Subscribers Await Value As $3bn Telecom Boost Falls Short

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LAGOS – Two years after the Federal Govern­ment and the World Bank partnered to fund 120,000km of fibre optic cables and 7,000 telecom towers with $3 billion nationwide, not much has been done to leapfrog broadband infrastructure and boost connectivity as telecom subscrib­ers continue to endure the harsh reality of poor quality service.

The investment which is expected to connect over 20 million Nigerians who currently have no access to tele­communications by 2027, seems to have lost steam, as the industry’s subscrib­er base between February 2024 and March 2026 dropped from 219,970,313 to 185,718,018, indicating a huge loss of 34,252,295.

Industry observers had be­lieved that the implementation of a 50 percent tariff increase by telecom operators early this year should be yielding positive fruits by now. But despite the tariff hike, subscribers have continued to grapple with poor network service, with many of them facing hitches during voice calls and data usage.

In the past weeks, customers of the major service providers have been experiencing declin­ing quality of service (QoS) across the country.

The development has created frustration among customers who complain of the negative impact on their social and eco­nomic activities.

With the tariff increase, Ni­gerians had expected that they would be enjoying seamless ser­vices as a consolation for the new rates they are paying.

Painfully, the reverse seems to be the case, as the services of the telecom operators have become epileptic in many parts of Nigeria.

The Minister of Communi­cations, Innovations and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, had in 2024 expressed hope that the funds would be raised in the next two or three years, noting that it has become imperative to seek investments in the nation’s dig­ital backbone to facilitate access at affordable prices to the digital space for all Nigerians.

Speaking on the need for more investments to boost the telecom industry, the minister stressed the need for critical stakeholders to come up with strategies on how to attract in­vestments and fund broadband infrastructure in Nigeria.

According to him, “We need to understand that we cannot do without technology or the Internet; so, we all need quality access regardless of our location. There is a need for us to invest in that databank. So, it is the kind of thing that we call the telecom­munications infrastructure, or in some cases, we call the fibre optic cables. So, there is a cable that helps us make it possible for the internet to happen.”

Tijani said that Nigeria has laid 3,035km of fibre optic cables as at 2024, but 120,000km of fibre optic cables would be required for Nigerians to have quality and efficient access to the Internet and other digital services irre­spective of their locations.

In May, last year, Tijani an­nounced that Nigeria would receive a significant boost to its digital infrastructure in June 2025 with the arrival of tele­communications equipment and fibre optic cables worth $3 billion.

However, speaking at the World Bank’s Nigeria Develop­ment Update (NDU) event, Tijani disclosed that the incoming in­frastructure, including $1 billion in telecoms equipment and $2 bil­lion in fibre optic cables, would help close the connectivity gap and improve digital access na­tionwide. But till date, not much of the project’s impact has been felt by Nigerians.

The $3 billion fibre and mast project, known as Project BRIDGE, was aimed to signifi­cantly boost the country’s exist­ing 35,000 km network by adding 90,000km of backbone infrastruc­ture and building additional 7,000 masts across the country.

During the partnership agreement, the World Bank Regional Director, (Infrastruc­ture) West and Central Africa, Mr. Franz Drees-Gross, said the first phase of the project would involve laying 95,000km of fibre optic cables across Nigeria.

“We plan to set up a digital National Broadband fund and to roll out about 95,000 kilome­tres of what we call middle mile cable. That is the terrestrial ca­ble in the territory of Nigeria to bring broadband to more parts of the country. I think Nigeria has about 35,000 kilometres of broadband cable. The idea is to add another 95,000,” Drees-Gross stated.