New cost-based model aims to end repeated road excavations, lower fibre deployment costs and accelerate broadband expansion across Nigeria
The Nigerian Communications Commission and key industry stakeholders have begun developing a cost-based pricing framework for sharing underground telecommunications ducts under the Federal Government’s Dig Once policy, in a move aimed at reducing repeated road excavations and accelerating broadband infrastructure deployment nationwide.
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The initiative was unveiled on Wednesday during the Second Stakeholders’ Forum on the Consultancy Study for the Development of a Pricing Mechanism and Cost-Based Structure for Sharing Ducts under the Dig Once Policy in Abuja.
The proposed framework is expected to lower the cost of fibre-optic deployment, encourage infrastructure sharing among operators and improve broadband penetration by enabling multiple telecommunications companies to use existing underground ducts instead of repeatedly excavating roads.
The Dig Once policy requires telecommunications ducts to be installed whenever roads are constructed or rehabilitated, creating shared infrastructure that can accommodate future fibre-optic installations with minimal disruption.
Speaking at the forum, Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Nadungu Gagare, described the initiative as a key component of the Federal Government’s digital infrastructure strategy.
“The Dig Once Policy remains one of the Federal Government’s strategic interventions for accelerating fibre infrastructure development, reducing the cost of broadband expansion, preventing unnecessary road excavation and promoting efficient use of national resources,” Gagare said.
“However, its full potential can only be realised when supported by a pricing framework that is transparent, commercially viable, equitable and encourages infrastructure sharing.”
Gagare added that the framework should promote collaboration, improve investor confidence and ensure efficient use of national infrastructure while safeguarding the public interest.
Earlier, Director of Policy, Competition and Economic Analysis at the NCC, Ayuba Shuaibu, said the commission commissioned consultants in 2023 to address the absence of a pricing mechanism, which had remained a significant gap in the draft Dig Once policy.
“The Dig Once initiative is fundamentally aimed at reducing the cost and complexity of network deployment by promoting coordinated civil works and the shared use of underground duct infrastructure,” Shuaibu said.
He explained that the proposed pricing model would establish equitable access for infrastructure users while supporting sustainable investment in broadband expansion.
According to him, the stakeholders’ meeting marked a critical stage in the consultation process, allowing industry participants to review the consultants’ findings before the framework is finalised.
“The commission remains committed to a transparent, inclusive and consultative process. Our objective is to arrive at a pricing structure that balances the interests of infrastructure providers, access seekers and, ultimately, consumers, while also encouraging continued investment in broadband infrastructure,” he added.
Delivering the keynote address, Managing Director of Dimension Data Nigeria, Olugbenga Olabiyi, represented by Lead Solutions Architect and Head of IT Systems and Infrastructure, Akpevwe Egbelughe, described repeated civil engineering works as one of the biggest barriers to broadband expansion in Nigeria.
“The principle behind the Dig Once Policy is simple, yet transformative. Whenever roads are constructed, rehabilitated or opened for maintenance, provisions should simultaneously be made for telecommunications ducts and conduit systems,” Olabiyi said.
He noted that embedding duct infrastructure during road construction would significantly reduce deployment costs, shorten project timelines, minimise traffic disruption, protect public infrastructure and accelerate broadband penetration.
Olabiyi further proposed the creation of a National Passive Infrastructure Registry to provide visibility into available ducts, spare capacity and ownership, alongside a digital marketplace where operators could lease and manage duct capacity more efficiently.
He also stressed the need for stronger collaboration between the Federal Government and state governments, particularly in harmonising Right of Way administration.
Cross River State Commissioner for Science and Technology, Justin Beshel, welcomed the proposed framework, recalling that the state pioneered a shared duct arrangement with the NCC in 2012 through a jointly owned 120-kilometre fibre backbone project.
“We are particularly happy to be part of this structure, especially concerning the sharing formula and the cost-based structure for sharing the ducts built under this Dig Once policy,” Beshel said.
Also contributing, Director-General of the Oyo State Infrastructure Management and Control Agency, Adebayo Akande, cautioned that pricing must strike the right balance to ensure sustainability.
“The pricing mechanism for shared ducts has two ways to fail, and both are fatal.
If we price it too low, there’s no revenue to maintain the asset, and the duct degrades. If we price it too high, we just build a tollgate, and we defeat the purpose,” Akande said.
He noted that Oyo State had already adopted a harmonised Right of Way regime and pledged support for the NCC’s implementation of the national framework.
The consultation forms part of the commission’s broader efforts to modernise Nigeria’s digital infrastructure and remove longstanding bottlenecks to broadband expansion.
Industry stakeholders have repeatedly identified repeated road excavations, inconsistent Right of Way policies and inadequate infrastructure sharing as major obstacles to achieving the Federal Government’s broadband penetration targets.
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If successfully implemented, the cost-based framework is expected to reduce deployment costs, improve collaboration among network operators and support faster, more efficient expansion of fibre-optic infrastructure across the country.
David Okere is a journalist and contributor to Freelanews.com, covering business, governance, public affairs, and human-interest stories with a commitment to accuracy, balance, and public interest reporting.
