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The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has renewed its call for a 100% waiver of Right of Way (RoW) charges across all states in Nigeria, as part of efforts to eliminate a key barrier to broadband deployment and digital connectivity nationwide.
Speaking at a business roundtable themed “Right of Way and Protection of Broadband Infrastructure – The Road to Success in Broadband Investment and Connectivity,” held at the NCC Digital Economy Complex, Abuja, the Executive Vice Chairman of the Commission, Dr. Aminu Maida, emphasised the need for uniform and predictable RoW policies to accelerate digital infrastructure rollout.
Dr. Maida noted that between 2023 and 2025, five additional states — Adamawa, Bauchi, Enugu, Benue, and Zamfara — joined the initial six states that had previously waived RoW charges. This brings the total number of states implementing a full waiver to eleven.
The first set of states to eliminate the charges in 2023 were Anambra, Katsina, Kebbi, Nasarawa, Osun, and Plateau, following extensive engagement and advocacy by the NCC.
However, 17 states have maintained the harmonised rate of ₦145 per linear metre as agreed by the Nigerian Governors Forum, while several others still impose arbitrary fees ranging from ₦500 to ₦1,500 per metre, creating uneven costs and discouraging broadband investment.
“Our sustained engagement with state governments underscores our commitment to creating an enabling environment for broadband expansion,” Dr. Maida stated.
“Recognising the challenges posed by RoW charges, the Commission has intensified advocacy to ensure reduction or complete waiver of these fees. Our goal is a uniform and transparent RoW regime nationwide, backed by clear permitting service-level agreements.”
The NCC boss also urged state governments to adopt coordinated infrastructure planning, including “dig-once”policies, advance works notifications, and shared planning portals. These measures, he said, will prevent avoidable fibre cuts during road construction and reduce the overall cost of civil works.
As part of its broader regulatory interventions, Dr. Maida revealed that the NCC recently approved cost-reflective and competitive tariff rates to stimulate investment and enhance market stability. This, he said, has bolstered investor confidence and positioned Nigeria as an attractive destination for telecom infrastructure investments.
Telecom operators, in response, have committed over $1 billion in additional network rollout to improve broadband coverage and service capacity nationwide.
To complement these efforts, the Commission has commissioned a national wholesale fibre study aimed at facilitating interconnection between backbone providers and Internet Service Providers (ISPs). The initiative is expected to enhance last-mile connectivity and open up faster, more efficient backhaul networks.
By promoting a unified RoW framework and coordinated infrastructure deployment, the NCC aims to accelerate Nigeria’s journey toward ubiquitous broadband access, which remains a cornerstone of the nation’s digital economy agenda.
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