Nokia announced that it became the first technology vendor to self-certify its fiber products manufactured in the U.S., ensuring each meets the requirements outlined in the recently announcedBABA compliance and self-certification guidelines for the BEAD program. BEAD Applicants can now obtain a Certification Letter from Nokia to prove BABA compliance. Operators and infrastructure players seeking to participate in BEAD and the $42.45 billion of available funding will need to ensure - under federal penalty - that certain fiber broadband equipment used in their network buildouts are manufactured in the U.S. To help, the NTIA created a self-certification and compliance framework for manufacturers, allowing each to show its products meet these requirements.

Manufacturers that complete the self-certification process are added to a list managed by the Department of Commerce. Focused on reducing the number of fraudulent claims of BABA compliance, the list requires manufacturers to have an officer of the company certify - under fine or imprisonment - that its products are Buy America-compliant. Manufacturers must also be able to provide a BABA certification letter to subgrantees for audit purposes.

Nokia is the first vendor to self-certify that all of its fiber broadband products manufactured in the U. S. are Buy America-compliant and meet the final guidelines specified by the NTIA. The list of certified products includes: Nokia FX and MF OLT modular product lines; Nokia SF-8M sealed OLT; XS-220X-A ONT.