As of January, Nigeria’s broadband penetration dropped to 42.53%, with 92.19 million subscriptions in a country of over 200 million people, revealing a significant deficit in internet access. The Nigerian National Broadband Plan 2020-2025 aims to raise broadband penetration to 70% by 2025 and achieve 96% mobile broadband coverage by 2030, requiring an investment of approximately $461 million, according to GSMA.
GSMA’s recent report highlighted a $461 million investment gap for Nigeria, attributing it to policy reform issues. To address this, the Federal Government, in collaboration with the World Bank, is working to secure $3 billion to fund an additional 120,000km of fiber optic cables, aiming to enhance broadband infrastructure and connectivity across the nation.
Minister of Communications, Bosun Tijani, also announced plans to provide internet and digital access to all 774 local government secretariats in Nigeria, with the goal of improving connectivity in underserved and unserved areas.
Source: Business Day