The Nigerian Telecommunications Commission on Thursday disclosed that Nigeria was rated eleventh in terms of Internet penetration and seventh in terms of mobile phone usage worldwide.

The Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, Prof Umar Danbatta, said this at the opening ceremony of the two-day Emerging Technology Forum for the Telecommunications Industry in Abuja.

The EVC, who spoke through the Head, Spectrum Database Management, NCC, Abraham Oshadami, stated that the worldwide data gathered by the NRI team demonstrated that digital transformation was a global need in order to optimise the social and economic effects of the digital era.

He added that the NRI examined the performance of 131 economies across four categories: technology (infrastructure), governance, people, and effect.

He said, “Nigeria is a telecommunications powerhouse, accounting for 82 per cent of the continent’s telecom subscribers and 29 per cent of the continent’s internet consumption.”

“Our country ranks eleventh in the world for Internet penetration and seventh in mobile phone usage.

“The NRI team’s global data shows that digital transformation is a global imperative for maximising the social and economic effects of the digital era. Despite these remarkable metrics, our Network Readiness Index (NRI) ranking for 2022 of 109th out of 131 countries is both humbling and challenging.”

Danbatta went on to state that, as representatives of social and economic development in the country, prioritising network preparedness is not only a strategic need but also a mission.

“It can create new inequalities, which can hinder the ability of younger generations to engage in the digital economy, but it also remains a powerful way to do more with less at all levels of income. Formal education is evolving, and metrics are important to support informed policy making.”