Nigeria: AMN accelerates the deployment of its telecom infrastructure in rural areas
October 30th 2026
Telecom tower operators are providing mobile operators with infrastructure to extend their network coverage without the need for them to build their own sites. In Nigeria, AMN operates alongside players such as IHS Towers and American Tower Corporation.
Africa Mobile Networks (AMN), a company specializing in deploying telecom infrastructure in rural areas, wants to accelerate its expansion in Nigeria. It plans to install more than 100 new sites there by the end of 2026, and then maintain a pace of more than 60 installations per month in 2027.
The expansion project was announced on Tuesday, October 27. In its press release, the company mainly indicated that it had passed the milestone of 2000 telecom sites deployed in Nigeria, the largest telecom market in Africa in terms of number of subscribers.
AMN operates on a Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) model . The company finances, builds, and maintains the base stations. It uses its proprietary AMN Radio Node (ARN) technology, which is compatible with 2G, 3G, and 4G services. To connect certain sites to the network, it also uses satellite connectivity. This model allows partner operators to expand their coverage without financing the infrastructure themselves or bearing the operating costs. In return, AMN shares the revenue generated by the sites with them.
This accelerated deployment comes as Nigerian telecom operators and authorities ramp up initiatives to expand access to mobile services. On October 16, 2026, the government launched the Nigeria Universal Communication Access Project (NUCAP), with the commissioning of its first site in Abia State. The program aims to deploy 3,700 telecom sites nationwide to connect nearly 20 million people living in unserved or underserved areas. Two hundred sites are expected to be operational before the end of the year.
AMN’s announced expansion targets raise some questions about the company’s ability to maintain this pace of deployment in rural areas, where access to electricity and transmission infrastructure remains limited. Other factors, such as financing new installations, competition, operating costs, and equipment availability, could also impact the timeline. However, the company has not specified the resources it intends to use to support this acceleration or any potential constraints it might face.
Currently, AMN claims to connect over 4.7 million people in previously unserved or underserved areas. The company states that its facilities represent approximately 10% of the active telecom site portfolio of the country’s leading mobile operator. However, within the broader telecom tower market, it remains smaller than players like IHS Towers and American Tower Corporation, which have significantly larger infrastructure portfolios.
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