By Chioma Favour
Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea have signed an agreement to develop critical telecommunications infrastructure anchored on a subsea fibre-optic cable, a project expected to strengthen broadband capacity, digital communications, and cybersecurity cooperation in the region.
Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, described the development as a practical outcome of Nigeria’s growing economic diplomacy efforts under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Speaking in Malabo during the signing ceremony, Tuggar said the project reflects Nigeria’s push to support indigenous businesses, deepen regional partnerships, and build investor confidence through strategic infrastructure collaboration.
The agreement on principles was signed by Alhaji Ibrahim Dikko on behalf of Backbone Connectivity Network Nigeria Ltd (BNC), while Equatorial Guinea’s Minister of Transport, Telecommunications and Artificial Intelligence Systems, Honorato Evita Oma, signed for his country.
The project is expected to expand digital infrastructure between both nations while enhancing connectivity and cybersecurity capabilities across parts of West and Central Africa.
The ceremony was supervised by Equatorial Guinea’s First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade, Business Promotion and Industry, Gaudencio Mohaba Messu, and witnessed by Ambassador Tuggar, Equatorial Guinea’s Foreign Minister, Simeón Oyono Esono Angüe, alongside senior officials from both countries.
Tuggar noted that the initiative builds on President Tinubu’s official visit to Equatorial Guinea in August 2024, during which several bilateral agreements were reached. He said the subsea cable project represents one of the tangible outcomes of those engagements aimed at deepening economic and technological cooperation across Africa.
Officials from both sides say the agreement signals growing momentum in regional economic integration and technology-driven development on the continent.
