Inside Aminu Maida’s Bold Play to Fix Nigeria’s Telecommunications Issues with the NCC

Nigeria’s telecommunications sector, a cornerstone of Africa’s digital economy valued at over $76 billion, stands at a critical juncture. Facing headwinds from economic pressures, infrastructure challenges, and the ever-increasing demand for reliable connectivity, it is not an understatement that the industry requires steadfast leadership. 

Since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu appointed Dr. Aminu Maida as the Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in October 2023 and his confirmation by the Senate a month later, a wave of decisive actions has swept through the regulatory landscape. While the NCC’s activities over the last two decades have usually gone under the radar, Maida’s tenure has been felt by many Nigerians in one way or another.

In an interaction with the top echelon of the Nigerian media in Lagos, a few months after his appointment, Aminu expressed his desire to address “simple things” and work towards the big picture. “I think there is a lot that we can do better. So, using the right regulatory framework, we can change things,” he said at the time.

Now, industry experts have disclosed to Neusroom that a focus on industry sustainability, quality of service, and stakeholder collaboration has marked his leadership. Gbenga Adebayo, Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), told Neusroom editors the significant transformations going on under Maida’s leadership are invaluable in addressing industry challenges and accelerating progress needed within the sector.

Maida, a seasoned professional with a rich background spanning FinTech, telecoms, and enterprise technology across Nigeria and the UK, stepped into the NCC role, succeeding Prof. Umar Danbatta. His academic credentials include an MEng from Imperial College London and a PhD from the University of Bath, complemented by a postgraduate diploma in FinTech entrepreneurship from Cambridge Judge Business School. This blend of technical expertise, particularly his experience at Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc (NIBSS), and international exposure, appears uniquely suited to the complexities of Nigeria’s telecom ecosystem.

According to Adebayo, the impact of Maida’s leadership was felt by industry stakeholders almost immediately. “When the current executive leadership of the NCC came in, we had lots of problems that we presented to them, one of which is the problem of industry sustainability, which is now being resolved.

Then there was the USSD debt that the banks had owed us for more than 5 years, which is now being resolved.” This protracted issue, involving debts estimated at over N200 billion by October 2024, has been a major point of concern for telcos and dominated the headlines. Maida’s NCC, working in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), facilitated a resolution framework that demonstrated a proactive approach to inter-sectoral challenges. 

Adebayo highlighted this collaborative success: “a joint agreement was signed, joint directive was signed by the CBN and NCC as co-regulators to resolve the situation.” Neusroom reported that United Bank for Africa (UBA) sent an email to its users informing them that all USSD transactions would now be charged to their airtime instead of their bank account. 

Seasoned tech journalist and senior reporter at Tech Cabal, Frank Eleanya, echoed the same sentiment, saying that the USSD debt issues have not been completely resolved. Still, the current administration of the NCC has already shown the right signs to settle it. He also noted that the approval of a tariff increase, which stakeholders have been clamouring for, is a good sign. “ There are some things that you can attribute to the current administration; they were the ones that increased tariffs, something that the industry stakeholders had been clamouring for, and they’re about to settle the USSD debts, which is a good thing.”

Maida’s emphasis on collaboration extends beyond the CBN. Adebayo mentioned Maida’s efforts in building relationships with regulators in power, environment, and finance, even championing a regulators’ forum: “We hear that he is championing the regulators forum… where other regulators from different sectors will come together and start looking at issues of multiple regulations and how to work together in one ecosystem.” 

The ALTON Chairman also noted the steps that the regulator has taken to navigate the challenge of multiple taxation of Telcos, stating, “When they came, we had like 54 taxes and levies… They’ve made the right case to the tax review committee, that we hear is now being resolved.” While the resolution is still ongoing, the proactive engagement is seen as a positive step. 

Furthermore, Maida has taken a firm stance on service quality. “On the issue of quality of services is quite earnest. He’s shown us the red card as operators… to improve quality of services within a period of time failing which there will be significant sanctions and penalties,” Adebayo revealed. 

This aligns with Maida’s stated vision upon taking office, where he emphasised the need for a reliable telecom industry with impressive Quality of Service (QoS) indicators, ultimately aiming for enhanced Quality of Experience (QoE) for consumers. 

Reflecting the consumer-centric commitment of NCC under his watch, Aminu Maida took time to elaborate to the media what’s on offer to the consumers. “I will summarise it in this way: we are looking to improve the total quality of their experience, and when we say the quality of experience, it’s not necessarily just looking at faster speed coverage, but also the total quality of experience.”

He is committed to evolving a system to measure the quality of service. “I bet you almost everybody is using a dual or a multiple sim phone, not because we want to but because of the need to stay connected. This is our way of staying connected, if this one is not working, the other one will work. So, we need to find a way to make it easier for consumers to decide which networks or service providers they should use.”

This commitment extends to protecting vital infrastructure. Vandalism and damage during construction have plagued the sector for many years and Adebayo praised Maida’s initiative in securing an agreement with the Federal Ministry of Works: “any road construction work that is ongoing will defer to a central coordinating body, set up between the NCC and the Ministry of work to mitigate, and minimize incidents of damages.” This echoes the broader push culminating in the Presidential Order of July 2024, designating telecom infrastructure as critical national assets, aimed at curbing vandalism and theft.

Last year, Gbenga Adebayo and Tony Emoekpere, the president of the Association of Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), released a joint statement listing three major concerns affecting the industry. While Adebayo is confident in the NCC’s approach so far, Tony Emoekpere has not responded to Neusroom’s questions as of Friday, June 13, 2025.

