 The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Issa Pantani says Niger's information and communication technology industry has been witnessing phenomenal growth and enabling social economic development in Nigeria and across the continent. Pantani made this a session in June on the sideline of the 2022 International Telecoms Unions or Telecoms Development Conference, ITUWTDC. By providing statistics from the Niger ICT industry, the Minister said in the last 20 years, the country has achieved robust growth in her telecoms industry, going from less than half a million connected telephone lines to over 200 million active mobile lines as of April. We're all focused on the growth of the ICT sector on the show today. Welcome to Business Insight and Plus TV Africa. I am Justin Akadoni. First off, the Lagos State Government is set to formally launch its 30-year development plan at this year's Economic Summit tagged Ehiq-Beti 2022. Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget Samuel Igubay, who dropped this hint, at a pre-Summit stakeholders engagement, says Ehiq-Beti 2022 will focus on detailed discussions and aspects of the development plan. Let's take details of that report now and we'll be right back. Stay with us. The Lagos Economic Summit plan tagged Ehiq-Beti, but said there were two decades ago, is a creation that brings private and public sector players together to deliberate on the development of the state. As the stakeholders converge on this whole, it is time to reflect on the state's development strides in the last 22 years. Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget Sam Igubay reveals the 210 resolutions have been made out of the 222 reached in the past 22 years. And it is not just a talk shop because Ehiq-Beti presents for Lagos State a platform for accountability and transparency as we will always come back at the next Ehiq-Beti to account for what we did with the past resolution. So for example, the interest is expressed in the last Ehiq-Beti, we had about 11,100 people registered for the conference. And out of that, over 10,500 people attended. The Lagos State Development Plan 2022-2052 is said to chart the past of sustainable social economic growth. The government and its consultants explain that part of the phases of the plan includes developing strategic milestones, support implementation, and aligned stakeholders among others. With regards to creating a human centric city, there are four focus areas, education, healthcare, housing, safety and security. And the idea really is that Lagos is able to attract talent and retain talent because it's believed that the biggest enabler to getting to where we want to be is that Lagos continues to be the hub for top-class talent in the world. Between now and October when we hold the summit, we ask for your support as we always do. Your support in considering this agenda and sending your comments through the channels that have already been established. Captains of industries, the organized private sector, as well as the diplomatic community promise support to see to the achievement of the plan. The Lagos State has a great vision to make things better for negotiations. We are a good traditional partner of Lagos and Nigeria, but our economic position was, let's say a few years ago, dominated by revenues in the fossil fuel. Lagos, due to the great works of those that came after us, have turned Lagos into a masterpiece in Africa. Over the years, the YGT summit has served as a beacon of change and helps the future of Lagos through public discourse. Welcome back, that's the Lagos stand for the next 30 years. Now, Dari Medwongi is a tech enthusiast and chief digital officer for S-Insurance and Air's Life Assurance Limited. He is also director at Milky Express Limited. He joins us now to talk about the ICT sector in Nigeria. Thanks for joining us, Dari, on this particular discuss. Thank you for having me, Justin. Yeah, so let's talk about the minister's assertion. He said Nigeria has actually recorded phenomenal growth as of June this year. He said the broadband penetration in Nigeria has increased to over 42 percent. Yeah, absolutely. It's a laudable achievement and we can all attest to that. I think it was about 20 years ago that GSM was introduced in Nigeria and it formed the fundamental fabric for which we all communicate now. Pretty much everyone has a mobile phone and that formed the basis for the growth we've experienced now. Fine, it is enough growth from 2020 to 2001 there about till now since GSM was introduced into the country. But would you really say it is a hurry? Yes, 42 percent is a very good one, but if you look at countries like South Africa and some other emerging countries, you'll notice that they are similarly doing better. We've been talking about getting into the 5G space but how far do you really think we're going? Are we going at a slow rate or are we actually taking it the way it should be? Very good perspective and you're right. As a matter of fact, one of the things I looked out for in the report was the matrix that formed the percentage growth and it wasn't indicated in that report. I think there's a lot to do. There are a lot of fundamental factors that are affecting the growth and the penetration of ICT and technology or telecom communications in Africa or Nigeria specifically and I can mention a few if it's okay. So the first I would say is we need the right policies and I'm aware that government is taking the right steps in that direction. I'm aware of a new bill, I think a new start-up, tech start-up bill that has been passed, that's passed the third reading and we need the right policies that would foster the enhancement