USPF reduces access gap by 2% in two years

ITRealms:

The Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF) has reduced the access gap in Nigeria by two per cent within the last two years, reports ITRealms.

Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the Nigerian Communications Commission, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta disclosed this at a one-day USPF ‘Focused Industry Stakeholders’ Forum and Hackathon Award at the Eko Hotel, Lagos, last weekend.

Danbatta explained that USFPF has facilitated the reduction from 36.8 million (24.5 per cent) in 2013 to 33.7 million (22.5 per cent) in 2015 based on the Access Gap study and using the 150 million population benchmark.

The event which theme this year was 'Universal Access: Eliminating the Inclusion Barriers' also saw EVC reiterating that USPF, which is an arm of the Commission, would play significant role in the facilitation of broadband penetration; improve quality of service; promote ICT innovations and investment opportunities and facilitate strategic collaboration and partnership.

Prof. Danbatta also spoke on the serious need to look at Federal and State policies that are not friendly to the deployment of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) infrastructure in the country.

He lamented the current level of the ICT infrastructure in the country, saying that it has led to limited development.

The Commission, he further disclosed, plans to issue licences to Infracos to cover the five remaining geo-political zones in Nigeria namely: South West, South, South East, North East and North West.

“Already, North Central and Lagos zones have been awarded Infraco licences to IHS and Main One Cable company,” he said..

ITRealms recalls that the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF) was established within the Nigerian Communications Commission by the Federal Government of Nigeria to facilitate the achievement of national policy goals for universal access and universal service to information and communication technologies (ICTs) in rural, un-served and under-served Nigeria’s communities.

Nenye Dom/GEE

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Breaking News: CBN reduces Naira denominated cards spending to $50,000

DigitalSENSE Business News:

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reviewed downward the spending limits on Naira denominated cards by estimated 66.67 per cent, DigitalSENSE Business News reports.

Investigations by DigitalSENSE Business News showed that CBN has reduced the Foreign Exchange spending limit on Naira denominated cards from previously $150,000, about to N29,850,000.00 to $50,000 an estimated N9,950,000.00 per annum.

Further investigations DigitalSENSE Business News revealed that with this development users of dominated cards in the country such as Naira MasterCard, Naira Credit Card, Naira Visa Prepaid Card, in a foreign Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), Point of Sale (POS) or Web now has a limit of $50,000  per year.

In addition, the daily cash withdrawal limit for a Naira denominated cards have been reduced to $300, about N59,700.00 per day from $120,000 previously.

This, industry analyst say may not be unconnected with the strategies by the incoming government of General Muhammadu Buhari to refocus the economy, especially the Naira, in line with what President Goodluck Jonathan started by stopping sale of dollar in the open market, a few months earlier.

+Remmy Nweke (ITRealms)  
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e-Friction: Countries with fewer limitations engender digital GDP - Research

ITRealms:

The recent research by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) showed that the difference between countries with low e-Friction and those with high e-Friction can amount to 2.5 per cent of the Gross Domestic Group (GDP), ITRealms reports.

Part of the executive summary of the report tagged ‘Greasing the Wheels of the Internet Economy’ made available to ITRealms indicated that easy access and use of the Internet could dramatically affect the growth of national economies, according to new research by BCG.

The research, ITRealms gathered measured the constraints on Internet use in 65 countries and found that those with fewer limitations on online activity could have larger digital economies, just as the difference could amount to 2.5 per cent of GDP.

The report, introduces the BCG e-Friction Index, which ranks countries according to four types of e-friction: infrastructure-related frictions that limit basic access; industry and individual frictions that affect the ability of companies and consumers to engage in online transactions; and information frictions that involve availability of, and access to, online content.

Paul Zwillenberg, a BCG partner and a co-author of the report was quoted as saying that because the digital economy is growing quickly, often outpacing the offline economy, high e-friction countries are in danger of missing out on a high-impact propellant of growth and job creation.”

“On the other hand, high-friction countries that address their sources of e-friction have the potential to add significant value to their economies,” he said.

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