The Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, has urged investors to commit more funds to telecommunications infrastructure, saying stronger networks are needed to expand broadband access, improve services and drive digital growth.
Dr Aminu Maida, Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NCC, made the call at the opening of the inaugural Nigeria Digital Connectivity Investment Forum in Abuja, organized by the commission in collaboration with Swedfund and Ookla.
Maida said the forum provided a strategic platform for regulators, investors, infrastructure providers and development partners to discuss funding needed to expand connectivity, address barriers to infrastructure deployment and build partnerships to accelerate digital transformation and economic growth.
He said the primary objective was to mobilize investment that would improve connectivity, drive economic growth and enhance Nigerians’ quality of life.
According to a statement by Nnenna Ukoha, Director of Public Affairs at the NCC, Maida highlighted Nigeria’s telecommunications growth over the past 25 years as evidence of how effective policy, transparent regulation and investor confidence could transform a sector.
He said liberalization and clear licensing processes attracted private participation, resulting in significant growth in connectivity and communications services nationwide.
“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.
Maida said demand for reliable digital connectivity continued to rise as individuals, businesses, educational institutions and public services increasingly depended on broadband-enabled technologies.
He added that the growing adoption of cloud-based services, digital platforms and Artificial Intelligence applications would further increase the need for robust and resilient telecommunications infrastructure.
Highlighting the scale of demand, Maida said data consumption in Nigeria rose from approximately 1.13 million terabytes in July 2025 to about 1.66 million terabytes in July 2026, representing nearly 47 per cent growth within one year.
He said sustaining the growth would require significant investment in network expansion, modernization and quality-of-service improvements.
“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.
Among measures already implemented, Maida cited the telecommunications tariff adjustment approved in 2025 to support operators’ capacity for network investment and service improvement.
He also cited 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.
He said the initiatives were aimed at reducing barriers to network deployment and strengthening investor confidence in the sector.
Maida stressed the commission’s commitment to evidence-based regulation to improve transparency, enhance regulatory certainty and provide clearer insights into investment opportunities in telecommunications.
He called on local and international investors, development finance institutions, infrastructure providers and industry stakeholders to take advantage of emerging opportunities and partner with the commission to expand digital connectivity across Nigeria.
“The investment we advance today must ultimately translate into better opportunities for Nigerians, improved access to services, and a stronger digital economy that supports sustainable national development,” he said.
Maida commended Swedfund and Ookla for their partnership and contributions to the forum, noting that both organizations had supported the commission’s efforts to deepen data-driven decision-making and improve understanding of connectivity realities across Nigeria.
He said the collaboration provided independent insights into consume actual connectivity experiences and helped the commission identify service gaps, monitor network performance and assess areas requiring additional investment.
Maida said data generated through the partnership was being integrated with other market and network information to provide a more comprehensive understanding of infrastructure needs and investment opportunities across the country.
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He also highlighted the role of the commission’s Consumer Data Lab, funded by the Gates Foundation and developed in collaboration with Innovations for Poverty Action, IPA.
He said the platform integrated Ookla’s network performance data, consumer complaints and operators’ intervention reports into a single dashboard to enable deeper analysis of connectivity issues by location and demographic characteristics.
“This helps us investigate service problems and assess whether operators’ interventions have improved consume experience. It also gives us a more useful picture of where further deployment or network upgrades may be needed.
“We want investors to benefit from that understanding, and from regulatory decisions that are clear, proportionate and supported by evidence,” he said.
Delivering her keynote address on “Connectivity and Competitiveness: Digital Infrastructure as a Driver of Investment Climate and Trade”, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, commended the NCC and its partners for convening the forum.
Oduwole said the discussion was centred on infrastructure required to produce, connect, invest and trade in a modern economy.
She said the forum was timely because the quality of a country’s digital infrastructure increasingly influenced its investment climate, competitiveness and ability to participate meaningfully in international trade.
The minister said the future of trade was increasingly digital, adding that private networks, data , centers digital platforms and secure data systems had become critical to transactions.
In her remarks, the Swedish Ambassador to Nigeria, Anna Westerholm, acknowledged gaps in connectivity coverage, quality, affordability and supporting infrastructure.
She said government, industry and investors needed to work together to address the challenges.
Westerholm said data on network performance and user experience could help identify areas requiring investment, reduce uncertainty and strengthen investor confidence.
She identified energy, cybersecurity and digital skills as important components of a sustainable connectivity ecosystem.
“Sweden is interested in deepening commercial and investment relations with Nigeria, particularly in digitalisation and connectivity. Swedish institutions and companies could contribute technology, commercial expertise, development finance, export financing and project development to support Nigerian infrastructure priorities,” she said.
Commenting on the forum, Tristan Muhader, Vice President of Sales, Middle East and Africa, Ookla, said connectivity had evolved beyond its traditional role of enabling calls and internet browsing.
“Connectivity is no longer simply the channel through which we make calls or browse the internet. It is becoming the operating layer for economic and public activity across sectors, from essential services to AI. That makes its performance and resilience a national priority,” Muhader said.
She said Ookla’s collaboration with the NCC provided independent, crowdsourced data on consume connectivity experiences and helped identify areas where infrastructure investment could have the greatest impact.
Muhader said the data could also help authorities understand the effects of disruptions and verify recovery.
She said the forum provided an opportunity to turn shared evidence into smarter investment, stronger national digital resilience and a more competitive digital economy for Nigeria.
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 explore investment opportunities in digital connectivity across Nigeria.
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