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From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Federal Government has disclosed that the country is projected to earn over one billion dollars in dividend from the freed digital broadcasting spectrum anchored on the 700/800MHz frequency bands as preparations intensify for the inauguration of the Digital Switch-Over programme on June 17, 2026.
The government also stated that the Digital Switch-Over, DSO, programme would unlock about N605 billion in revenue from Nigeria’s advertising market, while creating multiple streams of income for broadcasters and content creators across the country.
Speaking at a joint news conference held at the headquarters of the Nigeria Satellite Communications Limited (NigComSat), in Abuja, on Monday, the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Mr Charles Ebuebu, said the DSO initiative would serve as a game changer for terrestrial and digital broadcasting in Nigeria.
Ebuebu, alongside the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NigComSat, Mrs Jane Egerton-Idehen, briefed journalists and conducted a tour of satellite facilities and infrastructures ahead of the official launch of the programme.
He explained that the successful implementation of the DSO project would unlock significant economic opportunities for the country.
According to him, “The freed digital dividend spectrum (700/800 MHz) is estimated to be worth over one billion dollars in auction proceeds, which will be reinvested into digital infrastructure and rural broadband.”
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He added that the DSO programme would also strengthen the nation’s creative economy, which currently contributes about N5 trillion to the Gross Domestic Product and employs over 4.2 million Nigerians.
“The creative economy will gain a modern distribution spine, enabling content export across West Africa via NigComSat-1R,” he said.
The NBC boss further stated that broadcasters would benefit from verifiable audience data through the GARB system, enabling them to attract fair advertising rates based on actual viewership figures.
He noted that the platform would provide nationwide reach across the 36 states of the federation, including remote communities previously underserved by terrestrial television signals.
Ebuebu also disclosed that six regional studios would be established under the digital broadcasting ecosystem to support content production in indigenous languages including Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo, Tiv, Fulfulde, Ijaw, Edo, Ibibio, Efik and Nupe.
On her part, the NigComSat Managing Director, Mrs Egerton-Idehen, highlighted the infrastructure-sharing arrangement between NigComSat and NBC, describing the partnership as strategic for the sustainability of the DSO programme.
