Telecom
A Guide to Boosting Your Broadband Speed
A lot turns on the strength of your broadband speed.
If you’re a business, the strength of your broadband determines how quickly you’re able to download and transfer files, how long it takes to process data, and the quality of your communication with your clients.
Faster connections will allow your team to carry out tasks efficiently, and guarantee smoother customer engagement on your contact channels. Slower connections could affect the pace of work and dampen the quality of your interaction with customers.
Unless you remedy the issues arising from slow broadband, your clients could seek better service elsewhere. This could in turn reduce your sales and shrink your revenues.
If you are struggling with less than optimal broadband speeds, you should find this article useful. Here we’ll note some of the possible causes of your slow internet speed, and present practical steps you can take to fix this problem.
First, let’s answer a few questions about broadband internet, so we get a sense of where we’re headed.
What is Broadband Speed?
Broadband speed refers to how quickly you can upload or download data with your internet connection. It’s measured in megabits per second (Mbps) and kilobits per second (Kbps). These days, we also hear talk of speeds reaching several gigabits per second (Gbps).
A kilobit is a thousand bits; a megabit is a million bits. One gigabit refers to a billion bits.
A bit is the smallest unit of data on your computer.
If your broadband speed is 20 Mbps, this means you’re able to transfer up to 20,000,000 bits of data per second over your internet connection. This is faster than a broadband speed of, say, 20 Kbps, or 20,000 bits per second.
How Fast Should Your Internet Be?
The answer to this question depends on what you’re using your internet for. If you routinely transfer heavy files between computers, you will need much faster broadband than someone who only uses their internet for simple text emails.
Some video streaming services require speeds of at least 5 Mbps. If you’re working with a speed of 50 Mbps, you could download a 2 GB file in about five minutes.
Things that May Be Slowing Down Your Broadband
Many people tend to blame their Internet Service providers (ISPs) for their slow broadband. But it’s not always the ISP’s fault; a lot of other factors could contribute to slower internet connection. Some of them are explained below.
- Quality of Your Hardware: If your cables and router are old, they may cause your broadband to slow down. It’s advisable that you check your connection hardware and replace it with new equipment if they have aged.
- Distance from Network Centralizer: The farther you are from your service provider’s broadband centralizer or access points, the slower your internet is likely to get.
- Obstructions: Network signals could weaken if there are walls or other things standing in its path.
- Spyware and Viruses: Spyware may affect your broadband speeds by interfering with your browser. Computer viruses may also multiply to weigh down computing power, and impede normal functioning.
- Router Location: Routers need to be placed in a central, elevated location, or at least at a point that lets signals travel unimpeded to your computers. When it’s not positioned this way, broadband speeds will be lower.
- Several Devices and Users: Access speeds may drop if there are several users and multiple devices using a single network.
- Heavy or Outdated Applications: Applications that have not been updated can affect internet speeds. They may also slow things down if they use a lot of bandwidth.
- Peak Time: Think about internet traffic as a stream of vehicles on a road. There’s usually more traffic during peak periods, so movement—or internet speeds –could be slower at those times. Peak period for internet connections is usually somewhere between morning and evening. Off peak periods may last between 2 AM and 7 AM, when there are fewer people using the internet.
How to Check Your Broadband Speed
You can find out what how fast or slowly your broadband is working by conducting a broadband speed test. It’s simple and takes just a few steps:
- Link your computer to your router with an Ethernet cable
- Go to your browser
- Search for a speed testing platform (examples include speedtest.net, fast.com, and speedcheck.org).
- Follow the instructions on the site you choose.
Note that the broadband speed displayed may be slightly lower or higher than what your ISP says it provides. This isn’t necessarily a problem. You only have cause to be concerned if the speed test consistently shows results that are much lower than what your ISP claims to be supplying you.
How to Speed Up Your Broadband
You could take these steps to make your broadband faster:
- Protect Your Connection
It might be that your internet connection has no password protection, and other users are linking up to it without your knowledge. As we noted earlier, having multiple users on your connection at once may affect your internet speed. By restricting access with a password, you could reduce the possibility of this happening.
- Change Your Router’s Location
Place your router in a more central location so that it achieves broad coverage. Or just make sure that the paths between it and your computers are not impeded by walls or other obstructions. Ideally, you should put it in an elevated place, like a shelf or high up a wall.
- Close or Remove Bandwidth-Consuming Applications
Some applications could start and run without your knowledge, consuming bandwidth and stifling access speeds. Make sure to shut down these applications, or remove them if they aren’t important to you. You should also delete old files and wipe your browsing history clean to free up space and allow quicker computing.
- Scan Your System with an Antivirus
Combat bandwidth-shrinking malware with up-to-date antivirus. You can set your antivirus to scan your systems for spyware or viruses on a regular basis.
