BUHARIMETER: STARLINK LAUNCH, AS BUHARI CLAIMS 100% BROADBAND PENETRATION

Broadband is the transfer of high bandwidth of data over high-speed internet connection, it is a high-capacity transmission technique using a wide range of frequencies, which enables a large number of messages to be communicated simultaneously. Broadband infrastructure is necessary for technological and economic growth. A study by Delloitte In the United States saw that a 10 percentage-point increase in broadband penetration in 2016 would have resulted in more than 806,000 additional jobs in 2019, or an average annual increase of 269,000 jobs.

Also a frequently cited World Bank study found that low-income and middle-income countries experienced “about a 1.38 percentage point increase in GDP for each 10 percent increase in [broadband] penetration” between 2000 and 2006. The World Bank further found that the development impact of broadband on emerging economies is greater than for high-income countries, which “enjoyed a 1.21 percentage point increase in per capita GDP growth” per 10 percent increase in broadband penetration. The study also demonstrates that broadband has a potentially higher growth effect than other ICTs, including wireline telephony, mobile telephony and the Internet. An increase in broadband penetration would further boost Nigeria’s nascent e-commerce and financial technology sector which has been a key driver of employment in recent years. It is for these important reasons that the President Muhammadu Buhari led administration pledged to make broadband a critical infrastructure, thereby bridging the digital divide and increasing the overall broad band penetration and coverage.

On February 2, 2023 President Buhari stated  in a tweet that “With this deployment of Starlink, we now have 100 per cent broadband penetration in Nigeria”. This announcement indicates that Nigeria has achieved 100% broadband coverage and not 100% penetration, as penetration is the number of subscriptions to fixed and mobile broadband services divided by the number of residents in the country which still stands at 47 per cent as at December 2022 according to data from the International Telecommunication Union(ITU) which is still less penetration than Egypt and South Africa with 77% and 116% respectively.

Based on the New National Broadband Plan (NNBP) 2020-2025, the Federal Government projects an ambitious broadband penetration target of 70 per cent by 2025. Although Nigeria is currently 23 per cent short of meeting the target, the deployment and commencement of Starlink operation in Nigeria has improved the broadband profile of Nigeria in term of availability and speed of broadband connection. We rate this, "Promise Kept”.

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