Nigeria 90,000km Fibre Rollout October

The Federal Government of Nigeria, through the Nigeria — Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, announced that the 90,000-kilometre nationwide fibre-optic network rollout under Project BRIDGE will commence in October. Minister Bosun Tijani confirmed that funding has been secured from development partners including the World Bank Group ($500 million), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development ($100 million plus a €22 million EU grant), and the African Development Bank ($200 million). The project aims to expand Nigeria's fibre backbone from approximately 35,000km to 125,000km, making it one of the longest on the continent. Additionally, the government plans to deploy nearly 3,700 telecom towers and renew its communications satellite to connect over 20 million Nigerians in underserved communities. The initiative is part of a broader strategy to build a $1 trillion economy by diversifying beyond oil and gas. At the same workshop, NITDA proposed a National Innovation Hub Standards Framework to standardise the country's 339+ innovation hubs, with support from the European Union and Denmark.