BY Mary Ugbodaga
Abdulrahman AbdulRazaq (pictured), the governor of Kwara state, has slashed the right of way (RoW) charges for telecommunications firms from N5,500 per linear metre to N1 per kilometre of fibre.
This means that Kwara state has the lowest RoW charges after Kaduna where the charges have been scrapped.
The state government announced its decision in a statement signed by Murtala Olanrewaju, its commissioner for communication, on Sunday.
The RoW charge is the levy paid to state governments for laying of optic fibre on state roads.
At present, the cost of RoW on federal roads is N142 per linear metre.
The Kwara state government said the decision to slash RoW was reached to deepen digital penetration in Kwara; to jerk up the state’s ease of doing business ratings, and improve access to the internet and other digital communication even in the remotest part of the state.
“Apart from driving up investment in the sector, the long-term effects of this significant step such as strengthening access to digital communications and bringing more businesses to the hinterlands cannot be quantified,” the statement read.
In January, Isa Pantami, the minister of communication and digital economy, had urged state governments to reduce RoW charges so that telcos would not transfer costs to customers.
Asides Kwara state, Ekiti, Kaduna, Imo, Plateau and Katsina states have also reduced RoW charges.
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