By Olushola Okewole
Speedier internet encouraging more residents to work from home using broadband services such as WIFI are the expected gains of the blue and red cables being dug across main streets in various parts of Oshodi, Isolo and Ejigbo.
Echonews witnessed the digging and installation of the cables along Airport Road, Isolo, Adejumo Sports Centre, Ejigbo among others.
There were initial fears that the cables were for the inauguration of the 5G technology but this rumour has been dispelled.
The project, known as the Lagos State Unified Fibre Infrastructure and Connectivity Project, was approved by the Lagos State House of Assembly in May this year.
The project seeks to build for Lagos a fibre optic duct where providers of broadband services can pass their cables and pay the companies mandated by the state government fees for using the services. The current practice is that each broadband operator will pay the government to dig its own duct or pass it over a distance at a price estimated at N5, 000 per linear metre in Lagos.
This not only leads to perennial destruction and replacement of newly-built infrastructures, only commercially viable segments of the city tends to get the services.
The project, a key initiative of the Babajide Sanwo-olu administration will enable broadband services to reach underserved areas such as Isolo and Ejigbo and make internet services more available.
Three companies- Western Telecommunications, Engineering Metro Limited and Emmaux are reported to be in charge of the project and will defray their cost of laying the cables over 25 years while paying annually to the government from its revenues made from users of the facility.
A few of the engineers on site declined attribution but assured that the areas dug would be filled back and restored to position after laying the cables.
Welcoming the project, the secretary to Ejigbo LCDA, (SLG), Mr. Paul Fregene, when contacted confirmed that the council supports the Lagos state metro fibre project to provide Gold WI-FI accessible to the community’
SLG stressed that metro-fibre will make for easy database access for the community to track and monitor happening in the community.
