Operator repairs, upgrading infrastructure in 15 affected LGAs
Hope of improved nationwide telephone service quality may not be fulfilled any time soon, as telecom operators have recorded 5,478 fibre cuts in the last seven months.

Accusing road construction and vandalism as major culprits, MTN, which gave the data, said in July 2025, it recorded 760 fibre cuts nationwide alone, saying this had continued to impact service quality across the country.

MTN said one case of vandalism in the North-Eastern region was addressed through scheduled maintenance yesterday from 6:00 AM to 8:00 AM, affecting 101 sites across 15 councils in Kano, Adamawa, and Borno states.

The telco noted that it was just one example of the many ripple effects of vandalism, forcing operators to rebuild, reroute, and restore infrastructure to maintain a stable and reliable network.

According to MTN, which fixed some of the affected sites also over the weekend, the activity was part of efforts to permanently restore a previously damaged fibre infrastructure along the AFCOT–Bawo Village route in Adamawa State.

It explained that the upgrade involved cutting over traffic to a newly installed fibre span, a move the company said was necessary to eliminate recurrent damage and strengthen overall network stability, with downtime affecting 101 sites covering 2G, 3G, 4G, and enterprise services.

The affected areas include Nasarawa LGA in Kano State; Girei, Song, Mubi North, Hong, Gombi, Fufore, Mubi South, Madagali, Michika, Maiha, Chibok, and Yola North LGAs in Adamawa State; as well as Askira/Uba and Shani LGAs in Borno State.

According to the company, the route’s linear and unprotected nature makes temporary downtime unavoidable.