Yemisi Izuora
Despite spirited efforts to sustain deployment of optic fibre in Nigeria, a new report shows the country ranks among countries with weak deployment structure.
According to the survey, titled, ‘Global Fiber Development 2022 Index’, done by Omdia Research, which tracked 88 countries surveyed in terms of fibre optic deployment capacity, Nigeria ranks 85th.
Countries like Singapore, South Korea, China, United Arab Emirates and Qatar made the top five while the United State ranked 25th, with the UK ranking 55th.
African countries ranked the least with South Africa leading the continent at 64th position; Egypt ranked 71st; Ivory Coast 72, others are Ghana; Kenya; Namibia; Morocco; Uganda; Algeria; Bostwana; Tunisia; Tanzania; Nigeria; Ethiopia and Cameroun.
Michael Philpott, Omdia Research Director, commenting on the outcome said fiber investment is an essential metric for government institutions and other stakeholders to track.
“As a broadband-access technology, optical fiber provides an optimized, highly sustainable, and future-proof quality service. This superior level of quality is essential for the development of future digital services and applications across all verticals.
“With increased efficiency stimulating greater innovation, high-speed broadband has been proven to drive not just consumer satisfaction but national economic indicators such as GDP and productivity. Only by maximizing investment in next-generation access can countries optimize their growth potential, and fibre-optic technology is key to that investment.