The Senate’s Communications Committee has given the green light to the Nigerian Communications Commission’s (NCC) budget projection of N549.6 billion for the year 2024.
During a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives Committee on Communications chaired by Senator Ikra Bilbis (Zamfara Central), the NCC’s 2023 budget performance was reviewed in the presence of Dr. Aminu Maida, the EVC/CEO of the NCC.
Dr. Maida addressed inquiries from lawmakers on various topics such as security, revenue generation, data protection, and discrepancies found in the 2023 budget report of the NCC.
Senator Steve Karimi commended the NCC’s up-to-date and commendable report, stating that there were no discrepancies in the information provided.
Senator Ned Nwoko praised Dr. Maida’s impressive credentials and urged him to enhance the operations of the Agency.
Lawmakers also praised the Government Owned Enterprise for its prudent management of the 2023 revenue, capital, and recurrent expenditure.
Dr. Maida informed lawmakers that the NCC aims to avoid relying solely on operator sanctions for revenue generation and is implementing measures to facilitate operators’ compliance with regulatory directives.
He emphasized that NCC is collaborating with national security agencies to create a platform for tracking criminals and addressing security challenges.
The 2023 budget performance report revealed an actual revenue of N448.1 billion against a projected budget of N559.080 billion, with total recurrent expenditure at N67.072 billion and capital expenditure at N3.6 million.
The committee members unanimously approved the NCC’s N549.6 billion budget proposal for 2024 through voice votes, following a motion by Senator Tahir Monguno (Borno North) and subsequent ratification by committee chairman Senator Ikra Aliyu