Nigeria to Begin Full Digital Television Broadcasting June 17
The Federal Government has announced that Nigeria will officially commence full digital television broadcasting on June 17, 2026, marking a major milestone in the country’s long-awaited transition from analogue to digital broadcasting.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, disclosed this on Wednesday during an inspection tour of facilities at the Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited located at the Obasanjo Space Centre alongside the Director-General of the National Broadcasting Commission, Charles Ebuebu, and the Managing Director of NIGCOMSAT, Jane Egerton-Idehen.
The Minister described the development as a major breakthrough for the nation’s broadcast industry and a fulfilment of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s reform agenda aimed at modernising key sectors of the economy.
“I think 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,” Idris stated.
He noted that after years of delays, the Digital Switch Over project is now fully ready for nationwide rollout, adding that the initiative will significantly transform broadcasting operations, advertising, and content delivery across Nigeria.
According to the Minister, the new digital ecosystem will provide broadcasters and advertisers with reliable audience measurement tools capable of tracking viewership patterns and engagement.
“This is going to bring a lot of advantages to broadcasters, viewers, and advertisers. If you are viewing any particular station, you know who is viewing, what they are watching, and how many people are watching,” he said.
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Idris further explained that the platform would improve competition within the broadcasting industry, expand access to free television services, and enhance picture quality as Nigeria transitions from Standard Definition to High Definition broadcasting.
He added that viewers would benefit from cleaner television signals through satellite transmission and mobile applications powered by NIGCOMSAT technology.
The Director-General of the National Broadcasting Commission, Charles Ebuebu, stated that the upgraded Digital Switch Over framework was designed to align with modern technology and changing audience behaviour.
He explained that the system would leverage satellite broadcasting and mobile applications to ensure nationwide accessibility beyond the pilot cities covered during earlier phases of the project.
“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,” Ebuebu said.
He also disclosed that regional production studios and multilingual customer support centres had been established across the country to support the new broadcasting system.
Speaking during the visit, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NIGCOMSAT, Jane Egerton-Idehen, described the partnership between NIGCOMSAT and NBC as strategic to improving service delivery and strengthening Nigeria’s digital broadcasting ecosystem.
She assured Nigerians that ongoing investments and planned satellite expansion under the current administration would guarantee reliable and uninterrupted service delivery.
Among senior government officials who accompanied the Minister on the tour were the Director-General of the Nigerian Television Authority, Salihu Abdullahi Dembos; Director-General of the Voice of Nigeria, Jibrin Baba Ndace; Director-General of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, Mohammed Bulama; and Director-General of the National Orientation Agency, Lanre Issa-Onilu.
By PRNigeria
