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Backbone Connectivity Network (BCN) has been listed as one of the fastest growing and ambitious companies in Nigeria by the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) in its second edition of Companies to inspire Africa 2019 report.
The report presented 361 companies selected from 32 African countries of which Nigeria has the highest representation of 97 companies.
BCN is an InfraCo originally licensed in 2004 to provide Metropolitan Fibre Access and National Long-Distance Transmission services and has additional licenses to provide internet services and unified communication solutions.
The company boasts of over over 2,000km of wholly-owned fibre infrastructure within the North-Central and North Eastern parts of Nigeria and has unfolded a buildout plan for about 10,000 km broadband fibre optic network beginning 2019 to link about 200 points of access across all local government areas in the seven north western states of Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara.
Founded about 15 years ago, the company has recorded steady upward growth as it ambitiously unrolls business as a connectivity provider in the northern part of Nigeria.
A recent partnership with Internet giant Google will help to provide free internet access to thousands of people in the north beginning with Abuja where Google launched its public free Wi-Fi initiative after an initial launch in Lagos. BCN is the backbone partner for Google as the internet giant expands its initiative to improve access across Nigeria with a ‘free-to-use’ social intervention scheme tagged Google Station.
“With Google, we have deepened technology impact among ordinary people who may never have been able to access free internet to enhance their business. You can’t measure the excitement and the true possible value this initiative has impacted on the traders and many other users in Wuse market, for example, said BCN’s CEO Ibrahim Dikko to IT Edge News in Abuja.
The listing by the LSEG affirms “BCN’s role in its contribution towards boosting technology viability in Nigeria and Africa through broadband penetration and excellent Quality of Service QoS. BCN has been able to achieve milestones through its investment in resilient network infrastructure and providing free wifi services to the public,” said the company in an official statement.
BCN is one of the sponsors for this year’s West Africa Convergence Conference (WACC) holding in Lagos next week March 28 at the Sheraton Hotel and Towers, Ikeja. Dikko joins the panelists on “Regulation, Connectivity, Broadband, BroadPLANS and Convergence’ to further share insights on how BCN is expanding access and changing the broadband connectivity outlook in the north of Nigeria.
