FG To Deploy 90,000km Fibre Network Across Nigeria By 2028, Yilwatda Says

By Suleiman Aremu | Solaremnews | Friday 9, October, 2026

The Federal Government plans to deploy more than 90,000 kilometres of open-access fibre-optic network across Nigeria’s 36 states by 2028 under Project BRIDGE, a digital infrastructure initiative expected to expand broadband connectivity and improve access to digital services nationwide.

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, disclosed this during a virtual executive session with chief executive officers in the information technology industry on Wednesday.

According to a statement issued on Thursday by his Special Adviser on Media and Information Strategy, Abimbola Tooki, Yilwatda described digital infrastructure as fundamental to Nigeria’s economic transformation, noting that the country’s ambitions in artificial intelligence, cloud computing, digital inclusion and a technology-driven economy depend on robust and affordable connectivity.

He said Project BRIDGE, designed to deploy 90,000 kilometres of open-access fibre across the country, represented a major infrastructure intervention aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s digital backbone.

Upon completion, the project is expected to increase the country’s combined fibre backbone from approximately 35,000 kilometres to 125,000 kilometres and connect more than 200,000 schools, healthcare facilities and other public institutions.

Yilwatda disclosed that the Federal Government incorporated Bridge Open Access as an independent company in August to deliver the network, with the government expected to hold between 25 and 49 per cent equity through the Ministry of Finance Incorporated.

Private investors will own between 51 and 75 per cent of the company and retain operational control, a structure he said was designed to combine government’s strategic support with private-sector investment, efficiency and operational discipline.

The APC chairman further revealed that approximately $800 million in sovereign financing had been secured for the project.

The financing comprises $500 million from the World Bank, $100 million from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and $200 million from the African Development Bank, alongside a €22 million grant from the European Union.

He said physical deployment was scheduled to commence in October 2026, with the implementation period shortened from five years to three years and completion targeted for 2028.

However, Yilwatda cautioned that the project’s success would depend on translating policy announcements into practical implementation, noting that an additional $1.2 billion in private capital was still required to meet its financing needs.

“Announcements do not lay cable,” he said, emphasising the need for sustained investment and coordinated action to deliver the project.

He also warned that fibre deployment alone would not guarantee digital inclusion without complementary investments in electricity, affordable digital devices, reasonably priced data services, telecommunications towers, backhaul infrastructure and last-mile connectivity.

According to him, fibre infrastructure remains concentrated in major urban centres, with Lagos and the Federal Capital Territory accounting for more than 18 per cent of deployed fibre.

He added that fibre-to-the-home penetration remained relatively low, with approximately 265,000 subscribers nationwide, highlighting the need to extend connectivity beyond major cities and ensure that households and businesses can benefit from the infrastructure.

APC Moves to Address Right-of-Way Challenges

The APC national chairman identified high right-of-way charges, multiple permits and inconsistent regulatory requirements across states and local government areas as major obstacles to telecommunications infrastructure development.

He noted that operators faced varying charges for laying fibre cables and other regulatory requirements, while some telecommunications infrastructure was reportedly destroyed by state and local government authorities.

To address these challenges, Yilwatda announced that the APC National Secretariat would work with the Progressive Governors’ Forum and APC state chapters to promote harmonised and cost-reflective right-of-way terms.

He said the party would also encourage practical measures to protect telecommunications infrastructure in states governed by the APC.

The initiative, he added, would extend to governors elected on the platforms of other political parties because digital infrastructure was a national development priority that should not be restricted by political affiliations.

“Infrastructure has no party. Our objective should be to create an environment in which every Nigerian, regardless of political affiliation or location, can benefit from the digital economy,” he said.

Yilwatda also called for fibre-optic infrastructure to be protected as Critical National Information Infrastructure, warning that vandalism and accidental damage to cables could undermine significant public and private investments in digital connectivity.

Yilwatda Seeks Coordination Between Road, Fibre Projects

The APC chairman called for stronger coordination between road construction and telecommunications infrastructure development, observing that excavation, roadworks and other civil engineering activities accounted for a significant number of fibre cuts.

He described the situation as a coordination failure that could be prevented through better planning and cooperation among relevant authorities and contractors.

While commending the Federal Ministries of Works and Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy for establishing a Standing Committee on the Protection of Fibre Optic Cables, he urged the government to extend the initiative to state and local government levels.

He proposed that every federal and state road construction contract should include provisions for telecommunications ducts and require contractors to identify and protect existing fibre infrastructure before excavation begins.

“Building a road and destroying a broadband link in the same month is not development. It is waste,” he said.

Yilwatda added that the APC would deploy its political structures to promote better coordination among state governments, local authorities, road contractors and telecommunications operators.

Nigeria Must Prepare for AI, Cloud Computing

On emerging technologies, Yilwatda said artificial intelligence would significantly shape the global economy over the next decade, urging Nigeria to position itself to develop and benefit from the technology rather than depend solely on solutions created elsewhere.

“The question for Nigeria is not whether AI will shape our economy. It will. The question is whether we will shape it, or simply rent it,” he said.

He noted that Nigeria already had a National Artificial Intelligence Strategy, while the Federal Government had also introduced the National Digital Cloud Policy to attract approximately $750 million in private investment into cloud and data infrastructure within 24 months.

Under the policy’s investment targets, $250 million is expected to be mobilised within the first year.

Yilwatda also disclosed that the government and industry stakeholders were working towards increasing the country’s data-centre capacity from approximately 50 megawatts to 200 megawatts of information technology load over the next five years.

He described the targets as ambitious but necessary, stressing that their achievement would require corresponding investment in reliable energy infrastructure.

According to him, data centres and artificial intelligence infrastructure consume substantial amounts of electricity, making the country’s digital ambitions inseparable from reforms and investments in the power sector.

“An AI strategy without an energy strategy is incomplete,” he said.

He called for digital infrastructure to be prioritised in national power-sector planning, alongside greater use of embedded power generation, renewable energy power purchase arrangements and reliable gas supplies to digital infrastructure clusters.

Yilwatda Backs Local Technology Firms, Cautions Against Protectionism

The APC chairman also addressed data sovereignty and the participation of Nigerian and international technology companies in the country’s digital economy.

He expressed support for the Federal Government’s policy direction favouring certified local providers in public procurement where appropriate, describing the development of domestic technological capacity and the protection of critical data as legitimate national objectives.

However, he cautioned against allowing digital sovereignty policies to become protectionist measures that could raise costs, discourage investment or prevent Nigeria from accessing global expertise and technology.

He stressed the need to balance national interests and data protection with an environment that encourages innovation, investment and access to international technological capabilities.

Yilwatda maintained that expanding broadband connectivity, improving energy supply, protecting telecommunications infrastructure and strengthening collaboration between government and industry would be critical to achieving Nigeria’s digital economy ambitions.

He said the APC would use its political structures to encourage cooperation among federal, state and local governments, as well as private-sector stakeholders, to remove barriers to digital infrastructure deployment and broaden access to technology across the country.