From Cyriacus Nnaji, Lagos
An agency of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), Satellite Towns Development Department (STDD), has sought the support and collaboration of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) towards ensuring state-of-the-art satellite towns development befitting of a federal capital.
STDD’s Coordinator, Obinna Ogwuegbu, made the call recently when he led an 11-member delegation on a courtesy call to the Commission in Abuja.
According to a release signed by Ikechukwu Adinde, Director, Public Relations, NCC, Ogwuegbu stated that the main objective of the visit was to intimate NCC management on the strides being made by the development agency on its mandate and to seek NCC’s buy-in toward ensuring availability of telecoms infrastructure in the satellite towns.
“The STDD is a Government Establishment operating under the Federal Capital Territory Administration, with a mandate to develop the Satellite Towns of the Federal Capital Territory by providing engineering infrastructure such as district infrastructure, rural/link roads, water and electricity supply, environmental sanitation, and town planning to the Satellite Towns,” he said.
He said NCC, as the telecoms regulator, which is intimately connected to facilitating digital connectivity infrastructure, will be requested to support STDD, facilitating the development and rollout of telecoms/engineering infrastructure across the satellite towns through its licensees and other initiatives.
Responding to the request, NCC’s Director Human Capital and Administration, Usman Malah, who received the STDD’s delegation on behalf of the Commission’s Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Prof. Umar Danbatta, said the Commission remains fully committed to ensuring synergy in its working relationship with other agencies of government.
Malah stated that the Commission acknowledged the importance of STDD mandates and it was conscious of the role NCC is supposed to play in ensuring ubiquitous access to telecoms services whether in the cities, unserved and underserved areas, under which the satellite towns may be categorised.
While thanking the delegation for the visit, Malah stated that their requests and propositions shall be presented to Management for consideration and necessary action.
