The Nigeria Communications Commissions (NCC) has approved 1,492 mobile phone models and brands for Nigerians. The phones were among the few gadgets that passed the Type Approval Standards test of the commission.
There are 146 million mobile phones used in Nigeria. The gadget has one of the most viable markets and the most significant influx of foreign players and investors.
However, amidst the growth and production of new mobile gadgets in this market, there is also the issue of poorly assembled mobile phones, fake devices, and accessories in the market.
The need to curb the production of cheap phones in the country spurred NCC’s approval of the 1,492 phone brands.
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An in-depth review of this list shows that though there were 1,492 phones on the list, a more substantial chunk of mobile launched between 2018- 2019 was not listed. Some of the gadgets not listed include iPhones 8 through iPhone11, Huawei mate 30, etc.
The list also poised some popular phones like Tecno, Samsung, iPhones, Oppo, Nokia, and Blackberry as fake.
The Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Prof Umar Danbatta, has lauded the effort of the commission to approve quality phones for Nigerians. Danbatta noted that the decision was in a bid to safeguard users from purchasing fake phones.
He, however, urged customers to refer to the commission’s website and double-check the list of approved phones before they purchase any phone.
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