The Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, Prof. Umar Danbatta has posited that data centre services is key to the ultimate crystallization of this new line of thinking within the ICT sector and by extension to the greater national economy of nations in so many ways.
The NCC Boss took this position yesterday in Lagos at the Fourth Telecommunications Sector Sustainability Forum, which was powered by Business Remarks with the theme: ‘Mainstreaming Data Centres in the Nigerian Digital Economy’.
He explained that one of the ways data centre is key to the national economy is the added impetus towards improving the security and reliability of the nation’s digital infrastructure.
“The nature and functional model of data centres with special regard to its centralized architecture, with compelling assurance provides a greater guarantee against various malicious attacks and unauthorized access to sensitive information,” he stated in a keynote address presented by Dr. Sunday Atu, Head Traffic Administration at NCC.
According to him, in addition to the efficiency engendered by the robust economies of scale through critical resources shared and made available by Data Centres, this critical infrastructure ensures that well-established and globally accepted tripods of confidentiality, integrity and availability are so seamlessly provided for uptake by users in the most economical way.
He noted that the entrance of Google with its Equiano subsea fibre cable and Meta launching its own subsea cable called 2Africa in 2024 will no doubt portend significant socio-economic impacts for Nigeria.
He added that this will also bring to the fore the debate around digital sovereignty and the need for national policy and regulatory frameworks to further localize traffic and data.
Prof. Danbatta, however, assured that the Commission will continue to facilitate and support its licensees, as major stakeholders, to continue to explore additional frontiers of expansion and greater opportunities for investment within the data centre space, whilst also ensuring strict adherence to data protection regulations.