Striving hard to bridge Nigeria’s digital divide the country’s telecommunications regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in its draft Spectrum Roadmap, has laid emphasis on rural and underserved communities.
This is disclosed in the draft Spectrum Roadmap for the Communications Sector (2025 – 2030), published on the NCC website on Monday, relying on the Nigerian Communications Act 2003 (NCA 2003).
The report shows clearly that in spite of significant growth in urban broadband penetration, several rural areas remain unconnected due to high deployment costs and limited commercial incentives for operators.
Even the urban areas are not faring better either, as voice calls are muffled, masked, breaks off or outright unable to connect or cuts off voice, yet bill continues to count.
Poised to tackle this challenge, the Commission in the draft document is prioritising the release of low-frequency spectrum bands such as 450 MHz and 600 MHz, which offer wider coverage with fewer base stations, and pushed to the rural areas to address the out rightly poor quality or non-existent telecommunications network.
Also, the NCC intends to expand the role of satellite and other non-terrestrial networks, including Low-Earth Orbit satellite systems, to reach remote and geographically challenging locations.
The Commission said these measures would support inclusive connectivity, improve access to digital services, and align with national development and social inclusion goals, as contained in the draft regulation.
