The Federal Government has announced plans to build 7,000 new telecoms towers in rural areas to expand access to telecommunications services and improve digital connectivity across the country.
The Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, who made this disclosure when he led a team of Airtel Nigeria on a visit to President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, stressed the commitment of the government to ensuring that all Nigerians, particularly those in rural areas, have access to quality telecommunication services.
According to him, the plan by the government to invest in rural infrastructure aligns with the administration’s broader goal of improving economic opportunities for all citizens.
He said: “The priority for this government is meaningful access. We don’t want our people to just have access to telecommunication services; we want it to be of high quality. That is why the NCC has been working thoroughly to ensure that we shift the focus not just to quality of service, but to quality of experience.”
- Advertisement -
Tijani explained that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the construction of the new 7,000 towers as part of a broader strategy by the current administration to bridge the digital divide between urban and rural areas nationwide.
He said the investment would complement the government’s ongoing deployment of 90,000 kilometers of fiber-optic cables across the country.
On the recent upward adjustments of tariffs for telecoms services by the Mobile Networks Operators (MNOs), the minister maintained that recent 50% increase in telecom tariffs was necessary to sustain businesses in the sector and prevent job losses.
Tijani recalled that the government conducted a study led by KPMG to determine the optimal tariff adjustment while balancing affordability for consumers and sustainability for telecom operators.
He explained: “Some of these decisions are difficult, but it is our responsibility to look out for our citizens, including individuals and corporate entities. If we chose not to allow any tariff increase, we risked losing jobs and seeing companies shut down, which is not the best outcome for the economy.”
The minister restated the government’s commitment to fostering an enabling environment for private sector investment in digital infrastructure while ensuring that public investments support nationwide connectivity.
In his remarks, Chairman of Airtel Africa, Sunil Bharti Mittal, said Airtel Nigeria represented the key hub of the group’s operations in Africa, with the potential to match India’s advancements in digital innovation, connectivity, and financial inclusion.
Noting that Airtel’s success in Nigeria is crucial to its overall success in Africa, the industry expert stressed that Nigeria’s strategic importance underscored Airtel’s objective, which is to drive growth and transformation across the African continent.
Mittal explained: “Nigeria is the most important part of our Africa strategy. In fact, the entire Africa rests on the back of Nigeria for Airtel.
“And Nigeria is important to us, personally important to me. I watch over one country other than India, personally myself. That is Nigeria. I come back here from time to time, and it’s in our intention to make Nigeria at par with what we are seeing in India in terms of digital innovation, digital connectivity and financial inclusion.
“I can assure all of you here today that we come here with force for good for this country, and you will continue to see us being a very, very responsible corporate citizen contributing to the well being of this country”, he added.
