Lagos directs telecom operators to clean up poorly maintained infrastructure

The Lagos State Infrastructure Maintenance and Regulatory Agency (LASIMRA) has issued an urgent directive to telecom operators, especially Internet Service Providers (ISPs), operating in the state’s major commercial and residential hubs, to immediately clean and sanitise their overhead and underground telecom infrastructure.

According to an official public notice released on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, and signed by the agency’s General Manager, Prince Oyekanmi Elegushi, LASIMRA warned that enforcement operations will commence on Monday, November 9, 2026, against non-compliant providers.

The directive covers three locations: Ilasan and Ikate in Lekki, Allen Avenue in Ikeja, and the Customs Office area off Toyin Street, Ikeja.

AI-generated image of sagging fibre lines

Also read: Lagos orders MTN, Airtel and others to fix sagging fibre-optic cables within 2 days.

LASIMRA noted that telecom operators operating within and around these zones are expected to rearrange, secure, and clear all dangling cables, sagging fibre-optic wires, and associated hardware installations that create environmental hazards and obstruct public spaces.

“All ISPs operating within these areas are required to ensure that their network infrastructure, including cables and associated installations, are properly arranged, secured and cleared of any obstruction or environmental nuisance,” the notice read.

In its push to ensure urgency, the agency mentioned that telecom operators must complete all corrective work before the November 9 enforcement date to avoid statutory sanctions, and this may include the confiscation of non-compliant infrastructure or the imposition of heavy administrative penalties.

Occupants and businesses in the affected areas of Ikeja and Lekki/Ikate have been advised to anticipate temporary maintenance activities by telecom operators’ field technicians ahead of the deadline.

Lagos is pushing for safer telecom equipment deployment

The development forms part of the Lagos State Government’s broader drive to eliminate the menace of sagging and hazardous telecom cabling that poses risks to pedestrians, motorists, and property owners across the areas and statewide in general.

Under its mantra “For a Safer, Cleaner and Better Regulated Lagos,” LASIMRA urged all affected internet operators to cooperate fully to protect public safety while maintaining infrastructure integrity.

Telecom Tower

In early October, Lagos State issued an ultimatum to leading telecom operators to immediately rectify sagging overhead fibre optic cables in Ikeja GRA or face severe regulatory penalties. The notice names five major operators, including MTN, Airtel, ipNX, FibreOne, and 21st Century Technologies, and says affected firms have 48 hours to inspect, tighten, and properly secure their overhead fibre infrastructure.

The development is not the first time LASIMRA has issued a directive to telecom operators to clear badly laid cables.

For telecom operators, it comes at a time when they are racing to expand fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) connections to enhance high-speed internet coverage. However, poorly deployed cables and infrastructure frequently drop low to be caught by delivery trucks, snap onto footpaths, or create dangerous visual obstructions for drivers, leading to accidents and network outages in the process.