 The federal government of Nigeria has approved the first-generation technology, also known as 5G. So, it's a 5G policy that the government has approved, and we know that the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Issa Pantemi, went ahead to say that the Nigerian Communications Commission, the NCC, should go ahead and ensure a nationwide roll-out of this new technology in the country. But there are lots of speculation among Nigeria as to what exactly the impact of this 5G technology is regarding their health. We know that the 5G technology was at the heart of the COVID-19 conspiracy theories, but we'll be speaking about that, and we're spelling all those myths with the Business Growth Consultants, Gamaliel Sanimo Moor. Good morning. Thank you for joining us. Good morning. Good morning. Yeah, so I want us to first talk about the 5G technology. What does it mean, and how can it help Nigerians? Okay, once again, good morning, Lagos, Nigeria. But 5G is the... I mean, 5G means five generations. It is the latest cellular technology. And if I'm going to explain this to a five-year-old child, let's put it on a scale of 1 to 100. So we have one, two, three, four, and five. So we are on number five, as it's way, on that spectrum of cellular data technology. And that is what 5G means, is an improvement on 1G, 2G, 3G, 4G, and it's way. Thank you. Oh, well, explained to a five-year-old, like you said, but I want us to understand what 5G brings into the technology space in Nigeria. Because a lot of Nigerians might be a little ignorant as to what even 4G was. They would simply interpret it as faster internet services and being able to maybe download faster or anything like that. So help us understand what it really brings into the science and technology space, the business space also, here in Nigeria. And why do we even need it? Okay. So we need the 5G because of its multi-dimensional impacts on the economy. So looking at 3G and 4G adoption, we have evolved from calls to data to multimedia messaging, and then we have gone as high as video streaming and all of that. 5G will help us and nest the potential of the technologies of the 21st century, which includes artificial intelligence, robotics, machine learning, internet of teams, and so on and so forth. So it is good for us as a country because we are keeping in pace with the other countries who have adopted the 5G. South Korea has adopted 5G. Norway has gone a step further to 7G and even 8G. So as a country, it is good for us. But the question is, how have we optimized the 3G and the 4G respectively so that this doesn't become some sort of psychological satisfaction for the government? How well have we maximized? How well can the average man on the street relate to the gains of the 3G and the 4G technology? But broadly speaking, it is good for us because that is the next big thing. But go ahead. Go ahead, Mr. Tanimo Amor. Talk about maximizing the potential of 3G and 4G here in Nigeria. Because we have, I think some of the things that they always speak about is internet penetration and some of all of that. But have we, or would you say from your experience as a country, been able to maximize 3G and 4G technologies here in Nigeria? Okay, thank you. So let me keep in a little bit of data. According to the NCC, the 3G and the 4G adoption in Nigeria is slightly above 40%. And for me, that is not even a pass mark. The internet speed in Nigeria currently, as I speak, is 1.5 megabyte per second. And in the ranking of two oil and seven countries that was profiled, Nigeria is 176th on that scale. Ghana has an internet speed of 3.2 megabyte per second, which about 100% of what we're currently doing. So we have not even harnessed the potential of 3G and 4G. Let me divert a little bit and go to the Nigerian National Broadband Plan 2020 to 2025. One of the four critical pillars is number one, infrastructure. Number two, funding and incentive. Number three, policy. And number four, demand drivers. Right of way is a conversation that is ongoing right now. And I know that you are aware. Equity state has granted right of way to main one to allow it to lay fiber optic cable on a state road. But as I speak, right of way from the federal government is 145 per linear mile. But some states charge as much as 3,600 per linear mile, representing about 1,200% increase. So the question is, as an investor, if I want to come, does this make Nigeria a destination for me? If I look at all my variables, so I have to pay for right of way, then I have to pay for local government. I have to pay for area boys, area girls, area children. That's a lot. And that is an infrastructure lecture. I do not think that we have optimized 3G and 4G much more jumping on the 5G trade. Take you up on the first point you mentioned regarding the national broadband plan, which is infrastructure. Do you