Abstract: The telecommunication sector in Nigeria is a prominent and very profitable sector of the economy. The presence of multiple network service providers have brought about healthy competition between these operators which have directly had an impact on the growth of this sector. Telecommunication base stations which are important structures for telecommunication are observed to be distributed around many cities and localities around the country. While these are indications of good network coverage, it is pertinent to ensure that these structures are properly located in the best available sites where they pose minimal health risks and duly conform to national standards. The study therefore aimed at analysing the locational pattern of telecommunication masts and their conformity to National Communication Commission (2009) 5m setback in Awka, Anambra state. The seven wards of Awka made up the spatial scope for the study. Geographic coordinates of the identified masts were obtained using a handheld GPS. The nearest neighbor analytical tool in ArcGIS was used to determine spatial pattern of masts. Five meter buffers were created around masts to assess their locational conformity with the set standards of the NCC. Thirty-eight masts were identified in the area of which 3 were inactive and 10 were shared by multiple service providers. The result of the nearest neighbor analysis revealed a random distribution with a Z-score, p-value and nearest neighbor ratio of -1.036417, 0.300007, 0.912116 respectively. The 5m buffer of masts from the nearest residential property revealed that 52.63% of masts fell outside the buffer zone, thus conformed to the standard while 47.36% did not conform to the standard. The study therefore recommends that the NCC carries out proper checks to ensure that service providers pay strict attention to locational standards to ensure minimal risk impact on human health and environment.
Key words: Compliance level, Network operators, Spatial distribution, Telecommunication masts