Nigeria has incorporated Bridge Open Access (Bridge OA), an independent special-purpose vehicle established to oversee Project BRIDGE, the Federal Government’s $2 billion nationwide broadband infrastructure programme, according to Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy Minister Dr. Bosun Tijani.
Tijani announced the incorporation through his official LinkedIn page, describing the development as a significant transition that moves Project BRIDGE from its planning and financing stages into actual nationwide infrastructure deployment.
Project BRIDGE is designed to deploy 90,000 kilometres of new open-access fibre-optic cable across Nigeria, increasing the country’s existing national fibre backbone from an estimated 30,000–35,000 kilometres to more than 120,000 kilometres.
The planned expansion is expected to extend high-speed broadband connectivity to all 774 local government areas, while also connecting schools, healthcare facilities, agricultural zones and communities that currently have limited access to fibre infrastructure.
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Bridge OA will operate under a wholesale open-access model rather than selling services directly to consumers, enabling telecom operators, internet service providers and enterprise networks to lease bandwidth through non-discriminatory access to the national infrastructure.
“Nigeria has reached another major milestone in the delivery of Project BRIDGE with the incorporation of Bridge Open Access (Bridge OA), the independent company that will deliver one of Africa’s largest open access fibre infrastructure programmes,” Tijani said.
“This marks the transition from planning to execution, creating the institutional platform that will complete strategic investor onboarding, accelerate nationwide broadband deployment, and position Nigeria as a regional digital connectivity hub for West Africa,” he added.
Consequently, the open-access structure is expected to reduce network deployment costs for operators while potentially lowering data tariffs and improving broadband affordability for consumers across Nigeria.
According to Tijani’s announcement, Bridge OA’s immediate priorities include completing strategic investor onboarding and accelerating nationwide infrastructure deployment, with the completed network expected to strengthen Nigeria’s position as a major regional connectivity hub for West Africa.
