The Nigerian Communications Commission and relevant stakeholders have commenced moves to end the repeated excavation of roads for fibre-optic deployment by developing a cost-based pricing framework for sharing underground telecom ducts under the Federal Government’s Dig Once policy.

The initiative, unveiled at the Second Stakeholders’ Forum on the Consultancy Study for the Development of a Pricing Mechanism and Cost-Based Structure for Sharing Ducts under the Dig Once Policy in Abuja on Wednesday, is expected to lower broadband deployment costs, promote infrastructure sharing and accelerate fibre rollout nationwide.

The Dig Once policy seeks to ensure that telecommunications ducts are installed whenever roads are constructed or rehabilitated, allowing multiple operators to deploy fibre through existing underground infrastructure instead of repeatedly excavating roads.

Speaking at the forum, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Nadungu Gagare, said the initiative formed part of the Federal Government’s efforts to deepen digital infrastructure and improve broadband access.

He said, “The Dig Once Policy remains one of the Federal Government’s strategic interventions for accelerating fibre infrastructure development, reducing the cost of broadband expansion, preventing unnecessary road excavation and promoting efficient use of national resources.

“However, its full potential can only be realised when supported by a pricing framework that is transparent, commercially viable, equitable and encourages infrastructure sharing.”

Gagare said the proposed framework would strengthen investor confidence while safeguarding the public interest. “Our collective objective should be to establish a framework that promotes collaboration rather than duplication, efficiency rather than waste, and sustainable growth rather than short-term gains,” he said.

Earlier, the Director of Policy, Competition and Economic Analysis at the NCC, Ayuba Shuaibu, said the commission engaged consultants in 2023 to address the absence of a pricing mechanism for shared ducts, which he described as a major gap in the draft Dig Once policy.

According to him, “The Dig Once initiative is fundamentally aimed at reducing the cost and complexity of network deployment by promoting coordinated civil works and the shared use of underground duct infrastructure.”

He added that without a well-defined pricing mechanism, “the objectives of efficiency, fairness and investment protection may not be fully realised.” Shuaibu explained that the study would provide “a structured and cost-based framework that ensures equitable access while supporting sustainable infrastructure development across the sector.”

He added that the commission had reached a critical stage where stakeholders would review the consultant’s findings and proposed pricing methodology before the framework is finalised.

“The commission remains committed to a transparent, inclusive and consultative process. Our objective is to arrive at a pricing structure that balances the interests of infrastructure providers, access seekers and, ultimately, consumers, while also encouraging continued investment in broadband infrastructure,” he said.

Delivering the keynote address, the Managing Director of Dimension Data Nigeria, Olugbenga Olabiyi, who was represented by the company’s Lead Solutions Architect and Head of IT Systems and Infrastructure, Akpevwe Egbelughe, said repeated civil engineering works remained one of the biggest obstacles to broadband expansion in Nigeria.

He said, “The principle behind the Dig Once Policy is simple, yet transformational. Whenever roads are constructed, rehabilitated or opened for maintenance, provisions should simultaneously be made for telecommunications ducts and conduit systems.”

He added, “By embedding appropriately sized conduit infrastructure during road construction, multiple operators can subsequently deploy fibre through existing ducts without repeatedly excavating the same roads.”

According to him, the policy would reduce capital expenditure for operators, shorten deployment timelines, minimise traffic disruption and environmental impact, protect public infrastructure from repeated damage and accelerate broadband penetration.

Olabiyi said infrastructure sharing would only succeed where access was governed by fairness, transparency and effective market oversight.

“The framework should allow infrastructure owners to recover investments and earn reasonable returns while ensuring that access seekers can deploy services at costs that encourage network expansion, competition and innovation,” he said.

He also proposed the establishment of a National Passive Infrastructure Registry to provide visibility into available ducts, spare capacity and ownership, as well as a digital marketplace through which operators could request, lease and manage duct capacity.

The technology expert further stressed the need for stronger collaboration between the Federal Government and state governments, noting that harmonised Right of Way administration would be critical to the success of the policy.

Also speaking, the Cross River State Commissioner for Science and Technology, Justin Beshel, said the state had pioneered a shared duct arrangement with the NCC in 2012 and welcomed the proposed national pricing framework.

He said Cross River partnered with the commission to build about 120 kilometres of fibre backbone, with ownership of the ducts shared between both parties.

Beshel said, “We are particularly happy to be part of this structure, especially concerning the sharing formula and the cost-based structure for sharing the ducts built under this Dig Once policy.” He expressed confidence that the proposed framework would minimise future disputes between governments and infrastructure providers.

The Director-General of the Oyo State Infrastructure Management and Control Agency, Adebayo Akande, said the pricing framework must reflect realities at the subnational level, where roads and rights of way are managed.

He said, “Dig Once, as we all know, at its heart, is a promise to those communities that we will open the ground once, will share what lies beneath, so that we do not tear the same street open five times for five operators as it used to be.”

Akande warned that charging too little for shared ducts would discourage maintenance, while excessive charges would undermine the purpose of infrastructure sharing.

“The pricing mechanism for shared ducts has two ways to fail, and both are fatal. If we price it too low, there’s no revenue to maintain the asset, and the duct degrades. If we price it too high, we just build a tollgate, and we defeat the purpose,” he said.

He added that Oyo State had adopted a harmonised Right of Way regime and stood ready to support the NCC in implementing the national framework.

The stakeholders’ forum formed part of the NCC’s ongoing consultation on a cost-based pricing framework for shared telecom duct infrastructure under the proposed Dig Once policy.

The framework is expected to promote equitable access to underground telecom infrastructure, reduce repeated road excavation, encourage long-term investment, and support faster broadband deployment across the country.