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The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has called for increased public and private sector investment in telecommunications infrastructure to accelerate broadband expansion, improve service quality and strengthen Nigeria’s growing digital economy.
The call was made by the NCC Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Dr Aminu Maida, at the maiden Nigeria Digital Connectivity Investment Forum in Abuja, organised by the Commission in collaboration with Swedfund and Ookla. The statement was signed by Nnenna Ukoha, Director, Public Affairs, NCC, and made available to Daily Sun on September 29, 2026.
Maida said the forum was created to bring regulators, investors, infrastructure providers and development partners together to identify the investment required to expand connectivity, tackle barriers to infrastructure deployment and develop partnerships capable of accelerating Nigeria’s digital transformation.
He said the growth recorded in Nigeria’s telecommunications sector over the past 25 years demonstrated the impact of sound policy, transparent regulation and investor confidence.
According to him, the liberalisation of the sector and transparent licensing processes opened the door for private investment, driving significant expansion in connectivity and communications services across the country.
“The experience of the last two and a half decades underscores the importance of creating an enabling environment for investment. As a regulator, the Commission remains committed to facilitating investment while ensuring consumer protection and promoting fair competition,” he said.
The NCC chief executive noted that demand for reliable digital connectivity was rising rapidly as individuals, businesses, schools and public institutions increasingly depended on broadband-enabled services.
He said the expansion of cloud-based services, digital platforms and artificial intelligence applications would further increase demand for reliable and resilient telecommunications infrastructure.
Maida disclosed that data consumption in Nigeria rose from about 1.13 million terabytes in July 2025 to approximately 1.66 million terabytes in July 2026, representing an increase of nearly 47 per cent in one year.
He said the pace of growth required sustained investment in network expansion, modernisation and service quality.
“The investment challenge before us is not merely one of expanding coverage. It is also about ensuring that those already connected enjoy better service quality, improved user experiences, and infrastructure capable of supporting future technologies,” he said.
The NCC boss identified the 2025 telecommunications tariff adjustment, ongoing engagements with state governments on Right of Way issues and the designation of telecommunications infrastructure as Critical National Information Infrastructure by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as some of the measures aimed at reducing deployment barriers and strengthening investor confidence.
He also reaffirmed the Commission’s commitment to evidence-based regulation, saying greater access to reliable market and network data would improve transparency, regulatory certainty and understanding of investment opportunities.
Maida urged local and international investors, development finance institutions, infrastructure providers and other industry stakeholders to take advantage of emerging opportunities and work with the Commission to expand digital connectivity across Nigeria.
He said investments in the sector must ultimately deliver improved access to services, better economic opportunities and a stronger digital economy.
The NCC chief executive commended Swedfund and Ookla for partnering with the Commission, particularly in strengthening data-driven decision-making and providing insight into connectivity experiences across the country.
He said the partnership provides independent information that helps the NCC identify service gaps, monitor network performance and determine areas requiring additional investment.
Maida also highlighted the Commission’s Consumer Data Lab, funded by the Gates Foundation and developed with Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA), which integrates Ookla’s network performance data, consumer complaints and operators’ intervention reports on a single dashboard.
He said the platform enables the Commission to examine connectivity challenges by location and demographic characteristics, assess whether interventions have improved consumers’ experience and determine where further network deployment or upgrades are required.
In her keynote address, titled “Connectivity and Competitiveness: Digital Infrastructure as a Driver of Investment Climate and Trade,” the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, said the quality of digital infrastructure was increasingly shaping the investment climate, national competitiveness and participation in international trade.
Oduwole said the forum was timely because modern trade increasingly depends on digital infrastructure, including private networks, data centres, digital platforms and secure data systems.
The Swedish Ambassador to Nigeria, Anna Westerholm, said significant gaps remained in connectivity coverage, quality, affordability and supporting infrastructure, stressing that government, industry and investors must work together to address them.
She identified energy, cybersecurity and digital skills as key components of a sustainable connectivity ecosystem, while noting that Sweden was interested in deepening commercial and investment relations with Nigeria in digitalisation and connectivity.
Also speaking, Ookla’s Vice President of Sales, Middle East and Africa, Tristan Muhader, said connectivity had evolved beyond basic communication to become an essential layer supporting economic and public activity, including essential services and artificial intelligence.
Representing the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, the Director of the National Frequency Management Council, Adetunji Adeyemo, said reliable, affordable, resilient and accessible digital infrastructure was essential to Nigeria’s economic transformation.
He said the Federal Government had identified infrastructure, policy and innovation, entrepreneurship, and capital as key strategic priorities.
The two-day forum brings together policymakers, investors, development finance institutions, telecommunications operators, infrastructure providers, technology companies and development partners to examine investment opportunities and infrastructure requirements across Nigeria’s digital connectivity ecosystem.
