06 February 2025
The Nigerian government has unveiled the National Broadband Alliance for Nigeria (NBAN), an initiative aimed at accelerating the deployment of broadband across the country.
The project is expected to boost investment in the sector, with the hope of a 300-500% increase by 2027, according to Digital Economy Minister Bosun Tijani.
NBAN is part of the National Broadband Plan (2020-2025), which aims to increase the broadband penetration rate from 42% in October 2024 to 70% by the end of 2025 and 80% by 2027. To achieve this objective, the government is relying on an innovative public-private partnership bringing together state authorities, telecom operators and infrastructure companies.
“To achieve these goals, private sector efforts will not be enough. It will require a holistic approach that includes strategic partnerships with donors, investors and other key stakeholders to accelerate the delivery of critical infrastructure,” said Tijani.
This initiative follows several actions taken by the government to promote access to high-speed Internet. Among them, the deployment of 90,000km of optical fibre throughout the country. In January, the Ministry of Digital Economy obtained a grant from the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) to finance a feasibility study for the construction of this network.
Expanding broadband access could also boost Nigeria’s internet penetration, currently estimated at 44%, and in turn boost the country’s economic growth. A World Bank report suggests that a 10% increase in broadband penetration could boost GDP by 1.38% in developing countries like Nigeria.
