President Muhammadu Buhari has disclosed that the federal government has generated 547 million dollars from auctioning of the 5G spectrum.
The president made the disclosure at the National Shared Services Centre, a one-stop-shop for Ministries, Departments and Agencies to (MDAs) interface with citizens, which also houses a Cyber Security Operations Centre, Network Centre and Call Centre in Abuja on Tuesday.
The president attributed the accomplishment to the digital economy, which had driven growth, created employment and generated revenue for the country,
According to the president, the National Shared Services Centre will provide services that are “swift, secure and seamless’’.
Buhari noted that the Information, Communication and Technology Sector (ICT) had accelerated diversification of the economy.
He said the Q2 Gross Domestic Product Report by the National Bureau of Statistics showed the extent of growth, with the ICT contributing an unprecedented 18.44 per cent to the GDP, close to three times the 6.33 per cent contribution of the oil sector in the same quarter.
“As part of our efforts to expand our digital infrastructure; we increased our 4G base stations from 13,823 to 36,751 from August 2019 to date, and this has increased the percentage of 4G coverage across the country from 23 per cent to 77.52 per cent also from August 2019 to date.
”We have also followed this up with roll-out of 5G services.
“It is noteworthy that the digital economy sector has excelled in generating revenue for the government.
”In particular, at the Ministerial Retreat that I chaired from the Oct. 18 to Oct. 19, 2022, our independent analysts adjudged the digital economy sector to have generated 594 per cent of its revenue target from the 2019 baseline.
”This is very commendable. As part of these unprecedented achievements, the sector generated over 547 million dollars from the auctioning of the 5G spectrum alone,’’ he said.
Buhari said he was pleased to unveil and commission a number of initiatives that further express the government’s commitment to develop a sustainable digital economy in Nigeria.
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