The Ekiti Government on Friday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with O’odua Infraco Resources Ltd. to lay a 606-kilometre broadband infrastructure in the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the development came barely a week after the governor signed an Executive Order reducing the Right of Way charges from N4,500 to N145 per metre.
Gov. Kayode Fayemi, during the signing of the MoU in Ado- Ekiti, explained that the move was in line with his administration’s commitment to the promotion of a knowledge economy.
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The governor said that the reduction in the cost of laying fibre in the state had already generated healthy competition in the ICT sector.
He said that the project would open up significant opportunities, attract new businesses and enhance quality healthcare service delivery as well as digital education.
The governor said that the initiative would not only turn Ekiti into a digital hub but also a destination of choice for domestic and international technology companies.
Fayemi said the broadband policy would be coordinated by a Digital Infrastructural Committee made up of various relevant government institutions critical to the implementation of the initiative.
“For us, the roadmap is first the fibre connectivity itself, the second is the adequate data centre infrastructure, the third is the e-learning programme which will cover our educational institutions, then our safe city, our security programme will also be included.
“Our Geographical land Information System (GIS), we would digitalise all our land record; of course, commercial investment as well as digitalisation of our government assets and our health education initiative,” he said.
The project, expected to be completed in 14 months according to the Managing Director of O’odua Infraco Resources Limited, Mr Sammy Adigun, would be officially flagged off in October 2019.
The Commissioner for Infrastructure and Public Utilities, Mr Bamidele Faparusi, who also spoke at the event, announced the readiness of the state government to provide additional incentives to the communication industry.
This, he said, was in line with its timeline on development goals, especially the knowledge economy.
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