By Nkechi Eze
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has applauded the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, for championing initiatives aimed at equipping young Nigerians, particularly girls, with digital knowledge and skills to thrive in the technology-driven future.
According to an official signed statement by the Director of Public Affairs at the NCC, Nnenna Ukoha, the commendation was made during an educational tour of the National Communications Museum in Abuja by 185 contestants of the 2026 National Girls in ICT (NG-ICT) Competition.
Speaking during the visit, the Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, represented by the Director of Research and Development, Babagana Digima, said the programme aligns with the Commission’s commitment to promoting digital literacy and inclusion across the country.
The contestants, selected from the six geo-political zones by the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, are participating in the competition designed to encourage greater involvement of girls in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and other Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines.
The museum visit formed part of activities under the National Girls in ICT Programme, a ministerial initiative aimed at bridging the gender gap in the technology sector through digital skills development, mentorship opportunities and exposure to innovation.
Maida explained that the tour was designed to connect the younger generation with Nigeria’s telecommunications heritage, enabling them to appreciate the sector’s transformation from analogue systems to the digital age.
During the excursion, NCC officials guided the students through exhibits and historical artefacts chronicling major milestones in Nigeria’s telecommunications evolution. He noted that understanding the industry’s history would inspire the participants to contribute meaningfully to future technological advancements.
“The whole idea behind this is that we are looking at the younger generation. We want to show them what communication is all about. This place is a museum meant to preserve the history of what has gone before and to keep the artefacts, ensuring that people see the evolution from the postal system to telegraphy, from analogue systems to the digital era,” he said.
“This is essentially what we are showing them in the shortest amount of time and, of course, to excite the curiosity of the young ones. When they see what happened in the past and how it has progressed into the future, they can also take it up from here and think about what it will look like going forward. That is the whole essence of having them here.”
The students were taken through the history of Nigeria’s telecommunications development, beginning with the establishment of the country’s earliest communication facilities in 1886 during the colonial era. They also learned about the development of telegraph services that linked Lagos to other parts of West Africa and Europe through submarine cable connections.
The tour further highlighted the state of telecommunications at Independence in 1960, when Nigeria had only 18,724 telephone lines serving a population of about 40 million people. Participants were also briefed on post-independence development plans, the operations of the former Department of Posts and Telecommunications (P&T), Nigerian External Telecommunications (NET) Limited, and the establishment of Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) in 1985.
A major attraction during the visit was the display of rare historical artefacts preserved at the museum. These included a Post Office Counter dating back to 1852, Sorting Racks introduced to Lagos in the same year, the Grand “T” Key used at the Lagos Post Office in the nineteenth century, leather mail bags dating back to 1863, telegram machines, teleprinters, cordless PBX systems, digital card phones and several other items that illustrate the remarkable evolution of communications technology in Nigeria.
The NCC said initiatives such as the National Girls in ICT Programme remain critical to nurturing a new generation of innovators and leaders capable of driving Nigeria’s expanding digital economy.
