By Ben Agande

Kaduna—Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communication Commission, NCC, Professor Umar Danbatta, has called on security operatives to embrace information and communications technology, ICT, as it plays a pivotal role in guaranteeing national security.

•Prof Umar Garba Danbatta

He spoke in Kaduna as a guest lecturer at Nigerian Defence Academy, NDA, Kaduna.

According to Danbatta, despite the slow start of internet and ICT usage in the country, it has been on the increase in recent times.

He said as at May, the volume of communication, through voice technology in Nigeria had reached 163 million active lines.

The NCC boss said as part of its contribution to ensuring security in the country, the commission is working towards establishing a Cyber Security Incidence Response Team, CSIRT, for the telecommunication sector to “facilitate intervention, identification of threat and sharing of valuable information and resources to help in fortifying national security.

“ICT infrastructure  and systems are becoming very useful in producing intelligence information and reports that could be very essential and invaluable in the task of thwarting and combating crime.

“The deployment of ICT infrastructure has transformed our society in spectacular ways by enabling profound social and economic transformation.

“ICT is progressively influencing all aspects of our systems, institutions, processes and services, particularly in key sector such as education, finance, commerce, governance, security and health.”