The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and its consultants, 3R Company Nigeria Limited, have finally signed a Public Private Partnership (PPP) agreement for the implementation of Revenue Assurance Solutions (RAS) to strengthen and manage the integrity of the revenue generation process in the Nigerian telecommunications industry.
Representatives from the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission were present at the deal signing ceremony, which took place in Abuja over the weekend (ICRC). Due to the project’s scope, the ICRC has been steering the partnership implementation process to give expression to the decision to acquire the RAS solution through a PPP framework.
Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NCC, signed the agreement on behalf of the Commission, while Raymond Wodi, Chief Executive Officer of 3R Nigeria Limited, signed on behalf of his company.
Danbatta, speaking at the ceremony, said the NCC’s decision to use RAS was made to support the Federal Government’s attempts to increase income collection, especially at a time when the government’s resources are depleting by the day.
The EVC noted that the deployment of RAS will improve monitoring and regulatory activities related to the telecommunications industry’s Annual Operating Levy (AOL) administration, as well as confer higher degrees of honesty and fidelity on the industry’s AOL numbers.
“We believe that if we can deploy RAS and ensure that we get the true picture of what the Mobile Networks Operators (MNOs) are supposed to be paying in terms of AOL, we will have achieved an important milestone in the area of revenue generation for both the Commission and the government,” Danbatta said.
The EVC expressed gratitude to the ICRC for their assistance in finalizing the collaboration. He also praised the Project Delivery Team (PDT), which included Commission employees who worked tirelessly to ensure the project’s success, and urged the 3R Company Nigeria Limited to ensure the project’s effective deployment and implementation within its scope, objective, and government’s expectations.
Wodi of 3R Company Nigeria Limited expressed gratitude to the Commission for the opportunity to help the industry and the government by deploying 3R’s technological solution to ensure more effective revenue generation from telecom licensees. He also reassured the stakeholders that 3R is prepared to achieve and exceed the project’s goals.
Togunde Dada-Hammed, Director, Internal Audit, ICRC, speaking on behalf of ICRC Director-General Michael Ohiani, praised the NCC for taking the risk of deploying RAS. He stated that having the ICRC participating will assure support for the process, ensuring that the project’s objectives are met for the benefit of all parties concerned.
“Anyone who is familiar with global trends, particularly in Nigeria in terms of the revenue crisis that the country is facing, will recognize that deploying a RAS solution, as proved by the NCC, is the proper way to go,” Dada-Hammed added.
Meanwhile, the EVC has praised Prof. Isa Pantami, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, for his involvement in presenting the NCC RAS project to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) Meeting, where the solution was given final permission for execution.
The RAS project is designed to be connected to the systems of licensed telecommunications operators and will be capable of capturing and reporting in near real-time billing activities by the operators for the purposes of computing and assuring the accrued AOL payable to the NCC by the licensees with minimal or no error margin. When fully operational, the NCC RAS will provide numerous benefits to the industry, including improved monitoring and regulation of licensed telecommunications providers by the Commission.
