By implication, Anambra appears to be the first state in the Southeast to implement the waiver of the per linear metreRoW charges, as opposed to the N145 per linear metre recommended by the National Economic Council in 2020.
In a chat with Information and Communication Technology (ICT) journalists in Lagos, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Anambra State Information and Communication Technology Agency, Chukwuemeka Fred Agbata, said the move is in line with the ‘Everything Technology and Technology Everywhere’ vision of Governor Charles Soludo.
According to him, the ICT agency, in partnership with GICL, has deployed about 200 kilometres of fibre optic cables in the first phase, targeted at Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the government, schools and other clusters.
Agbata said that Soludo has demonstrated huge interest in deploying modern strategies to eliminate bottlenecks to digital access by reversing infrastructure decline in the state.
He said this will boost WiFi hotspot rollout to government offices, schools and communities to diversify the economy, leveraging digital services for eGovernment, commerce, education and innovation.
The ICT agency boss added that implementation of the RoW charges removal by the state is the first step to a digital economy that will encourage key investors, innovators and businesses to the state.
“Soludo has always demonstrated determination to turn Anambra into a digitally driven economy. The broadband drive is one of the many ways to do it. At the same time, it connects to other plans. Without connectivity eGovernment programmes would become a mirage.
“Africa’s digital landscape is changing at a rapid rate and Anambra State is no different. The governor approved the implementation of the zero charges on Right of Way because he understands that the benefits are enormous. We are partnering with GICL that is giving us a lot of connectivity capacity, which we are hopeful will leapfrog the state’s digital economy agenda.”
