When you buy a Nokia mobile set in Nigeria now you are most likely going to find one that speaks the major languages in the country. The reason for this is that the phone manufacturer has introduced Nigerian languages like Hausa, Yoruba and Ibo as local language options on their mobile phones. This will be in the menu and manuals of the phone.

This announcement was made in Lagos last week by Nokia's Senior Vice President, Customer and Market Operations in Middle East and Africa, Mr. Timo Toikkanen at the launch of Nokia Nigeria office, which will also service the whole of the West African market.

With this development, Nokia has intensified the scramble for Nigeria's juicy mobile market, and this is very much in line with the vision of the Chairman and CEO of the company, Mr. Jorma Ollila, who said at the GSM World Congress in Barcelona that his company's plan was to control the emerging markets in terms of sales. Nigeria as third fastest growing market in the world, is fast emerging as a leading light in the emerging markets.

Speaking at the occasion, Toikkanen said: "The potential for growth in Nigeria's telecoms industry is enormous. This is both an amazing opportunity, as well as a challenge. It is an opportunity to provide customized, peerless service to match the growing needs of the market and a challenge to do this effectively amidst the influx and intense dynamics of the industry."

Luckily for Nokia, the Nigerian government has promised the right environment for any investor coming into the country. This was the position canvassed by the Minister of Communications, Chief Cornelius Adebayo, represented by Alhaji Umar Aji of the Ministry of Communications, who said Nokia's decision to open an office in Nigeria was a welcome one, adding that the company would find in the country a hard working people, a government supportive of your aspirations and a pool of well trained human resources."

Chief regulator of the industry, Engr. Ernest Ndukwe, boss of the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, observed that the coming of Nokia to Nigeria was an "evidence of the confidence that the international community is having on Nigeria. He noted that with 20million lines and still growing, we have no doubt that Nigeria will be an important market to serious players."

He hailed the efforts of Nokia for tailoring some of their products and services to local requirements, noting that "in today's ICT world, it is important that products have local inputs. Nokia is a welcome partner to the development of the country's ICT industry with products designed to reach the unconnected. We will work with Nokia to ensure that is realised."

He also spoke on the position of the NCC which has continued to insist that the country has the best of telecom services and terminals. He counseled on the need to appropriate the advantages of modern technology and for operators to ensure the maintenance of their products in order for the users not to be short changed.

Nokia's head of region, Mr. Emmanuel Revmatas explained that due to the ever changing environment and rapid subscriber growth, it is imperative for Nokia to have on-the-ground support. "Telecommunications is an incredibly important development tool, and Nokia wants to continue to play a leading role in spearheading the economic growth and development that telecommunications typically unleashes especially in new growth markets," he stated.