The Federal Government of Nigeria has announced ban in the importation of subscriber identity module (SIM) cards.

This was made known by the minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami at an event in Oniru, Lagos on Monday 1st of August 2022.

The minister while speaking at the Nigerian Telecommunications Indigenous Content Expo (NTICE) organized by the Nigeria Office for Developing Indigenous Telecoms Sector (NODITS) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) said Africa’s biggest country should not be importing things that could be produced within.

Notable Quotes:

In his words, “Let me make it clear that the federal government will no longer tolerate the importation of sim cards. We are now producing them in Nigeria.”

Pantami noted:

“Our aim is to increase indigenous content in the ICT sector so that by 2025, we will be self-reliant by at least 80 percent.”

He urged stakeholders and citizens to support government efforts to boost local patronage and consumption.

He added:

“If we do this, history will be kind to all of us.”

Recall that in June, Pantami informed the public that the Buhari administration had established a SIM card manufacturing plant in Lagos.

The facility, built with private sector support, has the capacity to produce 200 million cards annually and also export them to other African countries.