Telecommunications operators in Nigeria recorded a dramatic surge in fibre optic cable injury in January 2026, with incidents rising by 900% in comparison with the earlier month, in keeping with official knowledge.
Evaluation of incident stories revealed by the Nigerian Communications Fee (NCC) reveals that fibre cuts elevated from simply 4 instances in December 2025 to 40 incidents in January 2026, marking one of many steepest month-on-month spikes in recent times.
The spike comes regardless of the Federal Authorities’s 2024 designation of telecommunications infrastructure as Essential Nationwide Data Infrastructure (CNII), a coverage aimed toward defending community property from vandalism and unintentional destruction.
What the info is saying
The NCC incident report reveals that after the numerous bounce recorded in January, the speed of fibre cuts isn’t slowing down in February both.
- Between February 1 and 17, the report reveals that 18 fibre cuts incidents have been recorded.
- This introduced the whole to 58 disruptions throughout the first seven weeks of the 12 months.
- Evaluation of the January and February incidents knowledge reveals that about 90% of the reported incidents occurred in Abuja, whereas pockets of it have been recorded in Lagos, Enugu, Benue, Anambra, and Abia states.
Affected operators embody Spine Connectivity Community (BCN), T2 (9mobile), Airtel, MTN, IPNX, and Layer 3.
Stand up to hurry
Apparently disturbed by the surge recorded in January, the NCC and Nigeria Safety and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) earlier this month issued a joint assertion threatening to prosecute building companies, contractors, and people liable for damaging fibre optic cables throughout highway building and different civil works.
Based on them, avoidable fibre injury brought on by negligence, poor coordination, or unauthorised excavation now constitutes a legal offence below current legal guidelines, stressing that enforcement can be stepped up nationwide.
They warned that the destruction of telecom infrastructure poses a direct risk to nationwide safety, financial stability, and public security, particularly as Nigeria turns into more and more reliant on digital connectivity for commerce and public providers.
Based on the businesses, telecom fibre infrastructure is now formally protected below the Designation and Safety of Essential Nationwide Data Infrastructure Order 2024.
- “Consequently, any injury ensuing from unauthorized digging, building actions, or failure to collaborate with related authorities to forestall injury throughout building constitutes a legal offence,” the assertion learn partially.
They added that offenders, together with building firms, authorities contractors, and people, will face prosecution and relevant sanctions below current legal guidelines, together with the Cybercrimes Prohibition, Prevention, and many others. Act 2015.
- “Future injury to fibre optic infrastructure brought on by excavation, highway building, or any civil engineering exercise performed with out due session or collaboration with community operators and related regulators will entice strict authorized penalties,” the businesses warned.
Given the excessive charge of incidents already recorded in February, it might appear the warning has but to yield the anticipated affect.
Extra insights
Highlighting the severity of the assaults on telecom infrastructure, Senior Supervisor at Broadbased Communications, Jude Ighomena, revealed that telecom operators misplaced an estimated N5 billion in 2024 as a result of infrastructure injury in Lagos State alone.
Based on him, over 2,500 fibre cuts have been recorded in the identical 12 months, inflicting widespread service disruptions and monetary losses.
He famous that Lagos’ busiest industrial districts—Ikeja, Lekki, and Victoria Island—are essentially the most affected, with highway building and personal developments incessantly damaging underground fibre cables.
- “These recurring incidents stem from poor planning, lack of coordination, and overlapping regulatory mandates.
- “With no centralised framework, authorities businesses, building companies, and telecom operators work independently, resulting in repeated damages with out accountability,” he mentioned.
Whereas the CNII criminalizes any type of assault towards telecom infrastructure, the Chairman of the Affiliation of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Engr. Gbenga Adebayo, mentioned the present lack of efficient prosecution has led to a tradition of impunity, with people and organisations feeling they may injury public infrastructure with out dealing with penalties.
Citing an instance, Adebayo mentioned:
- “In England, if you happen to crash right into a telecommunications pole whereas driving, the state prosecutes the offender, not the telecoms supplier.
- “This highlights the seriousness of damaging public infrastructure, which can lead to important penalties, together with imprisonment.”
The ALTON boss burdened the necessity to apply the same strategy to defending Nigeria’s Essential Nationwide Infrastructure (CNI).
He added that by doing so, the federal government wouldn’t solely be defending the business’s infrastructure but additionally guaranteeing the continued provision of important communication providers to the Nigerian individuals.
What you need to know
In August 2024, President Bola Tinubu signed an official gazette designating telecom infrastructure as important nationwide info infrastructure and making it a legal offence for anybody to wilfully destroy such infrastructure within the nation.
Based on the Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Financial system, Dr Bosun Tijani, the gazette, ‘Designation and Safety of Essential Nationwide Data Infrastructure Order, 2024’, is a major step that will strengthen and defend investments within the ICT sector.
Nevertheless, that was not the primary time such a declaration could be made. In June 2020, the fast previous Minister of Communications, Dr. Isa Pantami introduced the same motion by former President Muhammadu Buhari.
Based on Pantami, Buhari authorized and in addition directed these crucial bodily protecting measures be put in place to safeguard telecommunications infrastructure deployed throughout the nation.
That pronouncement did not have any affect as vandalism of the infrastructure has remained a every day incidence throughout the nation to this point.
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