Indications have emerged that Nigeria may soon commence activities to develop the third National Broadband Plan for a new five-year period. The Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr Aminu Maida, revealed this in a document cited yesterday.

Speaking on policies shaping the telecoms sector, Maida said several newer policies shaped today’s landscape, including the Revised National Policy for SIM Card Registration (2021), which implementation was completed last year; the National Policy on 5G, which enabled the commercial launch of 5G services; and the Nigerian National Broadband Plan (2020–2025), which would expire this year.

The Guardian recalls that the first National Broadband Plan (NBP) for Nigeria covered the period from 2013 to 2018. It was a strategic document designed to accelerate the deployment and adoption of high-speed Internet to foster socioeconomic development and diversify the economy.

The Plan essentially provided a roadmap to increase the penetration of affordable and accessible broadband services nationwide. The baseline was six per cent in 2013, with the target of meeting 30 per cent of the population by 2018. Arguably, the plan achieved its headline target, with broadband penetration reaching approximately 31.48 per cent by 2018.

It faced difficulties in achieving its fixed broadband targets due to persistent issues with implementing uniform Right of Way (RoW) charges across states, which slowed the vital rollout of fibre infrastructure beyond major cities.

The first NBP was foundational, creating the momentum and providing the blueprint that informed the more ambitious National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) (2020-2030) and the Nigerian National Broadband Plan (2020-2025) that followed.

The second Broadband Plan, which targeted 70 per cent population reach by December 2025, is currently 21.19 per cent short of the target with three months left.