Nigeria's drive to become Africa's leading digital economy now hinges on a company that does not yet legally exist. The federal government expects to register the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) tasked with overseeing Project BRIDGE by July 31, establishing the legal foundation for what would be one of the country's most ambitious digital infrastructure initiatives.

That incorporation date will not signal a public launch or the commencement of operations. Rather, it marks the moment the project company formally comes into existence, according to Jumoke Akande, Project Lead at the Project Implementation Unit within the Federal Ministry of Communication, Innovation, and Digital Economy.

The entity's final legal name remains undisclosed. World Bank project documents currently refer to it as the "Project Company," "Project BRIDGE SPV," or simply the "SPV."

"The final legal name of the SPV is confidential and has not yet been publicly disclosed," Akande told TechCabal on Sunday. "For now, it is referred to in the relevant documents as the 'Project Company', the 'Project BRIDGE SPV' or simply the 'SPV'."

Once established, the SPV will be tasked with mobilising private capital, coordinating construction across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, and overseeing the deployment of at least 90,000 kilometres of climate-resilient fibre optic networks by September 2030.

Before large-scale construction can commence, the SPV must complete investor selection, achieve financial close, finalise engineering designs, conduct route surveys, secure permits, and negotiate right-of-way agreements. Physical deployment is anticipated to begin in 2027, leaving approximately three and a half years to build out a network that would substantially expand Nigeria's digital backbone.

If successful, Project BRIDGE would raise Nigeria's total fibre backbone to roughly 120,000 kilometres — nearly tripling the country's existing estimated backbone of approximately 30,000 kilometres — extend connectivity to more than 770 local government areas, and link thousands of schools, hospitals, and other public institutions.

Open-Access Wholesale Model

The project is structured around a wholesale, open-access model rather than a new retail telecommunications operator. The SPV will provide infrastructure that mobile network operators, Internet service providers, and enterprise customers can access on non-discriminatory terms. This means Nigeria is not merely constructing another fibre network; it aims to create shared infrastructure that reduces connectivity costs and enables multiple operators to expand services without each having to build its own backbone.

The approach mirrors a global trend: large-scale, government-backed open-access fibre initiatives have been pursued in countries from India, whose BharatNet programme aims to connect hundreds of thousands of gram panchayats (village councils), to Australia's National Broadband Network. Nigeria's version is among the largest attempted in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Financing Structure

The World Bank is providing $500 million through the International Development Association, with an additional $1.1 billion expected from private and commercial financing sources. Several development finance institutions are also participating: the African Development Bank with $200 million, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development with $100 million, and BADEA with a further $100 million.

"All fundraising figures published are subject to a detailed model built by the transaction advisers which will provide guidance specifically on the total amount of funding required for the project," Akande said. "This is not publicly available. The $2 billion figure used in some earlier descriptions was a broader or rounded preliminary estimate, while US$1.6 billion is the financing envelope formally appraised and approved by the World Bank."

According to World Bank project documents, more than 30 local and international companies expressed interest during the government's market-sounding and prequalification process. Incorporation of the SPV is expected to enable the government to advance toward final investment agreements and construction contracts.

The proposed ownership structure grants majority control to private investors, who are expected to hold between 51% and 75% of the SPV. The federal government will retain a minority stake of between 25% and 49%. An independent board and private-sector management are intended to limit political interference while providing the company with the commercial flexibility needed to execute the project.

Construction Timeline and Scale

The construction schedule is formidable. Project plans call for approximately 17,500 kilometres of fibre to be deployed in the first year, followed by 25,000 kilometres in each of 2028 and 2029. A further 22,500 kilometres would need to be completed during the final nine months of 2030. At peak capacity, crews across the country would need to install roughly 80 to 90 kilometres of fibre every day.

To manage the scale of the rollout, Nigeria plans to divide the project into six engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) zones operating simultaneously. Contractors in each zone would be responsible for deploying hundreds of kilometres of fibre monthly.

The challenges extend beyond trenching and cable installation. Project milestones also include activating wholesale interconnection hubs, connecting public institutions, reducing wholesale bandwidth prices, expanding connectivity to more than 400 local government headquarters, and building redundant network routes to minimise the impact of cable cuts.

The government expects the infrastructure to increase broadband users from approximately 92 million to 150 million by 2030, reduce wholesale bandwidth prices by 17%, raise fixed broadband speeds to 50 Mbps, and connect more than 59,000 public institutions to high-speed Internet. The programme also includes digital literacy training for 37,000 Nigerians, with women expected to account for 60% of participants.

Risk Factors and Challenges

The World Bank has classified the programme's overall risk as substantial, citing governance, procurement, and institutional capacity challenges, alongside macroeconomic pressures such as inflation and foreign-exchange volatility.

Right-of-way approvals represent another potential bottleneck. Although more than 11 states have agreed to waive right-of-way fees according to the ministry, inconsistent local charges and administrative delays could still impede construction. A separate TechCabal report found that only four states had fully delivered on zero right-of-way fee pledges.

Protecting the network once built poses an equally significant challenge. Project BRIDGE will need to secure a steady supply of fibre and ducting while deploying thousands of kilometres of cable across difficult terrain, from remote northern communities to riverine areas in the south.

The scale of the threat is already apparent. Telecom operators recorded a record 155,397 fibre cuts in April and May 2026 alone — 74,276 in April and 79,121 in May. More than 54,000 of those incidents were attributed to vandalism, highlighting the difficulty of safeguarding the very infrastructure the project seeks to expand.

The threat persists despite Nigeria's Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII) Order, gazetted by the President on June 25, 2024, designed to protect critical digital and technological assets and ensure their uninterrupted operation. For Project BRIDGE, the remaining test will be translating that legal framework into effective protection for tens of thousands of kilometres of fibre.

Outlook

If successful, the open-access model could reduce duplicated fibre infrastructure by allowing multiple operators to share a single backbone, lowering costs and extending broadband to underserved areas. However, the model depends on the SPV securing capital, operating commercially, and building quickly. Its July incorporation is only the starting point; execution will demand coordinated effort from investors, contractors, and governments to deliver thousands of kilometres of construction on an ambitious timeline.