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ABUJA. — Nigeria says the country will achieve the 30 percent national broadband penetration by 2018 as projected in the country’s National Broadband Plan.The Minister of Communications Adebayo Shittu, disclosed this when he featured at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja.

Shittu said the country had so far achieved between 18 to 20 percent penetration as a result of private sector initiatives.

The minister said government was encouraging all GSM and ICT companies to invest in the communication sector to expand the broadband penetration.

He said the government was also encouraging a number of initiatives, including foreign companies coming to invest in the country, who had expressed interest.

“I have had the privilege of attending a number of international platforms where I met a lot of them as the chief marketer of the industry.

“The ministry of communications is not into business, government has no business in business, what the ministry does is to provide an enabling environment for operators and industry entrepreneurs to be encouraged to invest.

“When I say entrepreneur, it is not only Nigerian entrepreneurs even the foreign entrepreneurs.

“Already, the rate at which we are now, we are about 18 to 20 percent penetration and all of this is mostly as a result of private sector initiative. — NAN/The Guardian.