Fibre Cuts Threatening Banking, Healthcare, Other Critical Services, NCC Warns

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has warned that damage to fibre-optic infrastructure poses a serious threat to banking, healthcare, government services, education, commerce, security and emergency communications across the country.

The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NCC, Dr Aminu Maida, raised the concern at a stakeholders’ workshop on the protection of fibre-optic cables held at the National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC), Office of the National Security Adviser, Abuja.

Maida urged stakeholders in the road construction sector, including contractors, engineers, government agencies, regulators and security agencies, to strengthen coordination and adopt preventive measures to safeguard fibre-optic cables during road construction, rehabilitation, excavation and other civil works.

He stressed that Nigeria’s drive to expand physical infrastructure must go hand in hand with the protection of the digital infrastructure connecting millions of Nigerians to information, essential services, markets and economic opportunities.

According to him, communications infrastructure has become a critical national lifeline, underpinning banking, government services, education, healthcare, commerce, security and emergency communications.

He noted that damage to fibre infrastructure could disrupt essential services and impose significant costs on citizens, businesses and the wider economy.

“To a machine operator on a construction site, it may appear to be one buried cable. To the nation, it can mean failed calls, stalled payments, interrupted services and missed opportunities,” Maida said, highlighting the far-reaching impact of fibre cuts on individuals, businesses and public institutions.

The NCC boss disclosed that more than 5,000 fibre-cut incidents were recorded in the first six months of the year as a result of road construction, excavation and related civil works.

He recalled that in February 2024, fibre cuts, including those caused by road construction, resulted in an almost network-wide disruption for one telecommunications operator, affecting millions of users for several hours and placing additional pressure on other networks.

Maida said the recurring incidents should not be viewed as a matter of assigning blame, noting that no road contractor deliberately seeks to disconnect a community, just as telecommunications operators do not intend to obstruct road construction.

He, however, stressed the need for a dependable system of early coordination among all stakeholders involved in infrastructure development.

“Our central message is simple: Nigeria must build the roads that connect our communities while protecting the fibre networks that connect our economy. We need both forms of infrastructure, and we need them to work together,” he said.

To address the challenge, Maida disclosed that the Permanent Secretaries of the Federal Ministry of Works and the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy had inaugurated the Standing Committee on the Protection of Fibre Optic Cables.

He said the committee was established to develop practical coordination mechanisms before, during and after road works to minimise damage to telecommunications infrastructure.

Maida further disclosed that the committee’s membership had recently been expanded to include representatives of the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), in recognition of the security implications of protecting telecommunications infrastructure.

He explained that telecommunications infrastructure has been designated as Critical National Information Infrastructure, requiring it to be treated as national infrastructure and protected accordingly, with appropriate legal, regulatory and remedial consequences for damage.

The EVC urged telecommunications operators, contractors, government agencies, regulators and security agencies to play their respective roles in preventing fibre damage.

He stressed that coordination must become an integral part of the planning and execution of road construction and other projects involving excavation.

“Nigeria must build the roads that connect our communities while protecting the fibre networks that connect our economy. We need both forms of infrastructure, and we need them to work together,” he said.

Maida urged participants at the workshop to develop practical measures that would make coordination standard practice rather than the exception.

The workshop forms part of ongoing efforts by the NCC and other stakeholders to institutionalise coordination mechanisms for the protection of telecommunications infrastructure, minimise service disruptions and support Nigeria’s digital transformation agenda.

The initiative is expected to culminate in a framework for the protection of telecommunications fibre-optic infrastructure during road construction and other excavation activities.