The Federal Government has warned telecom operators to improve service quality or face regulatory sanctions, saying recent reforms have stabilised the sector and removed excuses for poor network performance.

Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, issued the warning in a statement on Sunday, emphasising that Nigeria’s connectivity gaps were largely structural, driven by years of underinvestment and constraints on operators.

Tijani said the government had tackled the problem through long-term infrastructure planning and immediate sector-stabilisation measures aimed at restoring sustainability and investor confidence.

He said the long-term reforms are focused on expanding infrastructure through new fibre deployment and tower rollout initiatives designed to close critical gaps in Nigeria’s digital backbone.

The minister noted that funding has been secured with support from the World Bank for Project BRIDGE, alongside additional investments in satellite capacity to boost nationwide coverage.

He added that these interventions are expected to transform connectivity over the next two to five years, enabling businesses and households to access reliable high-speed internet beyond unstable mobile connections.

“When we assumed office, it was clear that Nigeria’s connectivity challenges were structural, driven by years of underinvestment in infrastructure and constraints that limited the ability of operators to deliver quality service.

“We have addressed this on two fronts. First, the long-term structural solution. We have secured funding, led by the World Bank, and established the framework for a special purpose vehicle with Project BRIDGE, to deliver nationwide open access fibre infrastructure. Deployment of fibre will commence, alongside new tower rollouts through NUCAP, before the end of the year even as we also expand our satellite capability.

“These investments will address the foundational gaps in our digital infrastructure over the next two to five years and permanently transform connectivity across Nigeria,” he said.

Speaking on immediate interventions, Tijani said that government has stabilised the sector through tariff adjustments, the designation of telecom infrastructure as critical national infrastructure, tax harmonisation efforts, and broader macroeconomic reforms.

According to him, the reforms have restored operator profitability and created a more transparent and market-driven environment, giving telcos the capacity to invest in network improvements.

“It is now the responsibility of telecom operators such as MTN Nigeria, Airtel Nigeria, Globacom, and T2 to take all necessary steps to resolve network challenges and deliver the level of service Nigerians expect,” the minister insisted.

Tijani stressed that the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has been fully empowered to monitor performance, enforce standards, and ensure compliance, with sanctions expected for defaulting operators.

He said Nigerians should begin to see measurable improvements in call quality, data speed and network coverage, adding that the government will continue to rely on regulatory reports and user feedback to hold operators accountable and ensure consumers receive value for money.

Ogun State Waste Management Authority, OGWAMA has sealed an automobile assembly plant,Carry Heavy Industry Limited CHIL Moloko – Asipa near Abeokuta that specializes in the production of heavy-duty and passenger vehicle for contravening Section 2b(a) of the OGWAMA law which explicitly forbids anyone or industry from burning waste in the state.

‎In ordering the closure of the Industry,Special Adviser to the Governor on Waste Management who doubles as Managing Director of OGWAMA,

‎Hon Farouk Akintunde said the Authority had no other option than shutting the company down after several warnings to its management to patronize government approved Waste Private Sector Participants PSP to service them instead of burning them which is illegal, wicked and self centered.

‎‎According to him,by burning their waste they caused air pollution through toxic emissions and health risk not only to their workers but to their vulnerable neighbors which he said is not acceptable to the state government which lays emphasis on the wellbeing of its residents at all time.

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Akintunde said the company will remain shut until they comply with the state extant law which forbids burning of waste and property register with Waste PSP for legal and proper disposal of their waste or in the alternative face strict legal sanctions.

‎In the meantime, the Ogun state Waste Management Authority,OGWAMA has also warned Camellin Industry Limited on the Sagamu Interchange, Lagos-Ibadan Expressway has equally been sanctioned for the same offense.

‎According to Akintunde,they were equally found guilty of waste burning which is inimical to the wellbeing of their workers and their immediate environment adding that the management of the industry has been invited to show cause why they should not be sanctioned or prosecuted.

The Nigerian government, through the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, has resumed issuance of petrol import licenses to petroleum marketers. 

According to report, the licenses were issued to six petroleum marketers expected to import around 720,000 metric tons of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol).

The report says beneficiaries are major oil marketers such as NIPCO, AA Rano, Matrix, Shafa, Pinnacle, and Bono.

NIPCO is expected to import 120,000 metric tons; AA Rano, 150,000 MT; Matrix, 150,000 MT; Shafa, 120,000 MT; Pinnacle, 120,000 MT; and Bono, 60,000 MT, totaling 720,000 MT of petrol imports.

Although the NMDPRA officially stated the reason for the fresh licenses, Dangote Refinery has reiterated its capacity to meet local fuel consumption demand,while NMDPRA’s recent industrial data showed that the 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery supplied 90 percent of the country’s daily consumption.

NMDPRA’s recent decision toward petrol imports has stirred concerns among stakeholders.

The development comes barely a week after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu appointed Rabiu Abdullahi Umar as Chief Executive Officer of NMDPRA.

President Tinubu had sacked Saidu Mohammed as CEO of NMDPRA while he was on official duty in Germany.