Telecom industry regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and other industry
operators, including IHS Towers, Digital Realty and 9mobile Nigeria, have joined the line of partners that
will chart the way forward as stakeholders gather for the Maiden Edition of the CNII & Telecom
Sustainability Conference 2025 being organized as a collaboration between media body, the Nigeria
Information Technology Association (NITRA) and Industry advocacy group, the Association of Licenced
Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON).
Scheduled for August 7, 2025 in Lagos, the event, which is expected to host the Minister of
Communication, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, will also bring stakeholders from
Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the Peace Corps Nigeria, to discuss the security of
infrastructure, stakeholders’ roles, and the practical implementation of the Critical National Information
Infrastructure (CNII) Presidential Order.
Headlining the event, with its theme as “Telecoms Industry Sustainability and the CNII Act – Way
Forward”, IHS Towers will throw light on the state of infrastructure in the country, while the Panel
Session will discuss the “Role expectations of stakeholders in the implementation of the CNII Act”
Keynote speeches will come from the NCC EVC, Dr. Aminu Maida and the President of the Association of
Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria (ATCON).
The Nigerian Designation and Protection of Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII) Order,
2024, aims to safeguard critical infrastructure like telecommunications networks, financial systems, and
power grids by designating them as CNII and outlining measures for their protection. This order, signed
in June 2024, is an extension of the Cybercrimes Act of 2015 and seeks to reduce disruptions to these
vital systems.
Some of the questions stakeholders will give answers to at the Panel Discussion include:
How do we ensure that this Order is implemented to the letter?
What are the roles of each stakeholder in the industry – Federal, States, Operators, Consumers,
and other actors?
Are telecom companies keying into the CNII provisions, and how?
Are there areas worth looking into once more, or is the Order perfect as it is?
What is the role of regulators in ensuring public compliance to the Bill?
How do we ensure security?
What is the place of collaboration?
Publicity: how much of the CNII provisions are the public aware of?
How can we sustain the growth and development of telecommunications in Nigeria?
According to the General Secretary of NITRA, Mr. Chidiebere Nwankwo, this industry collaborative event
will afford stakeholders in the public and private sectors the opportunity to sit back together and review
how well the CNII Order has thus far been implemented, and to re-strategise, if need be, on the way
forward.
“This event is key because it will bring Stakeholders to the CNII plan to a roundtable to re-evaluate the
decision, make amends and continue the journey. This has to be a periodic gathering to make the goals
of this order achievable,” he said.
ALTON is the official private sector industry body for all providers of telecommunications and subsidiary
services in Nigeria.
The Chairman of ALTON, Engr. Gbenga Adebayo and the Chairman of NITRA, Mr. Chike Onwuegbuchi
will be on hand to welcome industry stakeholders.
