The Federal Government has begun processes to clear the backlog of Export Expansion Grant (EEG) payments and reform the scheme for sustainability.

The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Jumoke Oduwole, said this at a stakeholders engagement on the EEG scheme in Abuja on Thursday.

Mrs Oduwole said the scheme had faced difficulties, with payments outstanding since 2020, leaving the current administration with significant payment backlogs.

She said the backlog required validation and verification of claims submitted by exporters, involving several government agencies.

According to her, the Federal Ministry of Finance, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and other relevant agencies are involved in the process.

The minister said the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment anchored the EEG as an export promotion tool under the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC).

She said the government was pursuing two pathways: clearing outstanding payments and restructuring the scheme to make it sustainable.

The minister said the reforms aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and the goal of building a one trillion dollar economy.

She said the agenda prioritised economic diversification and non-oil exports as part of efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s productive capacity.

Mrs Oduwole said Nigerian non-oil exporters had recorded growth in both volume and value over the past two years.

She said the government would continue to incentivise exporters sustainably because the sector could create jobs and expand the global market for Nigerian products.

The minister said the government had also been working to improve market access through trade agreements, including the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
She said payments already approved in May 2023 would be transmitted to the 10th National Assembly for consideration and approval.

Mrs Oduwole explained that the National Assembly would carry out its duties legislative before the Federal Government could issue the necessary instruments for payment.

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“President Tinubu has also approved earmarking 40 per cent of the NEST Fund toward a trade facilitation fund.
“The independently managed fund will provide a sustainable pathway for settling EEG obligations and supporting trade facilitation.
“Once the National Assembly approves the payments, government can issue promissory notes through the Debt Management Office to clear the backlog.
“The government will thereafter establish a reformed framework for export expansion incentives,” she said.

According to Mrs Oduwole, the current EEG structure is unsustainable because it is too expensive and has no closing date.
She said the reformed scheme would discourage the export of raw materials and place greater emphasis on value-added and finished products.

The minister said the scheme would also support emerging businesses and target sectors requiring assistance to improve their export competitiveness.

Mrs Oduwole said the government had engaged stakeholders, including the NEPC and the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria Export Group, to develop a sustainable way forward for the scheme.

(NAN)

Nigeria’s fibre infrastructure deployment has crossed 101,000 kilometres, with Lagos, the Federal Capital Territory and six other states accounting for nearly 45% of the national footprint, according to state-level official data reviewed by Technology Times.

Nigeria’s digital infrastructure landscape is showing a broadening fibre footprint across the country, but the distribution of that infrastructure remains markedly uneven, with a relatively small group of states emerging as the country’s most extensively deployed markets.

An analysis of state-by-state digital infrastructure deployment data released by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) shows 101,148.36 kilometres of fibre deployed across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The data, which also tracks base transceiver station (BTS) sites and operators, provides a detailed picture of the geographical distribution of telecommunications infrastructure across the country.

Technology Times’ analysis segments the 37 jurisdictions into four categories based on fibre deployment: Fibre Leaders, High-growth markets, Established/mid-tier markets, and Emerging/under-deployed markets. The segmentation reveals a pronounced concentration at the top of the market.

Eight jurisdictions classified as Fibre Leaders, each with at least 4,000km of fibre deployed, account for 45,371.22km, or approximately 44.9% of the national fibre footprint.

At the other end of the spectrum, seven jurisdictions classified as Emerging/under-deployed markets, each with less than 1,500km, collectively account for only 7,169.95km, representing about 7.1% of the national deployment.

The figures point to substantial progress in the expansion of Nigeria’s digital infrastructure while also highlighting the scale of the deployment gap that remains between the country’s strongest connectivity markets and its least-deployed states.

Lagos remains in a class of its own

Lagos is the dominant fibre market in the country, with 11,586.70km of deployed fibre, according to the dataset.

The figure places Lagos substantially ahead of every other jurisdiction. The FCT, which ranks second, has 6,973.13km, meaning Lagos has approximately 4,614km more fibre than the federal capital.

Lagos alone therefore accounts for more than one-tenth of the fibre deployed across the jurisdictions covered by the data.

The state also records 7,996 BTS sites, the highest figure in the dataset by a wide margin.

Its operator ecosystem is equally extensive, comprising Globacom, IHS, MTN, GBB, Airtel, MainOne, Fibreworld, EMTS, Phase3, Swiftnet, Broadbased, Layer3, Spectranet and ATC.

The combination of extensive fibre infrastructure, a large BTS footprint and the presence of numerous network and infrastructure providers underlines the exceptional density of Nigeria’s digital infrastructure in Lagos.

The figures indicate that Lagos remains the country’s primary connectivity hub, where multiple infrastructure networks have developed in response to concentrated demand from businesses, financial institutions, technology companies, consumers and other users of high-capacity digital services.

