ABUJA — The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has raised the alarm over more than 5,000 fibre-optic cable cuts recorded across the country in the first six months of 2026, largely attributed to road construction, excavation, and other civil works .
CDA News Nigeria gathered that the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, made this known on Tuesday at a stakeholders’ workshop on the protection of fibre-optic cables held at the National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC), Office of the National Security Adviser, in Abuja .
CDA News Nigeria reports that Maida described the recurring damage as capable of disrupting essential digital services and imposing significant costs on citizens, businesses, and the wider economy . He noted that while road contractors do not deliberately seek to disconnect communities, the lack of a dependable system of early coordination between contractors, telecom operators, and government agencies is largely responsible for the damage .
To address the challenge, the Permanent Secretaries of the Federal Ministry of Works and the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy have inaugurated the Standing Committee on the Protection of Fibre Optic Cables . The NCC chief noted that the committee’s membership has been expanded to include the Office of the National Security Adviser, reflecting the security implications of protecting telecommunications infrastructure, which has been designated as Critical National Information Infrastructure .
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