193,000 subscribers change networks

A total of 193,000 subscribers have switched to new service providers since the introduction of the Mobile Number Portability in the country, the Nigerian Communications Commission has said.

The Director of Public Affairs, Mr. Tony Ojobo, said this at a ceremony to award prizes to three students that won essay competition on ‘the effect of MNP on telecoms service and usage in Nigeria,’ organised by the NCC.

Mobile Number Portability was introduced by the regulatory agency on April 22, 2013 to enable subscribers to retain their numbers while switching to other preferred service providers.

Ojobo said, “Since inception, 193,000 subscribers have successfully ported across the various telecoms networks.

“The introduction of the MNP was aimed at enabling telecom subscribers to exercise the power of choosing the network that will provide them with the desired services.

“As is the case in most countries where it has been introduced, its launch in Nigeria led to better customer care services, deepened competition, innovative services, wider coverage for all the networks and above all enthronement of the consumer as the king in the market place.”

Executive Vice Chairman at NCC, Dr. Eugene Juwah, said one of the reasons the commission introduced MNP was to democratise choice and the movement of subscribers across the networks using the same number while stimulating subtle competition among operators.

He pledged the readiness of the regulatory agency to do all within its powers to enable subscribers to enjoy value for their money.

Juwah said, “We shall always discharge our regulatory responsibility with maximum sincerity, firmness and fairness with the intent that the industry becomes much better for the various stakeholders.”

The first prize of the essay went to Dasaolu Johnson, a law student at the University of Lagos. The second prize went to Kadri Olamide, a veterinary medicine student at the University of Ibadan while the third prize went to Nicholas Okpala, a civil engineering student at the University of Agriculture, Abeokuta.

The three students expressed appreciation to NCC for offering them the opportunity to do research and learn more on a subject outside their curricula in school.