Nigeria: NCC Mandates Telecom Operators to Notify Consumers of Network Outages and Offer Compensation

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has issued a new directive requiring all licensed telecommunications operators in the country to publicly notify consumers of major network outages. The directive stipulates that operators must disclose the cause of service disruptions, the geographic areas affected, and the estimated time for service restoration.

According to the NCC, telecom service providers must use media channels to disseminate this information and, in cases of planned outages, provide at least one week’s notice. This requirement is contained in the Directive on Reportage of Major Network Outages by Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) and forms part of the Commission’s broader efforts to promote consumer protection, enhance service quality, and foster transparency across the telecoms sector.

The directive applies to mobile network operators, internet service providers, and last-mile service providers. It also mandates that operators offer proportional compensation—including validity extensions—for outages exceeding 24 hours, in accordance with the Consumer Code of Practice Regulations.

The NCC defines major network outages under three key scenarios:

1. Operational Disruptions – Such as fiber cuts resulting from construction activities, vandalism, or force majeure events affecting 5% or more of an operator’s subscribers, or five or more Local Government Areas (LGAs).

2. Site Isolation Events – Unplanned outages involving 100 or more sites, or at least 5% of total sites (whichever is lower), or the complete isolation of one cluster for a minimum of 30 minutes.

3. Network Degradation in High-Traffic States – Any outage that significantly affects service quality in the top 10 states ranked by traffic volume, as identified periodically by the Commission.

To operationalize the directive, the NCC has launched a Major Outage Reporting Portal accessible via www.ncc.gov.ng. The portal provides real-time reporting and also identifies the entity responsible for each disruption, thereby enhancing accountability.

Engr. Edoyemi Ogor, Director of Technical Standards and Network Integrity at the NCC, confirmed that the Commission piloted the portal in collaboration with telecom operators prior to the official rollout.

“By offering real-time and transparent outage information, we are institutionalising a culture of accountability within the telecommunications ecosystem,” said Ogor. “This measure also ensures that entities responsible for sabotaging telecom infrastructure are held accountable.”

Ogor further noted that the directive aligns with the Federal Government’s commitment under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Executive Order, which classifies telecommunications infrastructure as Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII). The order underscores the importance of protecting telecom assets given their strategic relevance to national security, economic resilience, and the daily lives of Nigerians.