The introduction of 5G technology, according to Mrs. Lynda Saint-Nwafor, Chief Enterprise Business Officer at MTN Nigeria, will boost operational efficiencies for enterprises in the nation.
Saint-Nwafor made the claim at the August breakfast meeting of the Nigeria-South Africa Chamber of Commerce (NSACC) in Lagos.
MTN reportedly revealed intentions to roll out the 5G trial service in seven locations on Wednesday, including Lagos, Port Harcourt, Ibadan, Abuja, Kano, Maiduguri, and Owerri.
According to Saint-Nwafor, six important industries—manufacturing, government, energy/utilities, healthcare, media/entertainment, and transportation/logistics—account for 90% of the addressable market for 5G.
She claimed that 5G offered complete independence from the public network, high and reserved capacity, improved indoor and outdoor coverage, a high level of security, and tight control over access to service infrastructure tools, systems, and services for enterprises.
She claimed that 5G was created with enhanced speed, low latency, higher capacity, and innovation to connect practically everyone and everything together, including machines, objects, and devices.
She stated that the usage of artificial intelligence for decision-making, smart workspaces, and high connectivity via 5G were crucial to the success of businesses in the future.
“5G is poised to offer innovation that would change our lives.
“It would engender smart manufacturing, smart metering and maintenance, smart cities, better route and traffic management, enhanced experience and breakthrough in tele-health.
“Particularly for manufacturing, it would enable automation for production and factory operations, allow remote monitoring and inspection, reduce operational costs and drive competitiveness,” she said.
As the fifth generation of mobile wireless technology and the follow-up to 4G, Mr. Osayaba Giwa-Osagie, Chairman, NSACC, highlighted the 5G network as the future of business and technology in his remarks.
Giwa-Osagie claimed that 5G offers the capacity and speed, among other technical elements, needed to operate a profitable business.
He emphasized the necessity for companies to start considering the effect it might have on their operations and use its potential to increase efficiency.
The NSACC Chairman observed that since the COVID-19 epidemic, the dynamics of the world had significantly altered, with people and organizations becoming more dependent on technology, leading to remote employment, more online meetings, and an increase in e-commerce operations.
He emphasized that, given the state of the world today, it was safe to conclude that technology was redefining it, which had pushed adoption to the fore.
“It is, therefore, important for companies to embrace 5G for operational efficiencies as new demand would lead to changes.
“5G is expected to impact businesses from agriculture to entertainment to manufacturing and a host of other sectors.
“It is fast, reliable and enhances productivity at remote locations among others,” he said.
