The Federal Government plans to implement the National Dig Once Policy in Nigeria to close gaps in the country’s fiber infrastructure expansion.
The FG stated that it was making final adjustments to the planned document in order to meet the December deadline.
At the recently concluded fourth edition of the Policy Implementation Assisted Forum (PIAFo) on Dig Once Policy and Fibre Strategy in Nigeria, with the theme: Laying the Foundation for Ubiquitous Broadband for Nigeria’s Economic Breakthrough, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Pantami, made the announcement in Lagos.
After deploying more than 40,000km of fiber, Nigeria is believed to already be 120,000km short.
Pantami remarked that the policy will enable the smooth deployment of fiber optic as a backbone broadband infrastructure across the country to bridge the digital divide and stimulate the digital economy at the event hosted by Business Metrics Nigeria.
Usman Aliyu, head of the wireless network at the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), and secretary of the Broadband Implementation Steering Committee (BISC), spoke on behalf of Pantami, who claimed that the Nigeria Broadband Plan 2020–2025 recognizes the policy as a crucial component to achieving 70% broadband penetration by that date.
According to him, the policy has acquired the essential inputs through strong engagements with relevant stakeholders for the effective realization of its essence. The policy aspires to stimulate the installation of ready-made underground fiber conduit for seamless fiber deployment in the nation.
He stated: “Some of the objectives of the policy are provisioning of shared infrastructure for existing internet service providers and entrants; promotion of installation of ready-made buried fibre conduit for broadband deployment; and reduction of the barriers to entry for Internet Service Providers.”
“Others are to promote coordination and reduce the number of excavations and disruptions caused due to fibre installation works; to lower the cost of broadband internet service deployment; to promote the joint installation of infrastructures in a single phase and avoid unnecessary future digging as well as encouraging infrastructure, and to promote a unified and affordable pricing regime across the federation for Right of Ways.”
Additionally, he stated that there would be lower costs for the installation of broadband Internet services as well as for the upkeep and repair of installed fiber infrastructure once the policy is put into practice in Nigeria.
In a report titled “Fibre Infrastructure Rollout Ecosystem Development to Reach 60% Fibre to Site at 120,000km by 2025,” Ashwani Mishra, ICT Director at Huawei Technologies, offered suggestions for how Nigeria might meet the NBP 2020–2025’s 2025 fiber infrastructure targets.
He contends that the Dig Once Implementation Council (DOIC), as a Special Purpose Vehicle, ought officially define the fibre strategy, boundaries, and purview of each stakeholder and release periodic progress reports.
In order to help promote policy adoption to the state level and thereby reframe the Right of Way issue, he also urged Nigeria to put in place a structure to clarify the interaction between the DOIC and Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) (RoW).
The provision of ICT infrastructure should be a standard requirement for new buildings in order to stimulate demand. This will encourage the extension of fiber throughout the entire nation. Mishra also suggests that duct be a standard specification for road reconstruction and new buildings, uniform RoW charges, and the establishment of service level agreements (SLA) for each department or ministry involved in the approval process.
Omobayo Azeez, Convener and Lead Executive of PIAFo, stressed earlier in his speech that fiber is essential to achieve the 70% broadband penetration Nigeria is currently aiming for.
All parties involved, especially state and municipal governments, he claimed, needed to support and domesticate the program in their respective states.
