By Bashir Mohammed
Kano
Executive Director, Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD), Malam Yunusa Zakari Yau, has described slow internet service as responsible for the mass failure recorded during the recent JAMB exams.
Speaking to newsmen on the occasion of the launch of the campaign #SwiftandCheapNet in Kano yesterday, Yau said slow speed had many implications one of which was seen during the JAMB examination as candidates were auto-timed to respond to questions.
Yau said Nigerians’ access to internet was not only slow but costly, making it difficult for many people to afford it, adding that internet service providers in the country often hardly keep to any quality of service agreements.
He said the regulator itself was not proactive in the absence of sufficient demand from the public for faster and more affordable internet access in the country.
He, however, said current statistics showed that by February, this year, there were over 214,234052 connected lines in the country, of which 210,202453 were GSM out of which only 148,620359 were active and that 146,288,370 were GSM.
He posited that Data from the International Telecommunication Union also showed that Internet penetration stood at 42.68% meaning that the vast majority of Nigerians do have access to the internet, lamenting that the majority of Nigerians relied on slow speed from GSM.
The CITAD boss maintained that both speed and affordability were shaped by available internet infrastructure and the protectiveness of the regulatory agencies, affirming that government was still yet to demonstrate commitment to ensure that Nigerians have access to high speed internet.
He further revealed that it was the function of the media and other stakeholders to join the crusade of making internet services in the country cheaper and affordable through consistent enlightenment and creation of awareness for service providers to take prompt action.
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