The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the policy on the deployment of the Fifth Generation network famously known as 5G in Nigeria.
The Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, made known this to State House Correspondents at the end of the recent council meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja.
The Minister disclosed that the 5G would spring up opportunities in the economic, educational, and health sectors, adding that security agencies would also benefit a lot from the network.
Pantami said: “I presented a memo before the Federal Executive Council and was approved after deliberation, that is the National Policy on 5th Generation network for Nigeria’s digital economy. That policy was approved by the Federal Executive Council today.
“Furthermore, the policy discusses the benefits to be attained through the deployment of 5G in Nigeria and any part of the world which includes lower latency, larger capacity and higher data rate.
“In a simple language we can say it will open many opportunities economically, educationally and even in the health sector, and it will also support our security institutions particularly in areas where they need high-quality services.”
He remarked that the network would have been deployed since last year and said outcry from Nigerians compelled the government to relax the matter to give room for more consultations.
Pantami added: “In the year 2020 there was a time that we started the 5th Generation trial but there were complaints from citizens about the relationship between 5G and COVID-!9.
“But because our government is a responsible one, we decided then, to put everything on hold and engage more stakeholders and we spent almost 18 months working on that.
“We also waited for the resolution or verdict of the two most important organisations globally when it comes to the deployment of telecommunications facilities. These are the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the World Health Organisation (WHO), which are both arms of the United Nations.
“The two agencies confirmed that there is no adverse health hazard associated with 5G, and it has not been proven to be harmful to human health.
“Most importantly, even its frequency and radiation is even lower than that of 4G and the electronic gadgets like the television sets and microwaves we use at home. So they have already issued that explanation about its safety.
“They also advised nations on the standards and regulations they use in the course of its redeployment.”
He said the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) had been ordered to comply with all the regulations and standards specified by the ITU and WHO.
