Nigerian Government Approves N24.20 Billion for Free Broadband Internet in 75 Public Places

Isa Pantami, the minister of Communications and Digital Economy disclosed that The Federal Executive Council (FEC), yesterday, approved two contracts worth N24.20 billion for provision of free broadband Internet connectivity in 75 public places, including 20 airports, tertiary institutions and markets nationwide.

His Statement : 

“President Buhari has approved two memos for the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC). In these two memos, certain intervention projects are going to be implemented by the Federal Government, through NCC, of providing Internet in 20 selected airports in Nigeria and higher institutions of learning, and also some markets to support micro, small and medium enterprises.”

The duration for the project is four months minimum and maximum of five months and there is a budgetary provision for that. Pantami said that the fund to sponsor the implementation has been secured by the administration of president Muhammadu Buhari. 

“For universities, it’s because we have learned bitter and better lessons during the COVID-19, so we don’t want to go back to that, we want to ensure that students and staff benefit from unlimited internet. For airports, we know the difficulty when you land without any connectivity. So it will even at least make our airports lively, if there is at least internet connectivity that is for free”, he said.

The Minister of Environment, Mohammed Abdullahi, told reporters that the projects were aimed at facilitating efficient and cost-effective approaches to contamination management and environmental restoration while supporting the well-being and welfare of the people who have been impacted by the negative effects of contamination in those areas.

This ambitious plan however, is not without its challenges. There are potential obstacles that could cause a hindrance to the success of the project. Technical issues, maintenance, sustainability and security are major concerns and the irregularity of this initiative may also contribute to these challenges.

Despite all the challenges, FG’s plan to provide free internet facilities to 20 airports, varsities and markets is a bold an commendable move that has the potential to spur innovation within the economy. It remains to be seen whether the success of this project will be a reality or not.