GICL Completes the Rollout of 10,000km of Fiber Optic Cables
IHS Nigeria, part of the IHS Holding Limited (NYSE: IHS) (“IHS Towers”) group, one of the largest independent owners, operators, and developers of shared communications infrastructure in the world by tower count, has today announced the completed rollout of more than 10,000 kilometers of fiber optic cables across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory through its subsidiary, Global Independent Connect Limited (GICL).
This is an important milestone that serves to support the Federal Government’s National Broadband Plan targeting 70% broadband penetration in Nigeria by 2025. More broadly, IHS Nigeria continues to deploy Fiber-to-the-Tower (FTTT) to provide increased transmission capacity to help improve the performance of fiber access networks and introduction of next-generation technologies, such as 5G services.
By connecting towers, IHS Nigeria is helping bring fiber infrastructure to core metropolitan areas and support the delivery of digital services to homes, corporates, and public institutions in partnership with its customers. In addition to GICL’s fiber optic network, IHS Nigeria has also implemented mobile network coverage in over 580 previously unconnected rural communities in Nigeria through its rural telephony program. By helping deliver voice and data services to these communities, IHS Nigeria is working to meet MNO’s rollout targets and support the Federal Government’s digital inclusion agenda.
Kazeem Oladepo, GICL, Vice President, commented, “Limited metropolitan and long-haul fiber optic networks continue to be an obstacle to the improvement of existing communication services, and the introduction of emerging technologies and digital services in Nigeria. Our approach to fiber optic cable deployment concentrates on implementing networks on an open access, shared infrastructure basis, providing robust and scalable fiber pairs and alternate ducts to ensure multiple operators can utilize the infrastructure.
Through collaborations with multiple stakeholders, including our customers, state and federal agencies, we have achieved a significant volume of fiber optic cable network delivery in under three years. We are committed to supporting the Federal Government’s digital economy objectives, and this milestone demonstrates the possibilities of accelerated critical infrastructure roll-out when key stakeholders align their objectives.
