Telecommunications operators in Nigeria have collectively exceeded $1bn in capital investment and are set to upgrade 12,000 network sites in 2026 as part of efforts to improve service quality and expand coverage, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has said.
The Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Aminu Maida, disclosed this during a media briefing in Lagos, noting that the scale of planned upgrades marks a significant acceleration compared to previous years.
According to him, telecom operators carried out just over 300 site upgrades in 2025, but have committed to 12,000 upgrades in 2026, reflecting a sharp increase in infrastructure investment and network expansion.
“So far, 2,800 of those have been done, including about 63 new sites,” Maida said, adding that the industry is already outperforming last year’s total deployment figures.
The upgrades are expected to enhance both coverage and capacity, with operators deploying additional spectrum on existing 4G sites and converting legacy 2G and 3G infrastructure to more advanced 4G and 5G technologies. The move is aimed at addressing persistent service quality concerns and meeting rising data demand across the country.
Maida said the sustained capital injection by operators is critical to funding the expansion, revealing that at least one telecom company has already surpassed $1 billion in investment this year alone.
“We reported last year that we were over a billion. This year, one of them is already doing over a billion,” he said, underscoring the growing financial commitment within the sector.
Beyond physical infrastructure, the NCC has also taken steps to improve network performance through enhanced spectrum management. Maida explained that the commission facilitated several spectrum trades to enable operators to expand capacity and optimise network efficiency.
He described spectrum as the “highway” for telecom traffic, noting that wider and more efficient spectrum allocation translates directly into improved service delivery.
Under its secondary market framework, the NCC made available 100MHz of previously underutilised spectrum, which had been held by operators such as NATCOM and T2 (mobile), redistributing it among the country’s leading mobile network providers. In addition, the commission released a significant portion of its own 50MHz spectrum holdings to further support the industry.
“This was what enabled some of the site upgrades that I was referring to, so that the operators can have wider highways and better quality highways,” Maida said.
He added that lower frequency bands are particularly important for extending coverage to underserved and rural communities due to their wider propagation range.
On consumer protection, the NCC boss announced that the commission’s directive on compensation for subscribers affected by poor service would take immediate effect. The policy is designed to ensure that customers receive some form of redress when service quality falls below acceptable standards.
“The philosophy here was that it lets the people who are suffering get something back,” he said.
Industry analysts say the combination of increased capital expenditure, accelerated infrastructure rollout, and improved spectrum allocation could significantly enhance network performance if sustained. However, they note that consistent execution and regulatory oversight will be critical to ensuring that the planned upgrades translate into tangible improvements in user experience.
The NCC maintained that while progress is already evident, subscribers may need to exercise patience as ongoing investments take time to fully impact network quality nationwide.