Abuja anchors the second pole of deployment

The FCT, Abuja, is the second-largest fibre market with 6,973.13km of deployment and 2,884 BTS sites.

Its fibre footprint is more than half that of Lagos but remains significantly ahead of every other jurisdiction except the commercial and industrial markets in the country’s top tier.

The FCT also has one of the broadest operator ecosystems in the dataset, with Globacom, BCN, IHS, MTN, Airtel, GBB, MainOne, EMTS, Phase3, IMBL, Layer3 and Spectranet represented.

Together, Lagos and the FCT account for 18,559.83km, representing approximately 18.4% of the entire fibre footprint in the dataset.

The concentration is significant because it means almost one-fifth of Nigeria’s recorded fibre deployment is located in just two jurisdictions.

Eight Fibre Leaders dominate the top tier

Beyond Lagos and Abuja, six states have crossed the 4,000km mark: Edo, Kano, Rivers, Kaduna, Ogun and Delta.

Edo records 4,789.72km, Kano 4,616.71km, Rivers 4,616.01km, Kaduna 4,339.85km, Ogun 4,246.48km, and Delta 4,202.62km.

Technology Times classifies these eight jurisdictions, including Lagos and the FCT, as Fibre Leaders.

Collectively, they account for 45,371.22km, equivalent to approximately 44.9 per cent of the national fibre deployment contained in the dataset.

The geographical composition of this group is also notable.

It includes major markets in the South-West, South-South, South-East/North-Central corridor and Northern Nigeria. Lagos and Ogun provide a powerful South-West concentration; Edo provides a major South-South and national corridor; Rivers and Delta reinforce connectivity in the oil-producing region; while Kano and Kaduna represent major northern markets.

The emergence of these states as fibre leaders suggests that deployment is not simply following population concentration. Commercial activity, regional connectivity, enterprise demand, industrial development and the strategic importance of particular cities and transport corridors are also likely to influence where infrastructure is concentrated.

Seven states form the high-growth market

The second category comprises states with 2,500km to 3,999km of deployed fibre.

Technology Times classifies Oyo, Niger, Benue, Kogi, Ondo, Plateau and Anambra as High-growth markets.

Oyo leads this group with 3,585.15km, followed by Niger at 3,383.43km and Benue at 3,187.34km.

Kogi has 2,633.81km, Ondo 2,592.80km, Plateau 2,567km, and Anambra 2,547.34km.

Together, the seven states account for 20,496.87km, or about 20.3% of the national deployment.

This is a strategically important segment because these states already have substantial fibre infrastructure but remain below the 4,000km threshold used to define the leading group.

Oyo, for instance, is only about 415km short of that threshold based on the dataset.

The high-growth category also provides one of the clearest indications that fibre deployment is spreading beyond Nigeria’s most established telecommunications markets.

The presence of Niger, Benue, Kogi and Plateau in this group indicates that substantial infrastructure deployment is taking place across central and northern corridors, while Oyo, Ondo and Anambra demonstrate strong fibre footprints in the southern part of the country.

Fifteen states form the established and mid-tier market

The largest segment comprises 15 jurisdictions with between 1,500km and 2,499km of fibre.

These are Kwara, Enugu, Bauchi, Sokoto, Cross River, Imo, Katsina, Osun, Nasarawa, Abia, Gombe, Akwa Ibom, Adamawa, Taraba and Yobe.

Kwara leads this category with 2,410.13km, followed by Enugu at 2,319.46km, Bauchi at 2,161.51km and Sokoto at 2,131.51km.

Cross River records 2,039.68km, while Imo has 1,998.27km.

The remaining states in the segment range from Katsina’s 1,887.47km to Yobe’s 1,526.82km.

Collectively, the 15 states account for 28,110.32km, or approximately 27.8% of the national fibre footprint.

This group is particularly important because it demonstrates the breadth of Nigeria’s infrastructure development.

Unlike the Fibre Leaders, whose deployment levels are concentrated in eight jurisdictions, the established/mid-tier category stretches across a much wider geographical area.

It includes states from the North-West, North-East, North-Central, South-East and South-South.

The data therefore suggests that Nigeria’s fibre infrastructure is no longer exclusively a story of Lagos, Abuja and a handful of major commercial centres.

A significant second layer of infrastructure has emerged across the country.

Seven jurisdictions remain below 1,500km

At the lower end of the deployment spectrum are Ekiti, Kebbi, Zamfara, Borno, Jigawa, Bayelsa and Ebonyi.

Technology Times classifies these jurisdictions as Emerging/under-deployed markets, reflecting their fibre footprints of less than 1,500km.

