The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has inaugurated the Nigeria IPv6 Council, calling for a coordinated and accelerated transition to Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) to enhance the country’s digital competitiveness, security and sovereignty.
Speaking at the inauguration in Lagos on Thursday, the Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Aminu Maida, described the move as a defining moment in Nigeria’s digital evolution and its readiness to lead in the next phase of the global internet.
Maida noted that Nigeria’s IPv6 adoption currently stands at about five per cent, significantly below the global average of over 40 per cent, stressing the need for urgent and decisive action to bridge the gap.
He explained that IPv6, the latest version of the internet protocol used to identify and connect devices online, was designed to address the limitations and address exhaustion challenges associated with IPv4.
According to him, the exhaustion of IPv4 resources, coupled with the rapid growth of 5G networks, Internet of Things (IoT), cloud services and artificial intelligence-driven applications, has placed immense pressure on legacy internet infrastructure.
“In this context, IPv6 is not optional; it is a strategic necessity for national competitiveness, security and economic sovereignty,” Maida said.
He emphasised that the transition to IPv6 would require collaboration among regulators, telecom operators, enterprises, academia and government institutions, noting that no single stakeholder could drive the process alone.
The NCC boss added that the commission had already laid the groundwork for the transition through targeted policies and strategic partnerships, including its collaboration with the African Network Information Centre to support capacity-building programmes across both public and private sectors.
Maida disclosed that the newly inaugurated council would align its activities with a National IPv6 Deployment Strategy aimed at positioning Nigeria among Africa’s leading adopters within the next three years.
He outlined the council’s priorities to include establishing a monitoring and reporting framework with quarterly updates and annual national reports, as well as driving capacity building and certification of IPv6 engineers.
Other focus areas include promoting public sector leadership through the migration of government platforms to IPv6-enabled systems, engaging key industry players such as internet service providers, data centres and financial institutions, and advising on policy incentives and regulatory frameworks to accelerate adoption.
Also speaking, the Chief Executive Officer of the Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria, Muhammed Rudman, identified the continued availability of IPv4 as a major obstacle to migration, noting that many operators do not see an immediate need to transition.
He revealed that while Nigeria has over 200 Autonomous System Numbers (ASNs) and more than 100 networks with IPv6 allocations, only a few are actively deploying and assigning IPv6 addresses to end users.
“In simple terms, many operators have IPv6 capability, but it is not yet deployed in a meaningful way,” Rudman said.
He added that reliance on Network Address Translation (NAT) under IPv4 allows multiple users to share limited IP addresses but poses challenges for security, traceability and performance.
Rudman further disclosed that the council had developed a National IPv6 Implementation Strategy with clear targets, including achieving at least 20 per cent IPv6 compliance in government networks by 2027, 25 per cent active deployment among telecom operators, and about 30 per cent nationwide adoption by 2030.
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According to him, the council also plans to intensify capacity-building efforts, with a goal of training at least 50 professionals in IPv6 by October through structured programmes and partnerships with academic institutions and regional bodies.
He, however, noted that funding and skills shortages remain significant challenges, particularly as many trained engineers have migrated abroad, making continuous training essential.
In his remarks, a technology expert, Chris Uwaje, urged Nigeria to move beyond reliance on legacy systems and embrace modern internet infrastructure to strengthen its digital sovereignty.
Uwaje stressed that the transition to IPv6 requires not only technical upgrades but also a shift in national mindset towards innovation, local capacity development and sustained investment in digital infrastructure.
