Senate accepts NCC’s N549.6 billion budget for 2024.

The NCC’s budget of N549.6 billion for 2024 was approved by the Senate’s Communications Committee on Wednesday. This decision was made during a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives Committees on Communications, led by Senator Ikra Bilbis (Zamfara Central). The budget proposal was unanimously approved by all committee members through voice votes after a motion was put forward by Senator Tahir Monguno (Borno North) and confirmed by committee chairman Senator Ikra Aliyu. This budget will fund the operations of the NCC in 2024 and ensure the continued development and improvement of the Nigerian communications industry.

The committee also addressed the issue of the budget deficit, which was revealed to be N110.9 billion. This deficit was attributed to the underperformance of certain revenue-generating agencies under the NCC. In light of this, the committee urged the NCC to take necessary measures to improve its revenue generation in order to meet its projected budget for the next fiscal year.

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During the hearing, Maida responded to questions from legislators regarding the NCC’s operations. He discussed topics such as ensuring security, generating revenue, protecting data, and addressing discrepancies in the 2023 budget report. Maida also stated that the NCC is taking steps to avoid solely relying on operator sanctions for revenue and is working towards improving operators’ compliance with regulatory directives. He emphasized the NCC’s collaboration with national security agencies to track criminals and address security issues.

During the Senate hearing, Senator Steve Karimi praised the NCC’s report as being current and praiseworthy, noting that there were no inconsistencies in the information presented. Senator Ned Nwoko also acknowledged Maida’s impressive qualifications and encouraged him to continue improving the operations of the Agency. Other lawmakers also commended the agency for their responsible handling of the 2023 budget, including revenue, capital, and recurrent expenditures.