Oladele Oduniyi
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has intensified its cybersecurity framework aimed at protecting critical digital infrastructure and improving online safety for telecom consumers in Nigeria.
The framework, expected to be finalized by the third quarter of 2025 and implemented by telecom licensees from early 2026, is designed to tackle the security challenges posed by emerging technologies while strengthening Nigeria’s digital economy.
Speaking during the second phase of the cybersecurity framework development meeting with stakeholders in Abuja on Wednesday, NCC’s Executive Commissioner for Technical Services, Abraham Oshadami, highlighted the urgency of building a robust and adaptive system to counter rising cyber threats.
“With the growing digitalization of services and the sophistication of modern cyberattacks, cybersecurity has gone beyond confidentiality, integrity, and availability. It now includes human safety, as attacks on communications infrastructure increasingly threaten lives and critical national systems,” he said.
Oshadami noted that the telecommunications sector, being the backbone of Nigeria’s digital economy, remains a strategic asset and a prime target for state and non-state actors engaged in coordinated cyber and physical attacks.
The stakeholder session, which follows an initial meeting earlier this year, reviewed progress made so far, refined key components of the proposed framework, and sought further validation of its design principles and implementation strategies.
Dr. Kazeem Durodoye, Chief Executive Officer of CyberNover—the consulting firm engaged by the NCC—presented details of the framework, while Babagana Digima, NCC’s Head of Cybersecurity and Internet Governance, disclosed that the project is supported by the World Bank.
Digima added that the implementation phase will begin in early 2026 after the framework is finalized next year.
The forum also provided stakeholders across the telecom and digital economy ecosystem with an opportunity to align on strategic priorities for strengthening cybersecurity resilience and sector preparedness.