The infrastructure challenges of the telecommunications industry persist, and attacks on cell towers, fibre optic cables, and other critical assets disrupt telecommunications services and result in significant financial losses for operators, leading the Federal Government to sign the ‘Designation and Protection of Critical National Information Infrastructure Order, 2024’ into law last year. This gazette makes it an offence to purposefully damage assets such as telco towers/sites, switch stations, data centres, satellite infrastructure, submarine and fibre optic cables, transmission equipment, e-government platforms, and databases, among many others. 

Adebayo adds a compelling anecdote about Maida’s hands-on approach: “I’ve heard reports that he himself has joined his surveillance team a few times to go and check the state of affairs of some of our infrastructure… He’s gone physically in person with the team to go and see… and to work with those who are doing the physical work.”

However, Eleanya calls for more transparency and the actual prosecution of vandals who are caught. “The rate of network outage is still alarming, and the biggest driver is fibre cuts across the country. Operators are still facing all of that, and nobody’s been arrested. The question is, how is the CNI order being implemented?”

Maida’s tenure hasn’t been without difficult decisions. The enforcement of the SIM-NIN (National Identification Number) integration policy stands out as one that put many Nigerians who failed to link their identification numbers with their SIM cards on time in distress. While the policy predates him, Maida set firm deadlines, leading to the disconnection of millions of non-compliant lines. 

“He is the only regulator that came and set the standard like ‘this is the deadline failing which you must disconnect lines,” Adebayo asserted. “On his directive over 5 million subscribers who didn’t have NIN integrated with their SIM were disconnected. That was not an easy decision for him, but he did it… Some of us in the industry disagreed with him, but he insisted that this had to be done.” 

Another impact of Aminu Maida’s leadership is the crackdown on regulatory compliance and governance issues. Last year, the NCC penalised Globacom for non-compliance in registering over 40 million subscribers without valid National Identification Numbers (NIN). Eleanya believes that Aminu Maida’s impact also influenced the company’s decision to employ a CEO for the first time since it began operations. Yet, he wants to see how the NCC and the Ministry of Communications address MAFAB and the company’s delay in launching its 5G network despite getting a license in 2022. 

Aminu Maida’s decisiveness, coupled with what is described as being “a good listener,” who “takes in all the inputs… and he takes informed decisions,” seems to be building confidence within the industry. “He has earned the respect of a lot of our industry leaders as I can tell you, including myself,” Adebayo confirmed.

Aminu Maida has also overseen the provision of digital work tools for the staff of the Commission and facilitated training in line with the strategic vision of the Commission. It is reported that the Commission’s promotion exercises are now in tandem with public service rules, with promotion now based on merit and vacancies.

An insider speaking to Neusroom under the condition of anonymity to protect relationships claims that Maida is also restructuring the organisation from within, ensuring that the “old, slow manner of operations that civil servants are used to becomes a thing of the past,”  and he has faced some form of pushback in that regard. The NCC’s acting Head of Public Affairs, Nnena Ukowa, refused to comment on that report and other questions directed at her when contacted by Neusroom. 

Looking ahead, the challenges remain significant. Nigeria aims for 70% broadband penetration by 2025, a target made more challenging by recent declines. Minister Bosun Tijani has identified broadband connectivity as a top priority, crucial for the digital economy and financial inclusion. Addressing issues like Right of Way (RoW) charges – where progress is being made with several states reportedly waiving fees – and attracting investment are key. 

Adebayo acknowledged the recent investment drought and appealed for public patience, noting that network expansions and optimisations are underway but require time.” We are in a sector which has suffered lack of investment over the last 3 or 4 years. Thankfully,  we are now in the place of recovery and time is required to recover fully.” 

This holistic view is crucial in a sector where technology changes rapidly, requiring regulators to continue to position and reposition themselves to be able to do contemporary regulation and use the right instrument to foster growth,” as Adebayo put it.

While the Nigerian telecom sector faces significant hurdles, including economic pressures and the need for substantial investment, the leadership demonstrated so far appears to be steering the industry towards a more stable and sustainable future. 

Desmond Okon, the Head of the Business Desk at The Cable, is glad that the NCC listens to the stakeholders and there is increased confidence now. “The recent move to adjust tariffs means they’re listening to stakeholders. The impact is increased confidence in the regulator. It also shows their willingness to collaborate. They’ve also been able to address the prolonged USSD debt and taken further steps to prevent a repeat. I also understand that the dispute around RoW is being addressed.

The NCC is also quietly preventing monopoly in the system; otherwise, there would have been a lot of acquisitions in the sector, where smaller telcos would be swallowed bigger ones. 

Okon also wants more transparency from the regulator; “My only concern is the that they seem to be holding back important data on investment into the sector: FDIs and Capex. The last time such was published was in 2022 or 2023.” 

Eleanya believes that there is still a lot of work to be done to move the industry forward. “We should not be in a position where we’re still talking about 2G when many countries have shut it down, and some are even shutting 3G services down. Some countries are even setting dates to shut 4G down as well, as they are moving to 5G, and they’re now talking about 6G. 

We’re still holding on to 2G because that’s where the majority of the people who use feature phones reside, and then what we call 3G  is like a compromise between good internet and bad internet. Then we now have 4G, which is still mostly being pushed in the urban areas, and 5G coverage is still rare”

Gbenga Adebayo admits that the road is still long, but he reflects the sentiment of many industry players, as our conversation concludes.  “I think the experience within the current regulator is quite positive. And I think we’re on a better course than we have been in previous years… we’re on the right path.”