The Economic and Social Benefits of ICT Policies In Nigeria,Sylvester Ozioma Anie

An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) policy is an official statement which spells out the objectives, goals, principles, strategies, etc intended to guide and regulate the development, operation and application of ICT. ICT policies must take into account other policies such as education policies, trade and investment policies, foreign policy, monetary policy, transport policy, etc. The need for ICT policies has been recognized by the African administrators. The PANAFTEL network concept was endorsed in 1976. The PANAFTEL coordinating committee was established in 1973 to mobilize the resources necessary for the establishment of the system and to implement the network speedily (This period coincide with the ITT contract). By 1982 a basic telecommunications infrastructure had been constructed within Africa, allowing intra-African telecom traffic, largely avoiding the previous long, complex and very expensive transit routes through Europe. By the end of 1982, 67 routes between African countries were available by using Intel sat satellite circuits.