and the growth of the right infrastructure for all the kind of growth that we need to have. The growth is critical because it has fundamental underneath brown brand increase and also infrastructure increase and I'll explain that. For every form of communication that needs to happen in this space, it relies on two things, one infrastructure, two internet. We've been trying to get into the 5G space for a while now. The 5G and let me clarify is not just a nice to have, is not the Antichrist, is not any of those things, is critical for us to for it to open up a lot of new business opportunities in Nigeria. And there's a lot of challenges in the area, number one is power. Yes, we will have a lot of people with phones and access to some basic data, but there's still a challenge of power because these base stations that propagate these networks, they need power to run. And of course with power comes petrol, with petrol comes diesel, and all those things are affecting how cheap and available, and how widespread these base stations are. So just to mention a few. Okay, but let's take it one step further. It's been 20 years or over 20 years since the GSM from 2G to 3G to 4G. Now we're talking about in 5G and all of that. But what would have thought that over time, that the price would have been brought considerably down as it is now. But from what we hear, there is a particular plan to have Nigerians pay more for data and calls. Exactly, so that's why I had to mention those fundamental things. And those fundamental things are the reason why I can assure you that the price has not gone down, and may not likely go down, likely increase like you've mentioned, because they form the basis for the availability and the spread. So if you look at the cost of doing business in Nigeria, number one is power. And you would agree with me that in the recent time, the cost of power has increased significantly. As a matter of fact, astronomically. So the providers of this internet service need to power the infrastructure for this to happen. Number two is also the effects issues we are having recently, because these infrastructures are not made locally. They are brought from abroad and they are maintained even by foreign currency, because right now we have a lot of resource drain in Nigeria. And so we have to keep relying on foreign experience to come and help us maintain this infrastructure. And number three is policies as well. If we have the right policies that make it convenient and comfortable for these providers to be able to grow, regardless of these challenges we are having economically, it will help to regulate the price and make it much more affordable. So yes, it's a basic challenge that we have and we need the government to provide the right support to ensure that the ever-changing challenges around infrastructure, around power, around effects does not affect the report effect of the cost of data. Okay, but let's talk about service provision here in the country. In terms of the big players, I don't understand mentioning brands, but over time that particular space has been deepened and new players have come in. But one would have thought that Nigerians will be getting value for money in terms of what they are paying for. But over time we still have this issue of drop calls sometimes and not getting the right speed. What have we failed to see really? Okay, so to put it in simple terms, if I'm going to make a call right now to you, right, this isn't just a few meters away from me. It's not a, the signal does not flow from me directly to you. It flows to the nearest base station, right? And if for any reason that base station is down, that means that it will go to the next available base station, which is probably a bit further away. Now the further away the base station is, the less the quality of the call. So bringing it down to your question, it goes back to the challenges of doing business in Nigeria. These base stations have to be powered from my understanding with diesel generators. For some, some of them will have backup generators. The cost of diesel generator just this year has increased from, I think, maybe 300 naira per liter to over 700 naira per liter. So it's making the cost of doing business very difficult. Number two is that there's a lot of resource drain right now in Nigeria because the world is becoming a global village and a lot of people, a lot of good resources are beginning to see the usefulness of their skill outside Nigeria and they are being offered to be paid in foreign currency. Who wouldn't jump at that? So there's a lot of resource drain. And unfortunately we don't have the right educational system that produces the right quality of resources that we need to take on from there. So despite the fact that, yes, these guys have been around for a while, yes, they made a lot of money, it's not proportional to the expectation of our expected outcome in terms of these challenges that I've mentioned. All right. We're still watching Business Insight and Plus TV Africa and we still have Dari Medmoyer, tech enthusiast with us in the house. We'll take a quick break and return with more to join us again. Welcome back to Business Insight and Plus TV Africa. Dari is still with us. Let's talk about the future of the ICT sector in Nigeria. Nigerians have begun to appreciate the place of technology in almost all facets of their business, telemedicine, insurance and banking or even in everyday business. But would you really say that in the next five to ten years the average household would be doing everything techie as it were? Well, to be honest, it's inevitable. It's a disruption. The world has become a global village and the communication