FG to begin rollout of 3,700 telecom towers in rural communities by October 2026

The Federal Government of Nigeria has announced plans to roll out 3,700 telecom towers nationwide, primarily for rural and underserved communities with poor voice and internet connectivity. The deployment is expected to begin in October 2026.

While disclosing this on Tuesday after briefing President Bola Tinubu at the State House in Abuja, the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, explained that the rollout is expected to provide network coverage for over 20 million Nigerians in these underserved areas. 

“Today, we’re in a place where, before the end of the year, we’ll also start to deploy close to 3,700 towers. It’s taken a lot to put this project together, raising the capital for it, but we are at a point where we should now start deploying around October,” the minister said. 

The planned rollout comes at a time when the Nigerian telecoms landscape is growing rapidly. With nearly 190 million phone users and 157.4 million internet users, Nigeria is experiencing massive onboarding into its digital and connectivity infrastructure. 

While there is a need to expand infrastructure and improve network access, a purpose for inclusiveness arises. Despite the recent surge in smartphone acquisition, poor network coverage in rural Nigeria remains a challenge that continues to widen the digital divide. Deploying 3,700 dedicated towers to these communities makes them an integral part of economic development.

Also, the project comes amid users’ continued reports of slow speeds, dropped calls and outages across various networks. The deployment of new sites and infrastructure elevation signals attempts to ease pressure on existing towers and improve their service delivery for better performance.

This isn’t the first time the federal government is pushing such an intervention project. In 2025, it rolled out a nationwide deployment of 4,000 new telecom towers in a bid to expand digital access and strengthen the country’s broadband backbone. The towers span across all geopolitical zones, with priority given to communities that still struggle with weak or non-existent mobile coverage. 

In a similar development, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) stated in its New Year statement that Nigerian telecom operators rolled out 2,800 towers in 2025, as part of a broader push to strengthen network coverage and internet penetration nationwide. 

For the country’s digital backbone to support a reliable network service, a comprehensive expansion project across rural and urban Nigeria is needed to attain the $1 trillion digital economy by 2030. 

Also Read: NCC calls for evidence-based telecom regulation across Africa.

Telecom tower upgrade and 90,000 km fibre deployment

Another major highlight of the Minister’s briefing is the long-awaited nationwide broadband rollout. According to Bosun Tijani, the federal government will begin rolling out the 90,000-kilometre fibre optic network across the country within weeks.

“In a few weeks, Nigerians will begin to see us laying fibre across the country. This project will transform Nigeria for good,” he said

The project, expected to improve broadband connectivity and accelerate Nigeria’s digital economy, has accumulated over $900 million in financing commitments from international development partners such as World Bank Group ($500 million), African Development Bank (AfDB) ($200 million loan), and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) ($100 million investment).

The estimated $2 billion project has seen a $1 billion local loan allocation approved by the federal government and a €22 million (approx. $24 million) direct grant as part of its broader Digital Economy Package.

Project Bridge has been tipped to power Nigeria’s broadband penetration beyond 70% and be a major fuel for Nigeria’s broader digital economy ambition. Its scale is set to cover every state, geopolitical zone, local government area and ward, to improve internet access and service quality nationwide.