Airtel Nigeria has announced plans to launch a second internet breakout point from southern Nigeria, a move expected to significantly improve network resilience, reduce latency, and strengthen internet performance across large parts of the country. The new breakout will be linked to the 2Africa submarine cable and routed through Kwa Ibo in Akwa Ibom State, reducing Nigeria’s long-standing dependence on Lagos as the country’s primary international connectivity hub.
Speaking at a media roundtable in Lagos, Airtel Nigeria’s Chief Executive Officer, Dinesh Balsingh, described the move as part of a broader strategy to future-proof Nigeria’s internet infrastructure as data consumption continues to surge.
Reducing Single-Point Internet Risk
Nigeria currently relies heavily on submarine cable landings and breakouts concentrated in Lagos, creating systemic risk when outages or congestion occur. By adding a southern breakout linked directly to 2Africa, Airtel says it will create alternative routing paths for both northern and southern regions, improving redundancy and national internet stability.
The second breakout is being supported by Airtel’s rapidly expanding terrestrial fibre backbone, which now spans almost all states following years of sustained investment. According to the company, this fibre depth is what makes multi-breakout routing viable at scale.
Aggressive Fibre and Network Expansion
Airtel disclosed that it has expanded its network footprint by 15.5% since December 2023, adding 2,242 new sites and bringing its total to nearly 16,711 sites nationwide. The expansion targets both urban centres and underserved rural areas, with a focus on improving coverage, capacity, and resilience.
To support rising mobile data usage, cloud services, and enterprise connectivity, the operator is also expanding its fibre network by 25%, following its decision to double capital expenditure last year. Intensive fibre rollout is currently underway across cities and inter-state corridors, strengthening backhaul capacity and reducing congestion at the network edge.
4G Saturation and Accelerated 5G Rollout
On the access side, Airtel said 99% of its sites now deliver high-speed 4G broadband, positioning the company as a fully nationwide 4G operator. In 2025 alone, capacity upgrades were completed on about 30% of sites, covering more than 5,000 locations nationwide. The company has also increased its 4G spectrum holdings by 10MHz, particularly in high-traffic areas.
At the same time, Airtel is accelerating its 5G rollout. Over the past three months, the operator has more than doubled the number of active 5G sites, with plans to connect the top 20 Nigerian cities to high-speed 5G networks over the next year. While nationwide 5G coverage remains limited—reflecting broader industry challenges noted by the Nigerian Communications Commission—Airtel says user experience in covered areas has met expectations.
Beyond Fibre: Satellites, Cloud, and Data Centres
To extend connectivity beyond fibre reach, Airtel is complementing its terrestrial network with satellite partnerships involving OneWeb and Starlink, including Nigeria’s first Direct-to-Cell collaboration aimed at basic coverage in deep rural areas. The company is also strengthening its cloud and data infrastructure, with investments in private cloud systems, AI-enabled network optimisation, and plans for a 38-megawatt hyperscaler-ready data centre in Eko Atlantic.
As Nigeria’s digital economy grows more data-intensive, Airtel’s strategy signals a shift toward redundancy, depth, and long-term resilience—with fibre, diversified international connectivity, and scalable infrastructure at the centre of its growth plan.
