FG threatens sanctions on Airtel, MTN, Glo and 9mobile for worsening network quality

The Federal Government has warned the country’s telecoms operators, including Airtel Nigeria, MTN Nigeria, Globacom and 9mobile, that they risk regulatory sanctions if they fail to urgently improve the quality of their services across the country.

Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy Minister Bosun Tijani raised the alarm in a statement on Sunday, stressing that ongoing reforms in the sector were not designed to justify poor performance but to strengthen accountability and service delivery.

Tijani said Nigeria’s long-standing connectivity challenges are structural, rooted in years of underinvestment in critical infrastructure and operational constraints that have prevented telecom operators from providing reliable services.

According to him, the federal government has already initiated far-reaching interventions aimed at stabilizing the sector and restoring investor confidence.

“When we took office, it was clear that Nigeria’s connectivity challenges were structural, driven by years of underinvestment in infrastructure and constraints that limited operators’ ability to provide quality service,” he said.

He explained that the Government has been pursuing both long-term and immediate solutions, including securing World Bank-led financial support for the deployment of fiber infrastructure nationwide under the Project BRIDGE initiative.

He added that the rollout of fiber infrastructure, along with new telecommunications towers under NUCAP, will begin before the end of the year, while the expansion of satellite connectivity is also ramping up.

On immediate reforms, the minister said the government has stabilized the sector through tariff adjustments, tax harmonization efforts and the designation of telecommunications infrastructure as critical national infrastructure, all aimed at improving the vitality of the sector.

“These measures have restored operators’ profitability and created a more transparent and market-driven environment, giving telcos the ability to invest in network improvements,” Tijani said.

He, however, insisted that the responsibility now rests with operators to ensure better service delivery to Nigerians.

“It is now the responsibility of telecom operators such as MTN Nigeria, Airtel Nigeria, Globacom and 9mobile to take all necessary measures to resolve network challenges and provide the level of service that Nigerians expect,” he said.

The minister further noted that the Nigerian Communications Commission was fully empowered to monitor compliance, enforce service standards and impose fines on non-compliant operators.

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