THE Lagos State Government has pledged to remove barriers that hindered the development of telecommunications infrastructure in the state.

The pledge was contained in a memorandum of understanding (MoU) reached between the state government and the Association of Licensed Telecommunication Operators of Nigeria (ALTCON).

The State Commissioner for Science and Technology, Biyi Mabadeje, noted that the MOU with telecoms operators was necessary in demonstrating the state's resolve to encourage development in the telecommunications sector.

The commissioners said the MoU addressed such as Right of Way (RoW), multiple taxation and regulation and vandalism, which were major constraints to operators.

He said that the state government would henceforth corporate with telecoms operators to mitigate the challenges hindering the roll-out of facilities in the state.

“This memorandum is a demonstration of our commitment to telecoms services development in this state. To this end, we have slash the approval fee for RoW approvals by 85 percent to allow operators build quality network for effective service deliver for the benefit of Lagosians,” he said.

Commending the state government for the gesture, ALTCOM Chairman, Gbenga Adebayo said that telecoms operators would ensure that Lagos enjoyed an unprecedented telecoms services delivery.

“Lagos will experience the best quality of service in telecommunications service delivery in the country within the next 6 to 12 months. This will make Lagos will become a smart city,” he said.

Adebayo noted that the major problem of quality of service is deployment of infrastructure and that by the agreement the Association signed with Lagos State, the state has shown that development of telecommunications infrastructure assist in economic development.

He hinted that the MoU allows Lagos state to be apart owners of telecommunications infrastructure deployed in the state and also ensure a more healthy relationship between operators and Lagos state government.

He noted that the agreement had given telecom infrastructure first layer of protection by the state government, eliminate multiple approval in the state as all the necessary approvals had been streamlined.

“We have also agreed to co-share infrastructure and to deploy the most modern equipment in our network upgrade required to make the city a smart city it is aspiring to become,” he said.