Minister, stakeholders affirm Health Safety of 5G

….As Senate holds public hearing

The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, has allayed the fears of Nigerians on the deployment of Fifth Generation (5G) technology in Nigeria, clarifying that there is no known scientific evidence till date suggesting that 5G poses any risks to public health and safety.

Pantami stated this when he led the heads of agencies under his ministry to an investigative public hearing by the Senate Joint Committee on Communications; Science and Technology; Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and Cyber Crimes; and Primary Health Care and Communicable Diseases, at the National Assembly Chamber in Abuja on Thursday, February 25, 2021.

The heads of agencies under the ministry, who were present at the hearing include the Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Danbatta; Director-General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Abdullahi and the Managing Director of Nigerian Communications Satellites Limited (NigComSat), Dr. Abimbola Alale.

Speaking at the public hearing, Pantami eloquently affirmed the findings from independent scientific reports published by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the World Health Organisation (WHO), both agencies of the United Nations (UN), which clearly indicate that there is no health risks to human lives associated with the deployment of 5G.

The Minister said after the initial approval by the President which led to the commencement, in 2019 of 5G trial in selected locations in the country and subsequent intervention of the National Assembly in 2020, seeking clarifications on probable health risks of 5G deployment, the Ministry had so far undertaken wide-ranging stakeholder consultations to ascertain the safety of 5G networks.

Pantami explained that, having aligned with the ITU and WHO reports and studied 5G…