Inside the Long, Painful Fall of NITEL and ntel’s Shot at Redemption
Once a symbol of Nigeria’s technological aspirations, the Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) became a cautionary tale of inefficiency and unrealized potential. From its inception, marred by structural issues and significant layoffs, to its eventual collapse, NITEL’s journey highlights the challenges of state-owned enterprises in the telecom sector. Now, its successor, ntel, faces an uphill battle for relevance as the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) seeks to restructure it, hoping to attract new investment and salvage what remains.
# A Flawed Foundation
NITEL’s creation in 1985, through the amalgamation of the telecommunications division of Post & Telegraph (P&T) and Nigerian External Communications (NET), was problematic from the outset. According to Chief Ezekiel Fatoye, former Executive Director at NITEL and Multi-Links, the merger was inherently unstable. The vastly different staff sizes of NET (1,500 employees) and P&T (31,000 employees), coupled with a mandate to reduce the combined workforce to under 17,000, resulted in massive layoffs. This early instability set a negative tone for the organization and contributed to the challenges it would later face.
NITEL’s story serves as a reminder of the complexities involved in building and maintaining robust telecommunications infrastructure in Nigeria. Whether ntel can rise from the ashes of its predecessor remains to be seen, but AMCON’s restructuring efforts represent a final gamble to unlock the potential that once defined NITEL’s initial promise.
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