NCC to Publish Revised Guidelines on Satellite Communications, Consumer Code of Practice

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has reviewed its guidelines on Satellite Communications and also amended the Consumer Code of Practice Regulations and ready to publish them in the next few weeks, the Executive Vice Chairman of the commission, Prof. Umar Danbata, had stated this in Abuja recently.

The NCC boss who was represented by Director Spectrum Administration, Mr. Austin Nwaulune, at an event in Abuja, said the draft Commercial Satellite Communications guidelines were aimed at creating a legal framework to regulate the provision and use of satellite communications services and networks in whole or in part of Nigeria or on a ship or an aircraft registered in Nigeria.

He said the intention behind the development of the guidelines was to ensure a well-developed and organised satellite communications market in Nigeria with appropriate legal framework that meets international best practices; encourage innovation and guarantee public safety.

Danbata added that the guidelines would ensure effective management of scarce frequency resources, especially bands where frequency is shared between satellite and terrestrial systems, and also encourages the use of satellite connectivity to un-served areas that lack terrestrial transmission infrastructure backbone.

According to Danbata, the new draft consumer code of practice is an amendment of the existing one of 2007, which will provide more robust framework for effective and efficient processes and procedures to be followed by licensees in developing their own consumer code that would govern consumer practices and provide the consumers with adequate information on their services.

"The draft consumer code of practice regulations, which is an amendment of the previous ones made in 2007, when finalised, would provide a more robust framework for effective and efficient processes/procedures to be followed by licensees in developing their individual consumer code to govern the provision of services and other related consumer practices.

‘’This is to ensure that consumers are adequately informed of the type of services being offered by operators, thereby aligning with the commission's function of protecting the interest of consumer against unfair practices. Furthermore, these regulations have been amended to reflect best practice in the industry," he stated.

An engineer, Usman Aliyu, did the presentation on the draft guidelines on commercial satellite communications while Mr. Yetunfe Akinloye did that of consumer code of practice.

Ann Vanderbroucke, Director of Government Relations, Market Access and Licensing of Avanti Communications Group Plc, a satellite company that covers the entire sub Saharan Africa, was full of praises for the NCC for their transparency and the opportunity given to stakeholders to see the original guidelines and also make contributions to the final version

She said: "I believe it is really transparent because we got not only the ideas and outline but the actual piece of guidelines as they would apply to be part of the consultation and the other important aspect of the transparency is that stakeholders were allowed to come to public enquiry and at the enquiry, NCC had already summarised the industry of the stakeholders, pointing out that they could or could not take those comments into account.