Lagos to reduce Internet connectivity cost, lays 2,700km fibre

The Lagos State Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology (LAMIST) on Monday said that it had completed the first phase of a project to reduce the cost of Internet connectivity drastically.

The Commissioner, LAMIST, Mr Olatunbosun Alake, made this known while listing the ministry’s achievements at the 2024 Ministerial Press Briefing in Lagos.

Alake said, during the briefing which was to commemorate the first year of Gov. Sanwo-Olu’s second term in office, that it had laid 2700 kilometers of fibre duct across the state.

“While Phase II of the project comprises an additional 3,300km of unified fibre ducts being laid across the state.

“We will utilise the duct to bring down the cost of internet connectivity in the state,” the commissioner said.

Alake added that the administration had deployed 450 intelligent cameras and number plate recognition cameras in the state.

“All these technologies are to assist traffic management in Lagos, remove guess work and ensure better management of the city,’’ he said.

The commissioner said that the government’s most recent achievement was the launch of a cybersecurity project aimed at enhancing digital safety and protecting the state’s infrastructure from cyber threats.

He said the cybersecurity project was part of a broader strategy to improve overall security and governance within the state.

Alake said that the project in partnership with leading cybersecurity firms and an international organisation would provide the state with access to technologies and expertise.

According to him, providing the state with technologies and expertise will enhance its capacity to defend its technologies against sophisticated cyber threats.

Alake also said that in an effort to boost the state’s infrastructure and data capacity, the government was building a tier 3 data centre in partnership with the private sector to facilitate delivery of government services to residents.

He said that this technology would not only improve government efficiency and reliability of services, but also foster economic and technological advancement.

He added that the technology would attract investment and position Lagos as the technological hub of West Africa.

“We have embarked on sensitisation and awareness workshops for all heads of accounts, procurement, planning, legal officers, medical directors among others in 43 Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) across the state.

“We have also established 70 data protection officers in various MDAs,” Alake said.

He emphasised the objectives of the data protection compliance project, saying it was to safeguard the rights of persons to data privacy.

The commissioner said that the data compliance project would foster safe conduct of transactions involving the exchange of personal data and prevent manipulation of personal data.

He stressed that it would ensure that Nigerian businesses remained competitive in international trade with best practices.

Alake said that the Lagos State Science Research and Innovation Council (LASRIC) under LAMIST had played a significant role in funding startups, research and development programmes.

He said the council’s aims included improving services and the quality of life of citizens through research outcomes, promoting innovation awareness and managing the research and innovation fund.

The commissioner added that the council also fostered local and international collaboration to address local and global challenges.

According to him, LASRIC has funded over 60 tech startups, over 50 researches with over N800 million grants given out.

He noted further that the Lagos State Residents Registration Agency (LASRRA) Project was the most technologically advanced identification ecosystem in the nation.

Alake said it promoted financial inclusion because, on registration, those without a bank account automatically got included.

He said that the LASRRA card was a one-stop shop card and had over six million registration records.

The commissioner in an interview with our correspondent, however, noted that funding was a major challenge for the ministry.