Profile of Aminu Maida, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) new boss

Profile: Aminu Maida – New Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC)

President Bola Tinubu orchestrated a significant industry-wide reformation, resulting in multiple strategic appointments and the departure of three key executives from parastatals under the Ministry of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy.

One of the eminent appointments is that of Aminu Maida, now serving as the new Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

Career Record: Aminu Maida is a highly accomplished technical professional with a rich career spanning over 15 years, encompassing diverse roles in FinTech, Telecoms, and Enterprise Technology. Before his current position, Maida held the position of Executive Director, Technology and Operations at Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc (NIBSS), a pivotal central switch company owned by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and all licensed Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in Nigeria.

Prior to his tenure at NIBSS, Aminu served as the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at Arca Payments Network, a prominent Nigerian-based FinTech company. He also garnered invaluable experience as a Senior Manager at Cisco Systems UK. During 2010-2014, Maida worked as a Network Design Consultant at EE, a major mobile communications company in the UK and part of the BT Group. Earlier in his career (2006-2010), he was a System Engineer at Ubiquisys, a leading company in intelligent 3G and LTE small cells, now an integral part of Cisco.

Academic Qualifications: A distinguished academic, Maida earned an MEng in Information Systems Engineering from Imperial College London in 2002. In 2006, he obtained a PhD in Electrical & Electronic Engineering from the University of Bath, UK. Furthermore, between 2018 and 2019, he completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Entrepreneurship (FinTech Pathway) program at the prestigious Cambridge Judge Business School.

Endorsements and Acclaim: Aminu Maida’s professional acumen and leadership have been commended by peers and colleagues. A former work colleague, Jon Webb-Peploe, expressed praise for Maida’s technical expertise and strong dedication to user-centric solutions. Webb-Peploe highlighted Maida’s exceptional technical skills, commercial awareness, and substantial experience, projecting him as a leader in the field.

Challenges and Vision: Appointed from outside the Nigerian telecom industry, Aminu Maida, with his extensive experience in telecom operations, steps into the role amid ongoing projects within the NCC. Key among these is the imperative task of executing the Nigeria National Broadband Plan (NNBP 2020-2025), a challenge exacerbated by declining penetration rates. With a bold target of achieving 70% broadband penetration by 2025 and current rates at 45.57%, Maida is under scrutiny to meet these targets while addressing pressing telecom issues like subpar quality of service and dwindling investments in the sector.

Aminu Maida is poised to lead the NCC into a new era, leveraging his vast experience and technical prowess to drive the telecommunications industry towards enhanced efficiency, widespread accessibility, and technological advancement.