NCC mandates MNOs to notify consumers of major service outages

In a move to enhance consumer protection and improve transparency in the telecommunications sector, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has issued a new directive mandating service providers to promptly inform consumers of any major network outages.

The directive also requires advance notice for planned outages and offers a framework for compensating users affected by prolonged service disruptions.

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NCC said, “Directive on Reportage of Major Network Outages by Mobile Network Operators (MNOs),” telecom operators must use media channels to notify consumers of the cause, location, and expected restoration time for any service outage. For planned outages, operators are now required to provide at least one week’s notice to affected customers.

The directive applies to all Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), Internet Service Providers (ISPs), and other last-mile service providers. Where a major outage exceeds 24 hours, operators must provide proportional compensation to affected consumers, including possible extension of service validity, in line with the Consumer Code of Practice Regulations.

The NCC defined major outages under three main categories which include any network issue, such as fibre cuts, vandalism, or force majeure, that affects 5% or more of the operator’s subscriber base or spans at least five Local Government Areas (LGAs).

Others are unplanned isolation of 100 or more network sites (or 5% of total sites) lasting more than 30 minutes, or any outage affecting an entire cluster, and ny outage degrading network quality in the top 10 traffic-heavy states, as determined periodically by the Commission.

To improve public access to information and enforce accountability, the NCC also launched a Major Outage Reporting Portal, accessible via its website (www.ncc.gov.ng). The portal allows consumers to view real-time reports of outages, including the identity of entities responsible for service disruptions.

Commenting on the development, Edoyemi Ogor, Director of Technical Standards and Network Integrity at NCC, noted that the portal and directive had been piloted with operators in recent months.

“By providing consumers and stakeholders in the telecommunications industry with timely and transparent information on network outages, we are entrenching a culture of accountability and transparency.

“This also ensures culprits are held responsible for sabotage to telecom infrastructure,” Ogor said.

Ogor further emphasised that the initiative supports the implementation of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Executive Order recognizing telecommunications infrastructure as Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII), reinforcing its strategic importance to national security and economic resilience.

The directive marks a significant stride in the NCC’s ongoing efforts to improve quality of service and uphold consumer rights across Nigeria’s rapidly growing digital landscape.

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