The Federal Government has announced December 2028 as the deadline for the complete transition from analogue to digital television broadcasting across Nigeria.
The Director-General of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Charles Ebuebu, disclosed this during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja, describing the move as a major milestone in the country’s Digital Switch Over (DSO) programme.
According to Ebuebu, the December 2028 target marks the final phase of analogue television transmission, with additional stages of the digital transition to focus on pay television services, studio development and the establishment of designated production centres for content creators.
He noted that audience measurement is also progressing, revealing that a proof-of-concept exercise has already been completed in about 7,000 households in Lagos, while implementation has commenced in Abuja.
The NBC Director-General said details of the subsequent phases would be made public after consultations with key industry stakeholders, including the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON), to ensure broad support for the initiative.
Ebuebu explained that switching off analogue broadcasting would free up valuable radio spectrum, describing it as a strategic national asset that could be deployed for other critical sectors, including telecommunications, digital applications and financial technology services.
He disclosed that the spectrum is estimated to be worth more than $50 billion, adding that consultants would carry out a professional valuation before its eventual allocation.
On the fate of obsolete analogue broadcasting equipment, Ebuebu said the commission is developing a policy based on international best practices.
He added that, in line with the Digital Switch Over White Paper, broadcasters are expected to separate content production from signal transmission, with transmission services to be handled by licensed signal distributors such as NIGCOMSAT.
The NBC also stated that while some analogue equipment may be repurposed, the Federal Government would be approached to take over assets that cannot be reused in order to ensure their environmentally safe disposal and prevent industrial waste hazards.
