The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has issued a warning to traders and other stakeholders regarding non-approved telecom devices being imported into the Nigerian market from unapproved sources.
Non-approved telecom equipment are known to compromise network service quality.
The certification of telecom devices used in the telecom sector is one of the NCC’s objectives as contained in the Nigerian Communications Act (2003), the primary goal of which is the “protection of the rights and interests of consumers.”
Deputy Director Consumer Affairs Bureau, Dr. Emilia Nwokoro who spoke for the Executive Vice of the NCC, Prof. Umar Danbatta, at the 5th edition of Market Conversation, a telecom consumer outreach programme of NCC, which took place recently at the GSM Village in Abuja, said the event was part of the sensitization efforts of the Commission to address the issue.
She informed them that the procedure for approval of telecom devices has been established by the Commission, and all type approved devices have been published on the NCC website for public and user reference. Therefore, traders should take advantage of this information to identify type approved against none type approved phone devices.
The Chairman, GSM Village Market, Abuja, Macdonald Ajuogu, said the market union has a task force that monitors the types and standards of devices sold there, and that the association has also put measures in place to deal with any member that goes against their rules.
Ajuogu thanked the NCC for taking the time to educate the traders about the dangers of buying or selling non-type approved devices. He also made a commitment on behalf of the traders to follow the commission’s guidelines by double-checking the list of certified and type approved devices on the NCC’s website to avoid penalties.
