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MTN Nigeria recently disclosed that it experienced over 5,400 fibre optic cable cuts between January and July 2025. This reason is because of road construction and vandalism, emerging as the leading threats to its network infrastructure.
The top network provider revealed in its weekend newsletter that 760 fibre cuts were recorded in July alone, bringing the total for the seven months to 5,478. In addition, the most damaging month was June, when 1,016 incidents disrupted services across several regions.
Furthermore, one of the most severe cases occurred recently. Interestingly, it knocked out services at 101 sites across 15 local government areas in Adamawa, Kano, and Borno States. However, the company has maintained that repair works on the vandalised lines will be on August 24.
According to MTN, “This is just one of the many ripple effects of vandalism. This has forced us to rebuild, reroute, and restore infrastructure to maintain a stable and reliable network.” Moreover, the company tendered an apology to its customers affected by the repeated outages.
Road Construction and Telecom Infrastructure Damage Influence Fibre Optic Cable Cuts
Beyond vandalism as a growing concern, road construction has also become the most significant contributor. This ugly event is responsible for more than 60 per cent of all fibre cuts. Essentially, State governments are currently embarking on ambitious road expansion projects to tackle infrastructure deficits. However, these works frequently damage buried cables.
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For instance, in Niger State, Governor Umaru Bago is undertaking one of the most significant projects there. He’s constructing more than 556 kilometres of roads, with a four-year target of over 2,000 kilometres at a cost exceeding ₦1.2 trillion.
The state’s commissioner for Communications Technology and Digital Economy, Suleiman Isah, confirmed that the administration has offered an alternative solution to telecom operators. He said, “Rather than digging the ground to lay fibre, we are providing our power lines for operators to use aerial technology.” Isah also explained, observing that the road projects cannot be halted despite their impact on connectivity.
NCC Raises Alarm Over Rising Fibre Cuts
In the same vein, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has raised concerns over the scale of damage. On August 15, its Executive Vice Chairman, Aminu Maida, disclosed that the telecom industry records an average of 1,100 fibre cuts every week.
Furthermore, he maintained that while Nigeria has already gazetted Critical National Infrastructure protections, the Commission collaborates and does awareness campaigns on immediate punitive measures.
Maida believes that “the NCC views enforcement as a measure of last resort. In essence, it’s one to be deployed only when all engagement and mediation avenues have been exhausted.” Additionally, “ when we do enforce, it is with the backing and cooperation of relevant security, legal, and oversight institutions,” he maintained. In the future, the NCC’s goal is not to penalize. Rather, they focus on preserving the integrity and continuity of national communications systems.
Above all, the growing wave of fibre optic cable cuts continues to threaten broadband connectivity in Nigeria. The development puts pressure on operators to adapt to new infrastructure strategies while balancing the rising cost of repairs.
