Nigeria Launches National IPv6 Council to Boost Adoption

On April 23, 2026, Nigeria inaugurated the National Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) Council at the Marriott Hotel in Ikeja, Lagos State. The event was led by Dr. Aminu Maida, the Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), who called for coordinated efforts to accelerate the adoption of IPv6 to strengthen Nigeria's digital competitiveness and sovereignty.

He highlighted that Nigeria's current IPv6 adoption rate is only five percent, significantly below the global average of 40 percent, and urged decisive actions to close this gap. Dr. Maida noted the exhaustion of IPv4 resources and the rapid expansion of technologies such as 5G, the Internet of Things (IoT), and cloud services, which necessitate the transition to IPv6.

The council's formation includes key members from various sectors, including academia and the private sector, to ensure a collaborative approach in driving the transition. The IPv6 protocol, which was ratified as an internet standard in July 2017, allows for a vastly larger address space compared to IPv4.