LAGOS, SEPTEMBER 5, 2016 – The Chairman, Internet Protocol Version Six (IPv6) Council, Mr Mohammed Rudman says Nigeria is rated the first in Africa and seventh in the use of the internet in the world.
Rudman made the disclosure during the inauguration of IPv6 Council Communications and Advocacy Committee in Lagos on Monday.
He, however, said that Nigeria needed to migrate to IPV6 to maintain its position in Africa and move higher in the global ranking.
An Internet Protocol (IP) address is essentially a postal address for each and every Internet-connected device.
Without one, websites will not know where to send the information each time a person performs a search or try to access a website.
IPv6 is the most recent version of IP, the communications protocol that provides an identification and location system for computers on networks and routes traffic across the internet.
Rudman decried the low level of IPv6 ready networks, as well as usage in Nigeria, even as the country occupied first and seventh positions in internet usage in Africa and the world respectively.
“We do not want Nigeria to be left behind in the migration to IPv6, this is why we need to step up the awareness and advocacy campaign.
“The campaign will ensure that Internet Service Providers (ISPs), telecommunications operators, banks, educational institutions, among others migrate to IPv6, ‘’ he said.
According to him, the low level of uptake of IPv6 in the country is due to lack of technical know-how, core equipment compatibility issues, lack of IPv6 upstream service providers in the country and non-requests from end users, among others.
He said that for the use of IPv6 to grow in the country, there should be IPv6 awareness and capacity building, through organising seminars, trainings, and even incorporating IPv6 into university curriculum.
Rudman stressed the need to provide some profit incentives to the Internet Industry to encourage them to adopt IPv6 based Infrastructure.
He said that these incentives could include reduction in regulatory fee and tax rebates.
The IPv6 Council Chairman said that the committee was inaugurated as part of the efforts to ensure that Nigerian networks migrated to the internet protocol in good time.
Responding, the Chairman of the Committee, Mr Remmy Nweke, said that advocacy was pertinent because Nigerians were already tired of hearing the country leapfrogging to catch up with the rest of the world, even in Africa, following the clear depletion of IPv4.
“When the IPv6 Council Nigeria was given birth to after series of discussions, especially with the global IPv6 Forum led by Mr Latif Ladid,
I had no doubt we are making progress but slowly.
“Let us up our games and wear our IPv6 swimming suits, by way of embracing the 21st century IP concept, which is IPv6, so as to learn and impact our generation as we move along.
“I wish to assure that this committee will do everything possible to promote IPv6 in Nigeria and in the sub region, as well as the continent and world at large, ‘’he said.
Other members of the committee included: Mr Bayero Agabi, Mr Chike Onwuegbuchi, Mrs Nahimah Ajikanle Nurudeen Nurudeen and Mr Martin Ekpeke.
Part of the mandate of the committee is to assist the Board of the council in effectively overseeing its communications and advocacy strategy and policies.
It is also to assist in public and stakeholder engagement that will facilitate the adoption and usage of IPv6 addresses in Nigeria by ISPs, telecommunications companies, higher educational institutions and other IP centric organisations.
