The European Union (EU) has committed €22 million (N36billion) in grant funding to support Nigeria’s nationwide fibre-optic expansion under the federal government’s Project BRIDGE, a key pillar of the country’s digital infrastructure strategy.
The grant was announced in a statement issued in Abuja and will be channelled through the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) before being on-granted to the federal ministry of communications, innovation and digital economy.
The EU said the grant complements an €86 million loan from the EBRD’s own resources, which is awaiting final approval in the coming weeks.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Odile Renaud-Basso, president of the EBRD, said the bank was pleased to partner with the EU to expand digital infrastructure in Africa’s largest economy.
She said the financing package includes technical cooperation designed to attract private capital while ensuring secure, inclusive and sustainable connectivity nationwide.
“We are proud to join forces with the EU to advance the deployment of digital infrastructure in Nigeria,” Renaud-Basso said.
Nigeria’s minister of communications, innovation and digital economy, Bosun Tijani, described the agreement as a major milestone in delivering Project BRIDGE on schedule.
He said the country’s digital transformation agenda depends on the availability of robust, resilient and inclusive broadband infrastructure.
“The partnership reflects growing international confidence in Nigeria’s digital roadmap.
“We look forward to ensuring that 2026 will be a year of delivery on this and other areas of cooperation with the EU,” Tijani said.
Also speaking, Gautier Mignot, EU ambassador to Nigeria, said high-integrity digital infrastructure built to international standards is strategically important to both Nigeria and the EU.
“Digital has emerged as one of the strategic areas of partnership between Nigeria and the European Union,” Mignot said.
“Both Nigeria and the European Union share the critical importance of trusted and resilient networks, with the highest level of integrity and reliability, operating at the highest international standards.”
He added that Nigeria is fast becoming a formidable global digital partner.
According to the EU, the €22 million grant is structured to complement sovereign loans expected not only from the EBRD but also from the World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB).
The combined financing will support the establishment and capitalisation of a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) responsible for rolling out 90,000 kilometres of fibre-optic networks nationwide under Project BRIDGE.
The SPV will have 51 per cent private sector participation, in line with the federal government’s objective of crowding in private investment.
The EBRD’s €86 million loan agreement will include strict conditions on cybersecurity safeguards and open-access compliance to ensure the network operates under internationally recognised standards of transparency, security and competition.
The EU said the grant also integrates technical assistance and an investment component to accelerate implementation.
The technical assistance package will fund Low-Level Design (LLD) work for approximately 40,000 kilometres of fibre network in the first phase, including route mapping, crossing surveys, digitised planning, quality assurance processes and security risk assessments.
The funding will also support capacity building across Nigeria’s fibre deployment ecosystem, including the training of 2,000 technicians, targeted equipment subsidies and pooled procurement arrangements for small subcontractors.
According to the EU, these measures could reduce rollout costs by 20 to 30 per cent, strengthen supply-chain resilience and ensure compliance with both EU and Nigerian quality standards.
