Nigeria has commenced a comprehensive review of its telecommunications policy for the first time in 26 years, in a move aimed at repositioning the country’s digital economy and unlocking an estimated N1.6 trillion in additional tax revenue alongside nearly two million new jobs, according to news reports.
The planned overhaul of the National Telecommunications Policy 2000 took centre stage at a stakeholders’ policy workshop organised by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in Lagos, where government officials, regulators, telecom operators and development partners agreed that the country’s digital aspirations can no longer depend on an outdated framework.
The review comes amid increasing concerns over challenges slowing telecom expansion and digital infrastructure growth, including fibre optic vandalism, multiple taxation, right-of-way delays, rising energy costs, insecurity and widening connectivity gaps.
Speaking at the event, Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy and Coordination, Hadiza Bala Usman, said the telecommunications landscape has evolved far beyond voice communication and now serves as the backbone of economic and social activities.
She noted that while the 2000 policy successfully drove liberalisation and attracted major investments into the sector, the realities of today’s digital economy demand a fresh direction.
“More than two decades later, Nigeria has changed. Technology has changed. The economy has changed. The expectations of citizens have changed,” she said.
Usman stressed that the review must produce more than minor adjustments, insisting that Nigeria requires a modern telecom framework capable of supporting innovation, digital governance, economic competitiveness and national development.
According to her, the new policy is expected to prioritise broadband penetration, affordable digital access, infrastructure protection, improved quality of service, cybersecurity, consumer protection and digital inclusion.
She described the exercise as central to President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and the administration’s broader economic priorities.
“The telecommunications policy review should not be approached only as a sectoral obligation. It should be understood as a national development assignment,” she stated.
Usman also called for stronger collaboration among regulators, state governments, operators, investors and security agencies to tackle persistent obstacles facing telecom infrastructure deployment.
She warned that attacks on telecom infrastructure and bureaucratic bottlenecks now affect the wider economy.
“Fibre cuts, vandalism, theft, multiple taxation, right-of-way bottlenecks, delayed approvals, energy constraints and insecurity do not affect operators alone. They affect businesses, schools, hospitals, financial systems and public institutions,” she said.
NCC Executive Vice Chairman, Aminu Maida, said the telecom industry had undergone a dramatic transformation since the introduction of the National Telecommunications Policy 2000, which dismantled the monopoly era dominated by NITEL.
He recalled that before liberalisation, Nigeria had fewer than 500,000 active telephone lines serving a population of over 120 million people.
“The policy served its time well. It helped open the market, attract private investment and establish stronger independent regulation,” Maida said.
He explained that the industry has since evolved into an infrastructure-driven sector focused on broadband expansion, fibre deployment, spectrum management and universal access.
However, Maida acknowledged that several structural challenges continue to hinder growth.
“These are not merely operational challenges for operators. They are national development issues because they affect the resilience and reach of digital services,” he noted.
The NCC boss added that Nigeria is now entering a more advanced digital era shaped by technologies such as 5G, artificial intelligence, cloud infrastructure, satellite broadband, cybersecurity and the Internet of Things.
“This is no longer a narrow telecommunications conversation. Telecommunications is no longer just one sector within the economy; it is productivity infrastructure for the entire economy,” he declared.
Citing industry projections, Maida said deeper digital integration could add about two percentage points to Nigeria’s GDP by 2028 while creating close to two million jobs and significantly expanding government revenues.
“The policy choices we make today will determine Nigeria’s ability to broaden its tax base, improve public services, create jobs and build a more inclusive economy,” he added.
Director of Policy, Competition and Economic Analysis at the NCC, Ayuba Shuaibu, said the workshop provided stakeholders an opportunity to redesign the future of Nigeria’s communications industry.
He observed that emerging realities such as technological convergence, data governance, cybersecurity and collaborative regulation require a more forward-looking telecommunications framework.
Recommendations from the workshop are expected to shape the proposed National Telecommunications Policy 2026, which the government hopes will accelerate Nigeria’s digital transformation and strengthen its position as one of Africa’s leading digital economies.
