Nigeria’s rapidly expanding appetite for digital services is putting fresh pressure on the country’s telecommunications infrastructure, with data consumption rising by almost 47 per cent in just 12 months, according to findings from the Nigeria Digital Connectivity Investment Forum 2026.
The forum, convened by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in partnership with Swedfund and Ookla, identified infrastructure investment, affordable devices, reliable power, long-term financing and regulatory reforms as critical to closing Nigeria’s digital connectivity gaps.
Held at the Onomo Allure Hotel, Abuja, on September 29 and 30, the forum was themed “Unlocking Infrastructure Investment through Data, Transparency and Partnerships.” It brought together government officials, regulators, investors, development finance institutions, financial institutions, telecommunications operators, infrastructure companies, technology providers and industry associations.
The forum focused on how Nigeria can attract the investment required to expand digital infrastructure while ensuring that connectivity translates into meaningful economic participation.
According to the communiqué issued at the conclusion of the event, Nigeria consumed about 1.6 million terabytes of data in July 2026, representing an increase of almost 47 per cent over the preceding 12 months.
The demand for connectivity is expected to intensify as cloud computing and artificial intelligence gain wider adoption, placing additional pressure on telecommunications networks, data centres and power infrastructure.
The forum also noted that subscriptions could rise from approximately 195 million currently to about 350 million within the next 10 to 15 years.
While network coverage has expanded considerably, participants said coverage alone was no longer sufficient to measure Nigeria’s digital progress.
The communiqué noted that mobile broadband currently covers about 90 per cent of Nigerians, while smartphone ownership is estimated at only about 27 per cent. Broadband penetration stands at 57.4 per cent against a national target of 70 per cent.
Participants identified device affordability, digital skills and trust as some of the major constraints preventing more Nigerians from making meaningful use of available connectivity.
The implication, according to the forum, is that investment must increasingly move beyond simply expanding network footprints to ensuring that people have the devices, skills and confidence required to participate in the digital economy.
The forum further observed that telecommunications and information services contributed 9.72 per cent of Nigeria’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the second quarter of 2026, underscoring the growing importance of digital infrastructure to the wider economy.
Power emerged as one of the most significant challenges confronting further infrastructure deployment.
Participants noted that energy costs and reliability remain closely connected to the economics of telecommunications infrastructure, while the high cost of inland connectivity continues to constrain the development of data centres and internet services outside a few major metropolitan areas.
The forum therefore called for energy and connectivity investments to be planned together, with telecommunications tower clusters potentially serving as anchor off-takers for distributed power generation.
The middle-mile connectivity gap was another major concern.
Participants urged the Federal Government to accelerate Project BRIDGE, the proposed 90,000-kilometre national fibre backbone, describing it as a strategic response to the middle-mile challenge.
The NCC was also urged to continue reforms aimed at improving investment conditions, including Right of Way engagements with state governments, open-access and wholesale regulation and the development of a direct-to-device framework.
The forum also highlighted the mismatch between the long-term nature of digital infrastructure assets and the relatively short tenor of financing available to investors.
According to the communiqué, digital infrastructure assets can have an economic life of between 20 and 30 years, making them difficult to finance sustainably with predominantly five-year bank loans.
The forum noted that infrastructure financing in Nigeria has expanded from less than ₦70 billion in 2004 to ₦19.4 trillion in 2025.
However, participants stressed that access to capital alone does not guarantee that a project will be bankable. Governance, management capacity, predictable policies and independently verifiable infrastructure data were identified as important elements in attracting long-term investment.
Speaking from the investor perspective during the forum, Bolaji Balogun, Chief Executive Officer of Chapel Hill Denham, addressed the financing of digital infrastructure, emphasising the importance of investable projects, appropriate financing structures, capital-market participation and conditions capable of attracting long-term private and institutional capital.
Bismarck Rewane, Chairman of the Board of FCMB and Managing Director of Financial Derivatives Company, also provided perspectives on the wider economic and financial environment for infrastructure investment, highlighting the cost and availability of capital, investor confidence and policy predictability.
The forum identified state-level regulation as another major determinant of the pace of digital infrastructure deployment.
The pilot Nigeria Digital Connectivity Index across 12 states showed that Right of Way reforms could have a direct impact on fibre expansion, with reforming states recording fibre growth of between 22 per cent and 95 per cent.
The number of states charging zero for Right of Way has also risen to 12, from seven in December 2024.
Participants consequently urged state governments to reduce and harmonise Right of Way and site permit charges, shorten approval timelines and adopt the Federal Government’s model under which operators laying fibre reinstate affected roads.
The forum also identified several emerging models that could reduce the cost of extending connectivity to underserved communities.
These include shared rural networks, satellite services delivered to unmodified handsets, micro-cabling, solar-powered rural sites and local manufacturing of devices and SIM cards.
However, participants stressed that technological innovation alone would not solve Nigeria’s connectivity challenge without addressing the affordability of devices.
The forum recommended that operators, infrastructure companies and technology providers pursue shared infrastructure and neutral-host models while pairing network expansion with initiatives that put affordable devices in the hands of users.
Participants agreed on a number of priority actions to accelerate investment.
Within six months, the forum proposed securing funding for community-owned rural networks powered by renewable energy in communities with zero connectivity, through partnerships involving the Universal Service Provision Fund, state governments and the Rural Electrification Agency.