protocol of the world or the globe is tech, right? For example, if you're going to have a business meeting with somebody in Asia or the America, the likely tool you would use is Zoom or Microsoft Teams or Google Meet, right? So we have for us to be able to compete at that global level. For businesses that are coming into Nigeria to invest in Nigeria and to play in Nigeria, we need to mature a level of tech to be able to play. So I would say it's inevitable. However, will it be easy or will it be very functional, maybe not, given some of the challenges that we have? I would think that the focus for us to be able to play in a mature level at that time is for us to drive local advocacy and local, shall I say, investment and manufacturing of tech. Right now for every business that if you want to have, if you want to develop an app or you want to develop a service, you would most likely host your service abroad. And by hosting it abroad, you are also more or less like there's forex involved. However, if you're able to build our infrastructure locally to ensure that if I'm developing an app or you're engaging someone develop an app for you, you are playing with the local currency, you're engaging with the local currency. It's a great long way to develop our infrastructure locally, because it's not a case of demand or supply. And it would ensure that we are compelled to work towards that maturity. As we wrap up now, Dari, a whole lot has been said concerning what 5G technology would do to not just Nigeria or Africa, but entirely to the world. If you were to break it down to the late times, to the average man on the street, to the average woman who sells tomato, what would 5G do to them or for them? Very good question. Like I said, let's quickly kill the myth of 5G being an anti-Christ. So I would say if you go to a market right now, and most likely you'll probably go without cash because you have your ATM card or you have your phone to do a transfer. Right now, in most markets, you would find POS service agents. So they are there to meet the gap between you and I that don't have cash and the markets with my daddy's cash. For that POS machine to work, it needs internet or it needs some kind of network service. If we are still in the days of 2G or 1G, I don't think that service would work. So you see what I'm going to. So the stronger and the more mature internet service is, the more business opportunities that it brings open to markets, women and other, every form of life. So it's important to have that so that it opens up new business opportunities that would foster business and economy at the end of the day. Well said. You know, I couldn't have been broken any lower. Thank you so much. I'm dying for sharing all of this useful insight with us. We do appreciate your time. Thank you, Justin, for having me again. All right. Barry Medore is a tech enthusiast and he has actually said so much. I'm sure you have taken one or two things from this particular discourse. As we wrap up, the Lagos State Governor Babajdeh Songolu has restated his commitment to building affordable and decent housing apartments that meet different straight hair of the citizenry. Songolu who stated this during the official commissioning of the channel point apartments in Victoria Island area of the state said that these remain a key priority in his administration. The venue of the commissioning was filled with capacity with world wishes and government functionaries. All are seated waiting patiently for the formal cutting of the tape by Governor Babajdeh Songolu. It is a joint venture partnership project between the state government through the Lagos State Development and Property Cooperation, LSDPC and Brooks Assets and Resources Limited. Larry Shola is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Brooks Assets and Resources. She is excited to see the day come true. Governor Songolu, while addressing the people, spoke on the overall goal of the Urban Renewal Program and called for more collaborations with all other private investors in developing the state. And I'm also using this opportunity to say that our plan at ensuring that the opportunity in our land spaces is totally unlocked. Before the end of the year, in fact, we've given commitments that our EGIS project, which unlocks the potential ensuring that title documents, right, can't be processed within a couple of days and the comfort of your houses and the comfort of your offices will be delivered before the end of this year. He also reassured Legosians of his commitment to ensuring decent and affordable housing for all. And so I want to urge all our citizens to be rest assured that the provision of affordable and decent housing remain a key priority for your administration. Like I said, construction is going on in several other parts of the state. On his part, the Oniru of Iruland, Oba Abdul Wasiu, Omogola Honlawa, commanded Governor Songolu for thinking outside the box. He said that Legos state has a very small land mass, hence the reason need for the state to always convert any available space or inactive property to good use. Let us upgrade, let us add value to those projects that are almost abandoned. If not, I don't want to use abandoned. Let us add value to them and make them to look like this. Sitting on a land size of 2,832 square meter, the Channel Point Apartments consist of two blocks of 38 units of two and three bedroom flats. It had just two bungalows on it, housing just two different families, but thus, certainly gone with the wind. From Legos, love Ikuku Uyudoku, plus TV news. And that's the size of the show for this week. I am Justin at the Donyei. See you again next time. Bye for now.