ITR is the rate paid to local operators by international operators to terminate calls in Nigeria. The NCC had informed in June of the plan to introduce a new price after it must have conducted a cost-based study on the new determination.
NCC, in a document released yesterday, titled ‘Determination of Mobile (Voice) International Termination Rate Issued by the Nigerian Communications Commission on this 25th day of November 2021’, said the current regime of interconnection rates was sustained by the Commission’s Mobile (Voice) Termination Rate issued on June 1, 2018.
According to NCC, it was stated that the ITR of N24.40 determined in 2016 will continue to apply until a new determination is made.
As such, it noted that prior to the new determination, the ITR being denominated in naira had multiple negative impacts on operators, that was worsened by a series of devaluation of the naira, which ultimately left Nigeria from being a net receiver of international minutes to a net payer.
Based on this development, NCC said operators continued to face a series of challenges occasioned by the denomination of ITR in naira, necessitating a need for a cost-based study on ITR.
NCC said in fulfillment of its statutory mandate of periodic review of regulatory policies, it engaged Messrs’ Payday Advance and Support Services Limited to undertake a cost-based study of Mobile (Voice) ITR that is most suitable for the Nigerian telecommunications industry.
NCC said, for transparency, it convened an initial stakeholder forum, which held virtually on September 10, 2020, before arriving at the new rate. The Commission said the meeting was attended by all relevant operators within the mobile voice market segment and provided an opportunity for the consultant – Messrs Payday Advance Services Limited – to gain a clear understanding of the regulatory issues and the current market situation in Nigeria concerning ITR, operator costs and subscriber statistics.
The new determination showed, among others, that the ITR for voice services paid by overseas carriers for terminating international calls on local networks in Nigeria shall be $0.045; the $0.045 is the floor price for ITR services; the ITR will be paid in dollars and operators will receive an increasing rate in naira terms should devaluation continue.
NCC said the MTRs of N3.90 (for generic 2G/3G/4G operators) and N4.70 (for new entrant operators) determined in 2018 will continue to apply for local call terminations until a new determination is made by the Commission.
Source: Guardian
