Galaxy Backbone: Quietly Building Nigeria’s Digital Infrastructure – From Fibre to Government Cloud
In Nigeria’s push to go digital in government, education, business, and public services, a backbone underpins it all. This backbone is not a metaphorical one, but one made of fibre-optic cables, secure data centres, and shared ICT platforms. That backbone is built by Galaxy Backbone (GBB).
As the country races to catch up with global digital standards, Galaxy Backbone’s work reveals how critical infrastructure often unseen by everyday users holds the potential to shape Nigeria’s technological future.
A Mandate Born from National Need
Galaxy Backbone was incorporated in 2006 and formally began operations around 2007. It was established by the Federal Government of Nigeria as the country’s designated ICT services provider for all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs). The goal was clear: replace scattered, expensive, and siloed government IT systems with a unified, shared infrastructure that reduces cost, increases efficiency, and enables nationwide digital governance.
Over time, that mandate expanded. GBB now serves not only the public sector but also enterprises, SMEs, and partners in the private sector, offering hosting, data-centre services, connectivity, cloud services, and more.
The Digital Spine of Nigeria: Fibre, Data Centres & Government Cloud
At the heart of Galaxy Backbone’s work is its nationwide optical fibre network, the National ICT Infrastructure Backbone (NICTIB). The first phase covered roughly 1,484 km across 13 states. Now, the network spans over 5,000 km across 26 states, with plans to eventually cover all 36 states, closing the optical fibre ring for nationwide coverage. That network powers more than just connectivity. It underlies a stack of ICT services such as high-speed internet, dark fibre, last-mile links, video-conferencing, secure hosting, cloud infrastructure, and more.
GBB runs a certified Tier-III data centre in Abuja, with a separate disaster-recovery site, and they’ve recently achieved Tier-IV design/construction certification for another facility. That combination, backbone + data centre + cloud + managed services, positions Galaxy Backbone as the digital infrastructure provider that the entire government (and increasingly private sector) can rely on.
Services Built for Government Adaptable for Business
Galaxy Backbone’s services go beyond “just internet.” Its offerings include:
- Internet access with managed bandwidth plans, private IP allocations, content filtering, and service-level guarantees.
- Cloud services (IaaS, SaaS, PaaS) under the government-oriented “GxCP/1Gov” model offering hosting, enterprise email, cloud storage, document management, and disaster recovery.
- Security services through a Security Operations Centre (SOC) and Network Operations Centre (NOC), critical for protecting data and ensuring uptime.
- Hosting, colocation, and managed infrastructure, available not just to MDAs but also SMEs, manufacturing firms, educational institutions, and other private organizations looking for enterprise-grade infrastructure.
This range of services means GBB is not just an internal government back-office utility. It can be and increasingly is a foundation for private-sector growth, innovation, and digital transformation.
2025 Renewal: Nigeria First Policy and Reaffirmed Trust
In August 2025, under the federal government’s “Nigeria First Policy,” Galaxy Backbone was officially reaffirmed as the country’s ICT infrastructure provider for all federal MDAs. The move reflects renewed confidence in GBB’s capacity to manage the country’s digital backbone and underscores the importance of local data sovereignty. The government sees GBB as its trusted partner in implementing interoperable infrastructure for e-governance, document management, and national data exchange.
In addition to reaffirmation, GBB’s leadership has publicly committed to service excellence, improved reliability, and tailored digital infrastructure solutions for each MDA, signaling a fresh push toward widespread institutional adoption across Nigeria.
Why Galaxy Backbone Matters for Nigeria’s Digital Future
- Data Sovereignty & Security
With a federal-owned, certified data-centre network and national backbone, GBB enables Nigeria to store, manage, and process sensitive government and citizen data locally. That reduces risks associated with external hosting and enhances national control over data infrastructure.
- Cost-effective Shared Infrastructure
By centralizing ICT services, GBB reduces duplication, lowers cost, and ensures consistent standards, an important advantage for small MDAs and emerging startups alike. Shared infrastructure becomes a public good, strengthening e-governance and supporting digital entrepreneurs.
- Enabling Digital Government & Public Services
With reliable fibre, hosting, cloud, and internet services, GBB supports e-government platforms, data portals, payroll systems, public service delivery, and national metadata, foundational for a modern, digital public sector.
- Platform for Private-Sector Growth
Because its services are open beyond public agencies, GBB offers SMEs, private firms, educational institutions, and other organizations access to enterprise-grade infrastructure. This can lower barriers for Nigerian startups, tech companies, and scale-ups that otherwise struggle with unreliable hosting or expensive infrastructure.
Looking Ahead – Challenges and Opportunities
Galaxy Backbone is positioned to play a pivotal role, but success is not guaranteed. To sustain impact, it must:
- Ensure consistent uptime and service reliability across extended fibre routes, data centres, and cloud nodes.
- Extend reach beyond urban centers, ensuring that underserved states and rural areas benefit from the backbone.
- Maintain high security standards to safeguard sensitive government and citizen data.
- Balance demand between public and private sector clients without compromising performance or availability.
- Keep investing in disaster recovery and redundancy, especially as digital services expand across government and the economy.
If GBB navigates these well, it can anchor Nigeria’s transition into a truly digital economy.
About Galaxy Backbone
Galaxy Backbone Limited is the Federal Government of Nigeria’s ICT service provider, mandated to build and operate a nationwide ICT infrastructure backbone for MDAs, including fibre-optic networks, data centres, cloud and hosting, internet access, and managed ICT services. Visit their website for more information.
