NIGCOMSAT to connect local councils with Internet

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have received a boost with more commitments from nations. Parts of the commitments will see Nigerian Communications Satellite Systems (NIGCOMSAT) connecting the 774 local government areas of the country to Internet.

International Telecommunication Union (ITU), which revealed this at the weekend, noted that countries, including Nigeria and other global voices representing diverse sectors of society, gathered at the SDG Digital: “A Digital Future for All” at at UN Headquarters to showcase digital solutions and announced new commitments to realise a brighter digital future.

Organised by the ITU and the UN Development Programme (UNDP), SDG Digital is central to ongoing efforts to leverage digital innovation for achieving the SDGs.

ITU Secretary-General, Doreen Bogdan-Martin, said: “We created SDG Digital to show the world the power of digital. The commitments and solutions on display during the digital track of the UN Summit of the Future Action Days send a powerful message to the world that we will do what’s necessary to rescue the SDGs and build a better digital future for all, now and for generations to come.”

At the SDG Digital, the programme’s Advisory Group, with members from government, industry and UN agencies, highlighted 17 game-changing digital solutions demonstrating how a more sustainable, inclusive, and responsible future – the vision of a “A Digital Future for All” – can be achieved.

A global survey conducted as part of SDG Digital to expand the conversation beyond the United Nations event reinforced the importance of digital technologies to ensure a sustainable future.

ITU revealed that there were new investments to connect hard-to-reach communities as part of Partner2Connect (P2C). It revealed that SDG Digital pledges rose to $1.05 billion for investments in connectivity, infrastructure and skills, adding that separate pledges from the global South – coming from Brazil and Nigeria – accounted for $1 billion.