October 4, 2022

The Nigeria Communications Commission says if the country must meet its 2025 Nigeria National Broadband Plan (NNBP) target it needs additional 120, 000 kilometres of Fibre Optic Cables, from the current figure of fewer than 60,000 kilometres and about 40,000 additional Base Transceiver Stations (BTS).

In his keynote address, at the Third Annual Stakeholders Conference of Lagos State Infrastructure Maintenance and Regulatory Agency (LASIMRA), themed: “Transforming Lagos State into a Smart City Hub in Africa – The Government’s Infrastructure Approach”, the Executive Commissioner (Stakeholders’ Management), Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Mr. Adeleke Adewolu noted that the theme of the conference is very apt since the broadband infrastructure is the backbone of Smart Cities.

“It is inevitable that the NCC and LASIMRA must engage and collaborate, but sometimes in disagreement, as Lagos State is clearly the hub of telecoms and technology activities in Nigeria”, Adewolu stated.

The NCC Commissioner, however, urged the government at various levels to increase internet capacity in the country due to its huge infrastructure deficit, saying “for instance, we need over 120,000 additional kilometres of Fibre Optic Cables from the current figure of fewer than 60,000 kilometres and about 40,000 additional Base Transceiver Stations (BTS) to meet the NNBP targets by the year 2025”.