In order to combat e-fraud, the NCC is collaborating with West African telecom regulators
In order to combat e-fraud, the NCC is collaborating with West African telecom regulators
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and other telecoms regulators are working together under the auspices of the West African Telecoms Regulators Assembly (WATRA) to develop technical and regulatory modalities aimed at combating the growing wave of electronic fraud and standardizing regional roaming tariffs in the sub-region.
The meeting, which took place at the Rockview Hotel in Abuja on Tuesday, October 26, 2021, was organized by WATRA in collaboration with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and had as its central theme the promotion of women's empowerment.
A number of key participants and stakeholders discussed how to create a unified market for telecommunications services in West Africa, combat roaming and cyber-related fraud, and achieve roaming tariff standardisation across ECOWAS member countries at the meeting. Telecom regulators from across West Africa were in attendance.
Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman of the National Communications Commission and Chairman of the WATRA, addressed stakeholders at the meeting and emphasized the importance of the meeting by emphasizing that as businesses move online, fraudsters are following suit.
As a result, Danbatta, who was represented by Bako Wakil, the National Communications Commission's Director of Technical Standards and Network Integrity, stated that in light of this fact, regulators must work to tame and outpace fraudsters in order to instill confidence in West African citizens and businesses so that they can fully exploit the enormous benefits of information and communications technology (ICT).
According to Danbatta, "our ambition is to formalize informal trade, including agricultural commodities and to increase intra-regional trade, which necessitates us strengthening our collaboration in the fight against electronic fraud."
Danbatta informed the delegates at the forum that electronic fraud is a global phenomenon, and not just an African or West African problem, as previously thought. A study conducted by the European Commission found that 54% of EU-consumers believe they are most likely to come across misleading/deceptive/fraudulent advertisements or offers on the Internet.
Specifically, with regard to regional roaming, the WATRA Chairman stated that the Assembly envisions a "Electronic ECOWAS," where improved sub-regional roaming regulation can aid in the integration of regional economies.
"Having the ability to call contacts in other ECOWAS countries and the ability to use their data subscriptions without incurring additional charges while traveling or conducting business within the region will be beneficial to our citizens, traders, and businesses. As a result, lowering and eventually eliminating the cost of roaming will have a significant impact on the growth of regional trade in the long run "Danbatta shared his thoughts.
The EVC expressed satisfaction with the level of collaboration between the sub-national region's regulatory authorities on the one hand, and between WATRA and ECOWAS on the other, describing such synergy as a strong indicator of progress and the internalisation of best global practices on both sides of the continent.
"In particular, I am pleased to see the excellent collaboration and workload sharing that exists between the telecommunications body and personnel from ECOWAS and WATRA. ECOWAS has developed legislative frameworks that are complementary and mutually reinforcing, with WATRA coordinating information sharing, dialogue, and knowledge dissemination among regulatory authorities. Eventually, it will be a well-structured symphony "He went on to say more.
Before that, Aliyu Aboki, Executive Secretary of WATRA, emphasized the importance of a trusted digital economy to any nation in his remarks at the beginning of his speech. His argument was supported by a study conducted by Accenture, which concluded that "a trusted digital economy would stimulate 2.8 percent additional growth for large firms, with new transactions totaling $5.2 trillion in economic value creation," thereby justifying the establishment of national and regional anti-fraud committees and their operationalization, respectively.
Aboki praised ECOWAS for "enabling this regional sharing of the enormous task of building Digital ECOWAS to function extremely well through WATRA, which is a regional manifestation of this collaborative structure," and for "enabling this regional sharing of the enormous task of building Digital ECOWAS to function extremely well through WATRA." It was reiterated by the WATRA Chief that the organization, which serves as a regional regulatory collaboration mechanism, will work cooperatively and expeditiously to ensure that its vision is realized by ensuring that no nation in the region is left behind.
While e-fraud in the provision of communication services has always been a shared concern among ECOWAS member countries, Dr. Raphael Koffi, Acting Director, Digital Economy and Post at the organization's headquarters, noted that disparities in termination rates agreed in commercial roaming agreements have also posed a barrier to roaming tariff harmonization, which WATRA and ECOWAS collaboration is set to achieve.
Participants were kept up-to-date on a variety of topics, including the status of the SIIT implementation in ECOWAS countries and the establishment of a uniform tariff cap for roaming call termination in the ECOWAS region, among other things.