think, first of all, what are the required infrastructure to deploy 5G in Nigeria? And does Nigeria have what it takes to go ahead and roll out nationwide? Okay, nothing is impossible. So if other countries have achieved it, we can also achieve it. But growth in itself is not linear. So one of the infrastructures we need is fiber, lane of fiber option, broadband penetration. And currently, that is low in the country. And for an economy that is struggling like every other economy post-COVID, we need to encourage growth in all oil sectors. It has been proven that if we can achieve a 10% increase in broadband penetration, there will be a jump in GDP between 2% to 3%. And if we are also talking about taking our own side or size of the cake in the global economy, then we need to do more around infrastructure. Infrastructure is very critical. And we are at an all-time low when it comes to deploying infrastructure. Of course, 5G is still in its first stage because of the cost of deployment. And that is why we have to also tread carefully in that regard. Also talk about some of the myths that we've seen during the COVID-19 pandemic. We heard people say, oh, it was the time where the federal government was actually laying this fiber up to cables on our streets. We saw those happen. So people went on to say that this is costing the COVID-19 pandemic. It's making people find it hard to breathe. And this is not the first time we've seen something like this. Why do you think these conspiracy theories come up that 5G technology is harmful for our health? Do you think the religious organizations that we've seen put our messages online, have something to do with that? Or do you think it's lack of information, lack of communication from the government? Where is that information gap and how can we fix it? I think it's a blend of several factors that you have mentioned. So one of the things is my people perish for lack of knowledge. People do not have sufficient knowledge on what 5G means and all of that. So it's one of the conspiracy theories that is as emanated, and particularly from the Christian faith. So our leaders, our religious leaders need to do a lot about sensitization because religion is the opium of the people. If we hear something from either your pastor or your Imam, the chances are that you are likely to hold on to it without personally verifying the truth. Another thing is also, I mean, advocacy and information. The government needs to do a lot about sensitization. So look at the rollout of the vaccines. There has been little issues here and there, blood clotting, et cetera, et cetera. But the government has the judicial responsibility to drive this awareness, advocacy, to distill information into its granular state so that there's no ambiguity as to what 5G means and as to what it does not mean. But I think it's a conspiracy theory because the water organization has proven it that there is no correlation between the 5G and the pandemic. All right. Also, go further into fears that may exist with regards to 5G. Is there maybe any fears that data might become more expensive or it might be a little bit more technical and any of that here in Nigeria? No, no, no. I do not subscribe to that school of thought. In fact, the more we achieve broadband penetration, the chances are that data becomes relatively cheap. Now, referring to the Nigerian National Broadband Plan, the strategy is to achieve the costs of one gigabyte at 390 Naira. That is a plan. That is a big, audacious dream. So I do not think it will need to increase data costs. I don't know about that. However, I worry about the quality of the data that we will have at the end. So those are my worries. These are my fears. Also share a little bit on some of the things that you mentioned earlier. Why our implementation or maximization of the potential of 4G, what do you think might be the reasons we didn't do so well with that? Okay. So objectively, I think one, it is from the policy angle. Government is the biggest influencer. Government is the biggest spender. So if we must do anything right, we must avoid policies of assault. So we can take one step forward and take several steps backward. So this might be out of context or out of discussion, but look at the Twitter ban in Nigeria. A lot of Nigerians have risk. Sorry. Go ahead. It's something I was going to bring up or eventually, but go ahead. So a lot of Nigerian youth are resorted to microblogging, which Twitter has afforded them the opportunity to do. But all of a sudden the government came and placed the ban on that. Imagine how much has been lost to the Twitter ban. If I'm exaggerating, it should be about 100 days or more that that ban has happened. So if one of the critical pillars for the Nigeria National Broadband Policy framework is policy itself and government is the one driving policy, then