Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) Prof Garba Umar Danbatta, has restated that the deployment of the 5G technology will initiate several new changes in mobile connectivity with enormous capacity to boost productivity and grow the Nigerian economy.

The NCC helmsman said this while delivering the keynote address tagged “5G Deployment: Catalyst For Digital Transformation in Nigeria” at the International Conference on Multidisciplinary Engineering and Applied Sciences (ICMEAS) 2021, held at the Nile University of Nigeria, Abuja.

Represented by the director of technical standards at the commission, Bako Wakil, the NCC boss said that “the goal of the commission is that Nigeria becomes one of the leading nations with 5G technology deployed in a manner that is beneficial to all the stakeholders and contributes maximally to the digital economy policy of the federal government.”

“The FG will provide an enabling environment for the 5G deployment, but the MNOs will determine their own deployment strategies subject to alignment to the approved policies and other regulatory instruments in force,” he said.

He noted that 5G is already changing things radically with 44 commercial 5G networks in operation already worldwide as of May, 2020, according to the GSM Association.

He added that so many different industry sectors and organisations will be involved in the implementation and use of 5G products and services, hence collaboration across sectors and borders will be key to its success here in Nigeria and around the world.

He again allayed the fears of the alleged dangers of the electromagnetic radiations emitted by the wireless communications infrastructure that will be generated by 5G, saying that tests were conducted in accordance with the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) Guidelines for general public exposure to time varying electromagnetic fields, which eliminated any fear of health hazards.

 “The results of the test show that radiation from 5G infrastructure is far below the ICNIRP specification for protection of members of the public and therefore suggest that no public health hazards are expected from the use of 5G in Nigeria,” he said.

He said further that 5G is “already connecting people, things, data, applications, transport systems and cities in smart, networked communication environment supporting applications such as smart homes and buildings, smart cities, autonomous vehicle (with Tesia and Uber leading the way) 3D videos, remote medical services, virtual and augmented reality and massive machine-to-machine communications for industry automation, as well as many new innovations yet to come.”

Continuing, he said: “The technology will impact the way interactions are done by enabling in some cases  unforeseen business models, enhanced lifestyles , all resulting  in increased productivity. Some of the technologies already being touted include automated cars and advanced  manufacturing , internet of things (IOTs) which will enable  thousands  of connected devices, such as  smart energy meters, working together and sharing information.

“These changes and innovations have enormous economic benefits, which the IHS Economics estimated that 5G would enable $12.3 trillion of global economic output in 2035.”

In his remarks, vice chancellor of the Nile University, Professor Osman Nuri Aras, said the aim of the conference is to promote an enabling platform for researchers, professionals and students in the industry, across fields of engineering and applied sciences to share the current research work and exchange ideas to form collaborations for the advancement of knowledge, technology and multidisciplinary research.

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