The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has rolled out governance guidelines for the telecom companies, to ensure strict compliance with regulatory policies.

The governance guidelines were rolled out with penalties provided including: revocation of licence, board dissolution, heavy fines, suspension of licence.

The new guidelines also halts any NCC top management staff from becoming a board member of any telecom firm until after five years of leaving office.

Speaking during the launch of the guidelines in Lagos last Wednesday, the Executive Vice-Chairman of NCC, Dr Aminu Maida, noted that stronger corporate governance is central to the sustainability of the telecom industry in the country.

According to him, “the Guidelines are decisive steps toward a resilient, ethical, and innovative telecoms industry.

He noted that industry’s sustainability demands that boards and management teams are configured and incentivized to deliver reliable service quality, strong compliance, prudent leverage, robust cybersecurity, responsible supply chains, and credible disclosures—year after year.

He stated that from a research conducted last year by NCC, “firms with stronger governance consistently demonstrated superior service performance, higher compliance with NCC regulations, and more resilient financial results. 

“The evidence affirms an important truth: good governance is not merely a regulatory requirement— it is a strategic important for business success and long-term sustainability.”

According to the new guidelines, it strikes a balanced composition of Executive Directors (EDs), Non Executive Directors and INEDs.
It also brings about the separation of Chairman and CEO; and sector-specific expertise—particularly ICT and cybersecurity—on the Board mandatory.

Maida said the provisions in the guidelines are mandatory for individual licensees, implemented in phases by licence class, and designed to embed cultures of accountability, adaptability, and sustainable value creation.

Though implementation of the guidelines will begin next year, he said NCC would continue to engage with the stakeholders in the industry on how best to implement the guide lines  without issues.

While presenting his paper the CEO of the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI), Dr Armstrong Takang, said Nigeria’s economy could only be revived if all MDAs and private firms uphold good corporate governance.