The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of the NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, made the call on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, during a high-level stakeholders' workshop hosted at the National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC), Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), in Abuja.
Dr. Maida stressed that Nigeria's drive to expand physical infrastructure must not come at the expense of the digital networks powering daily life, business, and national security.
“Our central message is simple: Nigeria must build the roads that connect our communities while protecting the fibre networks that connect our economy. We need both forms of infrastructure, and we need them to work together,” Maida stated.
Highlighting the scale of the crisis, the EVC disclosed that Nigeria recorded over 5,000 fibre-cut incidents in the first six months of 2026 alone, driven primarily by unchecked excavation and road works.
He recalled a major incident in February 2024 where fibre cuts triggered a near network-wide outage for a major telecom operator, disrupting millions of users and overloading alternative networks.
"To a machine operator on a construction site, it may appear to be one buried cable. To the nation, it can mean failed calls, stalled payments, interrupted services, and missed opportunities," Maida warned, reiterating that telecom infrastructure is a critical lifeline underpinning banking, healthcare, education, and emergency services.
Maida clarified that the initiative is not aimed at assigning blame, acknowledging that contractors do not deliberately cut cables nor do operators seek to impede road projects. Instead, he emphasized the urgent need for systemic, early-stage coordination.
To address the challenge, the Federal Ministry of Works and the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy recently established a Standing Committee on the Protection of Fibre Optic Cables.
Maida revealed that the committee's membership was recently expanded to include representatives from ONSA, reflecting the security implications of telecom disruptions following the designation of telecommunications as Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII).
This CNII status mandates that telecom assets be safeguarded with full legal, regulatory, and enforcement backing against damage.
The workshop, organized by the NCC alongside key public and private entities, is expected to produce a binding operational framework to institutionalize cable protection standard practices before, during, and after construction activities nationwide.
Dr. Maida stressed that Nigeria's drive to expand physical infrastructure must not come at the expense of the digital networks powering daily life, business, and national security.
“Our central message is simple: Nigeria must build the roads that connect our communities while protecting the fibre networks that connect our economy. We need both forms of infrastructure, and we need them to work together,” Maida stated.
Highlighting the scale of the crisis, the EVC disclosed that Nigeria recorded over 5,000 fibre-cut incidents in the first six months of 2026 alone, driven primarily by unchecked excavation and road works.
He recalled a major incident in February 2024 where fibre cuts triggered a near network-wide outage for a major telecom operator, disrupting millions of users and overloading alternative networks.
"To a machine operator on a construction site, it may appear to be one buried cable. To the nation, it can mean failed calls, stalled payments, interrupted services, and missed opportunities," Maida warned, reiterating that telecom infrastructure is a critical lifeline underpinning banking, healthcare, education, and emergency services.
Maida clarified that the initiative is not aimed at assigning blame, acknowledging that contractors do not deliberately cut cables nor do operators seek to impede road projects. Instead, he emphasized the urgent need for systemic, early-stage coordination.
To address the challenge, the Federal Ministry of Works and the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy recently established a Standing Committee on the Protection of Fibre Optic Cables.
Maida revealed that the committee's membership was recently expanded to include representatives from ONSA, reflecting the security implications of telecom disruptions following the designation of telecommunications as Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII).
This CNII status mandates that telecom assets be safeguarded with full legal, regulatory, and enforcement backing against damage.
The workshop, organized by the NCC alongside key public and private entities, is expected to produce a binding operational framework to institutionalize cable protection standard practices before, during, and after construction activities nationwide.
Chuks Egbune/DoP
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