The Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday said his administration will continue to support the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to drive economic growth.
Sanwo-Olu said the Lagos State Government is open to investment and will do more than what is expected to encourage investments in technology, communication and other key sectors that can strengthen economic growth.
The governor spoke during a courtesy visit by the Governing Board of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), led by its Chairman, Chief Idris Olorunnimbe, at Lagos House, Marina.
He described the NCC as one of the foremost forward-looking Federal Government commissions in the country and commended President Bola Tinubu for appointing men and women of strong character to lead the commission. He said the leadership of the NCC has helped give direction to the communications industry, which he described as a major enabler of Nigeria’s economy.
Sanwo-Olu said, “We will be expecting so much from this sector. It is a very strong service industry that we believe will be one of the very deep growth paths that can also help us deepen the GDP of our country.”
He said Lagos is ready to serve as a model for national development through technology-driven policies and partnerships. “This is a national assignment and we want to ensure that Lagos can be used as a very strong demonstration and a test point to push development as even as possible to every nooks and crannies of this country. We believe there has to be fairness and purposeful governance all around,” he said.
The governor assured the commission of continuous support from the state government. “We will continue to support NCC. I can assure you that we will do more than what is expected. We are not a government that would be averse to investment. Technology, communication and the rest of it are the next growth paths that we want to be part of. We can use technology as a strong enabler to do a lot of catch-up,” he said.
Speaking earlier, Olorunnimbe described Sanwo-Olu as his mentor, noting that his first experience on a public service board came through the governor when he was appointed to serve on the board of the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund.
He said the visit was the first official engagement of the new NCC Governing Board after its inauguration, adding that Lagos remains critical to the commission’s operations.
Olorunnimbe said, “I am here, and I owe a service and a duty to Lagos State that Lagos must work. There are parts of Lagos that are unserved and underserved. And some of these places are not very commercially viable for the operators because every time they put infrastructure, the consideration is, ‘How will it generate its money back?’”
He appealed to the Lagos State Government to grant free right of way in some areas to encourage network expansion and added that the commission would work with the Commissioner and the Lagos State Infrastructure Maintenance and Regulatory Agency (LASIMRA) to design and implement the initiative as a pilot for other states.
