For us to achieve digital economy, prices of mobile services must drop ― Pantami

The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Pantami has again reiterated the plans of the government to drop the high cost of data and other telecoms services.

The Minister who spoke recently at a media parley with journalists said the plans of the government to digitize the economy could be jeopardized by the high cost of telecoms and mobile services.

The minister stated that the government is not telling Nigerians to migrate into the digital economy to tax them unnecessarily. He, however, stressed that the price of data and mobile devices must come down for the digital economy to thrive.

Pantami, however, assured Nigerians that measures had been put in place to achieve digital literacy in the country within the next few years.

He also noted that implementation of the digital economy had long begun on the recently approved National Digital Economic Policy and Strategy by the Federal Executive Council.

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Pantami further assured Nigerians that the government was working with all telecommunications stakeholders and other relevant agencies to regulate taxation that could affect inclusiveness in the sector.

“We are not telling Nigerians to migrate into the digital economy in order to start taxing them unnecessarily.

“The price of data, mobile devices must come down for the digital economy to thrive. We have paid toll before stepping on the roads.

“That is why whenever an agenda comes up trying to unnecessarily start taxing online activities, we usually challenge it.

“It is very important to make it very favourable because if you come up with unnecessary taxation, most importantly at the initial stage or towards the implementation, people will just pull out”, the Minister said.

He said the idea behind the resolve to implement the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy without hitches was to support the government’s non-oil economic development and sustainable growth.