Last year, Nigeria faced over 50,000 incidents of fibre cuts nationwide, with approximately 30,000 of these events resulting from construction activities by federal and state road projects, according to Dr Aminu Maida, the Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
Dr Maida made these remarks during the launch of a Joint Standing Committee aimed at protecting fibre optic cables, established by the Federal Ministry of Works (FMoW) and the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy (FMoCIDE).
This Committee has been formed to tackle the ongoing challenges of fibre optic damage and disruptions caused by road construction and rehabilitation efforts. Such incidents have severely affected telecommunications services across the country.
Some of these cuts have triggered significant network outages, including the nationwide MTN outage in February 2024.
He highlighted the importance of the Committee’s efforts, suggesting that it has the potential to greatly reduce service interruptions within Nigeria’s telecommunications sector.
“This is a crucial moment for both the telecommunications industry and its customers,” Dr Maida remarked, noting that fibre networks are the backbone of Nigeria’s broadband framework. They are essential for providing the high-capacity backhaul for delivering ultra-fast 4G and 5G technologies, which depend on robust fibre infrastructure for low latency, high reliability, and seamless data transfer.
Dr Maida reiterated, “We encountered over 50,000 incidents of fibre cuts last year, with around 30,000 linked to federal and state roadworks.
The extreme consequences of these incidents have led to significant network interruptions, such as the widespread MTN outage in February 2024.
A major factor contributing to the rising number of fibre cuts related to road construction is the absence of an effective coordination mechanism between road construction companies and fibre infrastructure operators.
“I am optimistic that the work carried out by this Committee will lead to a meaningful reduction in fibre cuts due to road construction. This, in turn, will help decrease network outages, eliminate unnecessary repair expenditures, and lessen the reliance on redundant routes as alternatives when outages occur.”
