime which can be used for calls, SMS or data subscription. For the different service providers in the Country, there are various data plans ranging from daily, weekly, monthly or unlimited. Meanwhile, 500MB costs between N500 – N1000, depending on the service provider.