Ekiti records 1,486.73km, Kebbi 1,355.83km, Zamfara 1,100.98km, Borno 1,012.52km, Jigawa 970.10km, Bayelsa 656.87km, and Ebonyi 586.92km.

The seven states collectively account for 7,169.95km, or only about 7.1% of the fibre deployed across the 37 jurisdictions.

The gap is most visible at the bottom of the table.

Ebonyi’s 586.92km is just over 5% of Lagos’ 11,586.70km. Bayelsa’s 656.87km is also substantially below the footprint recorded in the leading markets.

However, Technology Times wishes to indicate that the classification should not be interpreted as a measure of broadband quality or Internet usage in those states. Fibre kilometres measure physical deployment; they do not independently establish how much of the infrastructure is active, where it is located, how many users it serves, network capacity, service affordability or the quality of the resulting broadband experience.

Fibre deployment and BTS sites reveal different infrastructure patterns

The table also provides an interesting comparison between fibre deployment and BTS infrastructure.

Lagos leads both measures, with 11,586.70km of fibre and 7,996 BTS sites.

But the relationship is not uniform across the country.

Ogun, for example, has 4,246.48km of fibre and 3,472 BTS sites, while Edo has more fibre at 4,789.72km but records 2,138 BTS sites.

Rivers has 4,616.01km of fibre and 2,593 BTS sites, while Oyo has 3,585.15km of fibre and 2,345 BTS sites.

These variations suggest that fibre deployment is serving a broader infrastructure role than simply connecting mobile base stations.

Fibre can support mobile backhaul, enterprise connectivity, fixed broadband, data centres, Internet service providers, cloud infrastructure and other high-capacity digital services.

The data therefore points to a telecommunications infrastructure ecosystem in which fibre and wireless infrastructure are complementary rather than interchangeable.

Operator diversity is another defining feature

The NCC data also reveals significant variation in the number of infrastructure operators present across states. The leading markets generally have multiple providers.

Lagos has the largest operator ecosystem in the table, while the FCT, Kano, Ogun, Edo, Kaduna, Delta and Rivers also show significant operator representation.

At the other end, some of the under-deployed markets have fewer providers.

This difference matters because the depth of an infrastructure market can influence the availability of alternative routes, competition, network resilience and the ability of businesses and institutions to obtain connectivity services.

The data does not, however, establish the market share or utilisation of individual operators, so conclusions about competitive dominance would require additional information.

Nigeria’s next fibre challenge is distribution

The overall picture from the NCC fibre deployment across Nigeria is therefore one of significant infrastructure expansion accompanied by persistent geographical concentration.

The country has crossed the 100,000km mark in the dataset, but almost 45% of the fibre footprint is concentrated in the eight Fibre Leaders.

Meanwhile, 15 established/mid-tier states account for another 27.8%, while the seven high-growth markets contribute 20.3%. This leaves just over 7% of the national deployment in the seven Emerging/under-deployed markets.

The implication is that Nigeria’s fibre challenge is becoming increasingly less about whether fibre exists and more about where it exists, how deeply it penetrates local markets, and how effectively it is converted into usable connectivity.

The Nigerian telecoms regulator, NCC, has continued to emphasise faster fibre and Fibre-to-the-Home deployment as critical to expanding broadband access and supporting Nigeria’s digital economy.

For the states already in the Fibre Leaders category, the next challenge may increasingly involve utilisation, redundancy, resilience, last-mile connections and capacity expansion.

For the High-growth markets, the priority is likely to be sustaining deployment momentum and moving infrastructure deeper into secondary cities and economic clusters.

For the Established/mid-tier markets, the opportunity lies in converting existing infrastructure into broader economic participation.

And for the Emerging/under-deployed markets, the central issue is closing the physical infrastructure gap.

The significance of this distinction will become more pronounced as digital services become increasingly dependent on reliable high-capacity networks.

Nigeria’s digital economy cannot be built solely on infrastructure concentrated in its largest commercial centres. The ability of businesses, schools, hospitals, government institutions, financial services providers and households in less-connected markets to participate in the digital economy will increasingly depend on the availability and quality of local connectivity infrastructure.

The data reviewed by Technology Times therefore presents a two-sided picture.

On one side, Nigeria has built a substantial fibre infrastructure footprint extending across all 36 states and the FCT. On the other hand, the distribution of that infrastructure remains highly uneven.

Lagos and Abuja remain the dominant poles, eight jurisdictions have established themselves as Fibre Leaders, seven are moving into the High-growth category, 15 occupy the Established/mid-tier space, while seven remain Emerging/under-deployed.

The next phase of Nigeria’s connectivity story will consequently be defined not merely by adding more kilometres to the national fibre map, but by narrowing the distance between the leaders and the least-deployed markets.