FG Launches High-Speed Internet Access for UNILAG Students
Vanessa Obioha
The Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy yesterday launched the pilot phase of the Fibre 2 Hostel initiative, aimed at providing high-speed internet access to students in tertiary institutions.
Speaking at the launch event held at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Minister, Bosun Tijani, described the initiative as “a strategic milestone in our nation’s journey to drive meaningful connectivity across our country, and a powerful step towards improving the daily digital experience for students across Nigeria.”
Fibre 2 Hostel is one of the flagship initiatives under the National Broadband Alliance for Nigeria— the ministry’s demand-side broadband strategy designed to increase internet usage by directly connecting public institutions such as universities, hospitals, and government offices. It is complemented by other programmes like Project 774, which aims to connect all local government secretariats in the country, and the Three Million Technical Talent (3MTT) programme. The project is in partnership with Galaxy Backbone Limited, Tizeti Network, and Huawei.
“This programme also complements our digital public infrastructure framework and standard, which is aimed at digitizing public services with trust and transparency,” Tijani said. “These are all part of our shared ambition to build a future-ready Nigeria, one that is powered by inclusive, secure and high-performance infrastructure as we continue to lay the building blocks of what our president, His Excellency Bola Tinubu, has demanded that we build, which is a $1 trillion economy. It is another significant step by our president in building the foundation for a more inclusive and equitable digital economy, one where students are not left behind simply because of where they are located or what resources they have.”
Tijani also stressed the critical role of broadband in national development.
“We must recognise that broadband is an essential tool to the development of the nation, similar to what you will find in electricity or clean water. Broadband powers academic research and collaboration” he said.
The minister further urged the students to maximise the opportunity by innovating, collaborating, and creating solutions with global relevance.
In the first phase of the programme, students in four UNILAG hostels now have access to high-speed internet, with average speeds ranging from 50 to 100 megabits per second (Mbps). Seven other universities are expected to benefit from the initiative, with a long-term goal of expanding to campuses nationwide.
In her opening remarks, Vice Chancellor of UNILAG, Prof. Folasade Ogunsola, applauded the federal government for selecting the institution for the pilot phase and highlighted the university’s investment in digitisation.
“The university has done quite a lot in terms of innovation and digitisation, and we have made it our pride to say that most of our faculties are wired. We have developed hot spots around the university, but we know that we have not yet quite got to the students where they are, most of the time, in their hostels.”
