Nigeria’s long-delayed Digital Switch Over (DSO) project is now fully prepared for nationwide rollout, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has announced.
The minister disclosed this on Wednesday during an inspection tour of facilities belonging to NIGCOMSAT at the Obasanjo Space Centre, alongside the Director-General of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Charles Ebuebu, and the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of NIGCOMSAT, Jane Egerton-Idehen.
Describing the development as a major breakthrough for Nigeria’s broadcasting industry, Idris said the project represents another phase of the reform agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
“This is a new dawn for our country. The promise that President Tinubu made to reform all sectors is now being seen in action in the broadcast industry,” the minister stated.
He explained that after years of delays, Nigeria is finally set to complete the transition from analogue broadcasting to digital transmission, with the official commissioning of the DSO platform scheduled for June 17, 2026.
According to him, the new digital broadcasting ecosystem will deliver significant benefits to broadcasters, advertisers and viewers by introducing accurate audience measurement systems and improved data analytics.
“If you are viewing any particular station, you know who is viewing, what they are watching, and how many people are watching,” he said.
Idris noted that the upgraded system would enable advertisers and broadcasters to make better programming and investment decisions while improving the overall quality of content delivery nationwide.
He further stressed that the initiative would deepen competition in the broadcasting sector, widen access to free television services and enhance picture quality across Nigeria and parts of Sub-Saharan Africa.
“The monopoly has been broken. Everybody is going to compete. Content is going to grow, viewership will grow, and Nigeria is now moving from SD to HD broadcasting,” he added.
The minister also stated that Nigerians would benefit from cleaner television signals delivered through satellite transmission and mobile applications powered by NIGCOMSAT technology.
Speaking during the visit, Ebuebu said the upgraded DSO architecture was developed to reflect evolving technology trends and changing audience consumption patterns.
He explained that the platform integrates satellite broadcasting and mobile applications to ensure broader accessibility beyond the pilot locations previously covered during the initial DSO implementation phase.
“We’re going to have 100 channels by the day of launch and even more because more content producers are talking to us. We want to create one market and one platform for Nigeria,” he said.
Ebuebu also disclosed that regional production studios and multilingual customer support centres had been established across the country to support the rollout.
On her part, Egerton-Idehen described the partnership between NIGCOMSAT and the NBC as a strategic collaboration that has improved operational efficiency and service delivery within Nigeria’s digital broadcasting ecosystem.
She added that ongoing investments and planned satellite expansion projects under the current administration would ensure uninterrupted and reliable service delivery.
“The work has only just started. The work has only just begun,” she said.
Other dignitaries who accompanied the minister on the tour included the Director-General of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Salihu Abdullahi Dembos; Director-General of the Voice of Nigeria (VON), Jibrin Baba Ndace; Director-General of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Mohammed Bulama; and Director-General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Lanre Issa-Onilu, among other senior government officials.
