The Ministry of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, in partnership with the West Indian Ocean Cable Company is set to commence the first batch of fibre-to-home internet connectivity in the country.

The Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, made this known after the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the ministry and WIOCC group on Wednesday in Abuja.

Mr Tijani said that the project was worth $10 million.

According to him, the initiative will boost the nation’s digital economy, and Nigerians will have the option of better, faster, and more affordable internet for digital connectivity.

He said, “We know the role of digital technology in driving productivity across key sectors. Our intention is not really to have a situation where the cost of providing these services will continue to go up. Telecommunications service providers will continue to invest, but at the same time, they have to ensure that their businesses are sustainable, not at a rate that will become challenging for our people. That balance is what we have been able to figure out. But we also recognise that if our goal is meaningful connectivity, there is more than one way to meaningful connectivity.’’

He said that the ministry was encouraging investment in different parts of the value chain that get connectivity to people.

“One of those areas that Nigerians have not truly benefited from is things like fibre-to-home. We mostly rely on connectivity on our mobile, on the go. But there is immense opportunity to also stay connected while you are home,” he said.

Speaking on the MoU, Mr Tijani said that the government would like to work with companies such as WOICC to seamlessly deliver their goals across the entire country.

He stated, “It is going to put Nigeria in a position where the people have access to world-class and high-speed broadband internet in the major cities and also in the rural and unconnected locations. We also want to see how they can support more small businesses to be able to deal with other services across the country.’’

On the recent approval for tariff hikes for telecom services providers, the minister said that it was a difficult decision for the government.

He said that there was clarity on the role of connectivity in society and development within the government.

“We appreciate that our goal of building a one trillion-dollar economy will need to ensure that connectivity is at the heart of that. Productivity is key to being able to build an economy that is strong,” he said.

Earlier, the Group Chief Business Development Officer of WIOCC, Darren Bedford, said that the company had a target of three million homes in the first phase of the project.

Mr Bedford said that there was an initial investment capital of $10 million.

He said that the project would have a big impact because most of Nigeria is unconnected at the moment, and the majority of businesses and people in their homes have to rely on mobile internet.

“They do not have access to true high-speed broadband. I think this is the first step to creating this environment and to bring this to the Nigerian people.

“We have set our ambitions at a reasonable target. During the course of the rollout for those three million homes, we will re-evaluate. We have done a realistic initial plan that we think is achievable,” he said. 

(NAN)