19,384 Fibre Cuts Disrupt Telecom Services in 8 Months – NCC

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has revealed that the country recorded over 19,000 incidents of fibre cut across the country from January to August.

The Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida made the disclosure in Abuja on Wednesday at a business Roundtable on improving investments in broadband connectivity and safeguarding critical national infrastructure.

According to Maida, “Infrastructure attacks and vandalism continue to pose a challenge. Between January and August 2025 alone, Nigeria recorded 19,384 fibre cut incidents, 3,241 cases of equipment theft, and over 19,000 cases of denials of access to telecom sites.

“Together, these disruptions have caused prolonged outages, revenue losses, increased security costs, and delayed service restoration. They demonstrate why infrastructure protection must be at the centre of our collective agenda.”

Speaking further, he noted that “Another persistent challenge facing broadband expansion in Nigeria is the fragmented and unpredictable Right of Way (RoW) regimes across different states, which create delays and cost uncertainties for operators.

“This problem is compounded by inconsistent enforcement of critical infrastructure protection, weak coordination with road authorities, and the absence of clear construction planning protocols.

“Beyond these, the sector continues to contend with energy supply volatility, multiple taxation, and cumbersome permitting processes, all of which pose significant headwinds to progress.

One of the most significant barriers to broadband deployment in Nigeria has been the high cost of Right of Way (RoW) fees charged by state governments, despite a resolution by the Nigerian Governors Forum fixing the rate at N145 per linear meter,” he said.

He however noted that the NCC is working to address the challenges.

“Recognising this challenge, the Commission intensified advocacy with states to reduce or waive these fees to accelerate broadband rollout. Within the past two years, five additional states—Adamawa, Bauchi, Enugu, Benue, and Zamfara—have waived RoW fees entirely.

“This brings the total number of states offering zero RoW charges to eleven (11), while 17 states have capped it at N145 per metre. Our sustained engagement with state governments, including today’s gathering underscores our commitment to creating an enabling environment for broadband expansion. We are also promoting the “dig-once” coordination with public works to cut avoidable fibre damage and lower civil-works costs by sharing ducts and plans. Our goal is uniform, predictable RoW countrywide, paired with clear permitting SLAs,” he said.

He added that in line with economic regulatory mandate, earlier this year, the Commission approved the application of tariff rates that are both cost-reflective and competitive within the telecommunications industry, adding that the NCC has commissioned a wholesale Fibre Study, which is likely to open up existing backbone, and any built in the future,

He further stated that as of August 2025, Nigeria had achieved a broadband penetration rate of roughly 48.81% with over 140 million people having internet access.