Mafab Communications, which was declared one of the winners of 5G-suitable 3.5GHz spectrum in December last year, has received a five month rollout extension from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
This Day quotes the regulator as saying that the decision to extend Mafab’s deadline from the original 24 August date was due to delays in granting the operator a unified access service licence (UASL), which is also required to launch services. The other winner of 5G spectrum – MTN Nigeria – already holds an operating licence and therefore has not received the same rollout extension from the NCC.
‘The 5G licence comes with a frequency licence and not an operational licence. So Mafab only has a frequency licence and does not have an operational licence and it needs to apply for a telecom operational licence to enable it roll out 5G services and other telecom services. The five months extension will enable Mafab to process its telecom operational licence,’ commented Reuben Muoka, Director of Public Affairs at the NCC. In a statement, Mafab said it aims to launch services before the five month extension period and added that it would share more information in the near future.
Source: https://www.commsupdate.com/articles/2022/08/22/mafab-receives-5g-rollout-extension-from-ncc/