we should not speak from both sides of the mount. There should be a coherence in what we say and how we do what we say. And that is a problem with Nigeria. It is where execution has always been our problem. We speak all the English. We like all the cliches, enabling environment right of way. But when it comes to implementation, we really allow things to slip to our hands. Okay. Can you also speak about the excitement of artificial intelligence and robotics? It has been in the minds of people since the 80s and hoping that we get to that place where there is now more fascinating artificial intelligence with our communication. And maybe robots might be more involved with doing business here. Across the world and here in Nigeria. So is that something exciting? It is. It is. It's a privilege to be alive during this season. So in 2018, I visited Rwanda for the Smart Africa Summit. And a robot came and spoke to the audience. And this robot can speak six languages fluently. And that is a power of technology. We need to ride on that. So it is the latest thing. And I'm using this opportunity to ask for the federal government to, as a matter of urgency, look into our educational sector. Our curriculums have become outdated. A 17th century syllabus cannot produce a 21st century graduate. Let me say that again. A 17th century syllabus cannot produce a 21st century graduate. So let's begin to introduce all of these new technologies into our syllabus. Let's introduce robotics, artificial intelligence, and away from medicine, away from law. Those courses are good. But we need to increase the attractiveness of our human capital index. We need to increase investment in human capacity. And that is very, very important. So that is a new normal. And we need to align with it. All right. Finally, Mr. Tani, one more. What difference would 5G policy make in Nigeria? How would it benefit Nigerians? And talking about investment into our technology space, what do we expect to see? Okay. Let me say that growth is not linear. Growth is a sum of averages. So you can't hold 5G in isolation without looking at the things that will fit into 5G. So if you must look at 5G, can we also move power generation up a little bit? Currently, our power generation is about 4,000 megawatts, which is grossly inadequate for a country of over 200 million people. So we need to look at all those conversations. So it is good we are looking at 5G. But let us also add several other things. Let us reduce a little bit. Let us grant tax incentives, tax waivers. So if you and I are going to set up an investment in this country, let us look at the policies. So it's not just the 5G itself. It is the averages, the law of averages. That is what will make 5G become a tool for economic growth and development. But if it happens, I'm sure it will have positive spiral effects on our economy. Because like I said earlier on, a 10% increase in broadband penetration will lead to a 3%, 4% increase in GDP. And we need this GDP growth now as a country. Is there any fears of job losses as we involve more technology into our workspace? No, I disagree. In fact, there will be more jobs. Because right now people are going to go remote. The gig economy is the biggest economy right now. It's worth trillions of dollars. So people can work remotely and can work with several employers and have the ability to hone their skills and make it a global appeal. So people are not limited to one employer. So I'm not just with GlobalCom. I'm not just with some brands. I can work for my laptop and freelance my skills. So I don't think you need to do lots of jobs. Maybe initially, yes. But like I said, looking at the law of averages, it will lead to more jobs. All right. Gamalil, Tani, Momo. Thank you very much for your time this morning. It's an exciting place. We are across the world with regards to technology. And I hope that Nigeria can tap into it. Like you've said, it's important that we maximize the potential of 3G and 4G before we simply just dive in at first into adopting 5G technology. Yes. And developing other sectors of our economy like power. Thank you. Thank you for having me. Good morning once again. Good morning to you. All right. It's been a very interesting Monday morning. Thank you very much for staying with us all through the program this morning. We want to wish you a great Monday ahead. It's rainy, I believe, here in Lagos. I'm not sure what it is like in other parts of the country. But drive safe. And we wish you a very great day ahead. If you miss out on any of the conversations, remember to catch up on our social media platforms. It's simply at Plus TV Africa on Facebook and Instagram. Same with our YouTube channel at Plus TV Africa and Plus TV Africa Lifestyle. You said it all, Sao-Gi. Thank you very much. Thank you too. I am Annetta Felix. And I am Sao-Gi O'Born.