The Executive Vice-Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Aminu Maida, has underscored the urgent need to safeguard Nigeria’s telecommunications infrastructure, describing it as a cornerstone of national stability, economic growth, and digital sovereignty.
Speaking at the second edition of the Strategic Stakeholders Meeting of the Association of Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) on Friday, August 15, 2025, in Abuja, Dr. Maida said Nigeria stands at a crucial juncture in its digital transformation journey, requiring resilience, inclusiveness, and collaboration to protect its digital ecosystem.
He stressed that the Presidential Order of June 2024, which designated telecommunications infrastructure as Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII), represents a landmark recognition of its importance to national security, economic development, and public service delivery.
“With 171 million mobile subscribers, a teledensity of 79.22 percent, and over 14.4 percent contribution to GDP, telecoms form the backbone of Nigeria’s digital economy. Any disruption to this infrastructure—whether from fibre cuts, vandalism, cyberattacks, or sabotage—could paralyse emergency services, financial systems, and governance,” Maida said.
The NCC boss outlined key measures being implemented to operationalise the Presidential Order, including nationwide mapping of critical assets, a CNII Protection Plan in collaboration with the Office of the National Security Adviser, stakeholder awareness campaigns, and partnerships with federal and state governments to protect fibre-optic deployments.
He noted that challenges such as high taxation, inconsistent state policies, and infrastructural vandalism threaten the sector’s growth, but assured that the NCC is actively mediating between operators and sub-national governments to remove bottlenecks.
While stressing collaboration as the first approach, Dr. Maida warned that enforcement actions would be taken where necessary to preserve the integrity of national communications systems.
“The Presidential Order is not self-executing. Its success depends on collective action—telecom operators, government agencies, security forces, lawmakers, and communities must all play their part. The NCC will continue to provide leadership, but we must work together to secure our digital future,” he said.
Dr. Maida urged stakeholders to embrace a five-pillar action plan focused on public awareness, stronger collaboration, improved information sharing, streamlined infrastructure deployment processes, and deterrence against vandalism.
He concluded with a call to action: “The security and resilience of our digital infrastructure is not negotiable. Let us commit to investing, collaborating, and protecting our networks so that Nigeria’s digital future remains resilient, inclusive, and unstoppable.”