- Change Your Service Provider
If other measures don’t help, the problem may well be from your service provider. In this case you will have to try some other ISP and see if they can offer you a faster connection.
Get Fast, Reliable Broadband for Your Business
If you’re looking to solve your issues with broadband speed, you can speak to the experts at Layer3. They will assess your needs and recommend changes besides the few mentioned here.
Layer3 also provides secure, stable and fast broadband service. Its broadband package guarantees low latency to the internet, routable IP addresses, and multiple connections to the internet backbone via submarine cables. It’s exactly what your business needs to maintain a high standard for its operations.
Find out how these features can benefit your organization. Get in touch with the Layer3 team and request a demo today.
Nigeria has exactly 156,662 active fixed wired internet subscriptions as of mid-2026.
This is a tiny fraction compared to mobile GSM networks, which dominate the market with over 154 million subscribers.
The fixed wired market primarily consists of homes and offices using direct physical cables like fiber optics.
Fixed wired services use physical cables, like glass fiber or copper wire, to bring internet directly into a building.
It is like a dedicated, private water pipe for your home. It provides very fast speeds, unlimited data, and is reliable.
In contrast, mobile GSM uses radio waves transmitted from tall towers to phones, acting more like a sprinkler that sprays a signal across an entire neighborhood.
Because laying physical cables across cities is expensive and hard to do, these subscriptions are very rare.
However, the market has seen recent growth, driven largely by Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) services.
The top players are: MTN FibreX with 110,564 subscribers, which is roughly 88.7 per cent of the entire market.
SWIFTNG accounts for about 13,945 connections.
The others are ipNX and 21st Century Technologies which make up the number.
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has said that it was strengthening collaboration with state governments and industry players to develop a transparent, cost-based pricing framework for sharing telecom ducts as part of efforts to speed up broadband expansion across Nigeria.
Ayuba Shuaibu, director of Policy, Competition and Economic Analysis, NCC, disclosed this at the Stakeholders’ Forum in Abuja.
Shuaibu said the initiative was designed to build consensus among all parties.
“The primary purpose of this forum is to ensure seamless synergy between the Commission and all stakeholders,” he said.
The director said the consultation was prompted by longstanding complaints over permits, levies and other charges imposed by different levels of government.
He said bringing together state commissioners, telecom operators, tower companies and representatives of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum had helped improve understanding of the issues.
“This engagement is a work in progress. We expect more input from stakeholders before presenting the outcome to the Nigeria Governors’ Forum,” he added.
Dr Helen Adeneye, commissioner for Innovation, Science and Technology, Kogi State. welcomed the consultation, saying Nigeria needs a harmonised policy that clearly defines the responsibilities of both the federal and state governments.
“We need a harmonised policy that allows states to collaborate better with telecom operators and creates a more business-friendly environment,” she said.
Dr Adeneye added that adopting the Dig-Once policy would establish a uniform pricing system and help resolve disputes over charges for telecom infrastructure deployment.
Chidi Ajuzie, chief executive officer, WTES Projects Limited, whose firm is conducting the consultancy study, said the proposed framework would introduce a common cost structure for duct sharing to support broadband investment and economic growth.
“The study is designed to create a uniform pricing model that will drive broadband growth, economic development and wider adoption across the country,” he said.
Ajuzie explained that the consultants had developed preliminary floor and ceiling prices to guide operators while allowing flexibility within the approved range.
He added that the recommendations remain open to industry input before the NCC finalises the framework.
The Dig-Once Policy is designed to reduce the cost and disruption of deploying broadband infrastructure by requiring fibre ducts to be installed whenever roads are constructed or rehabilitated.
The NCC is developing a cost-based pricing framework for sharing these ducts to promote fair pricing, reduce duplication of infrastructure and encourage investment.
The proposed model is expected to support the Federal Government’s broadband expansion targets while improving collaboration between telecom operators and state governments.
Telecom
MUSON Graduates Shine at 2026 Concert as MTN Foundation Celebrates 20 Years of Music Scholarships
Emeka Nwodike, acting director of the MUSON School of Music, conducted the institution’s graduating class in a grand finale performance, bringing the 2026 graduation concert to a memorable close. The concert took place on July 7 at the Shell Hall of the MUSON Centre, Onikan, Lagos.
The event celebrated students who successfully completed the MUSON Diploma Programme through the MTN Foundation Scholarship Programme.
The graduating students delivered a rich choral repertoire that reflected the breadth of their musical training, performing Italian Salad by Richard Genee, My Song by Eriks Esenvalds, Obi Dimkpa by Laz Ekwueme, and an ABBA Medley arranged by Goran Bejstam. Under the Acting Director’s baton, the choir demonstrated technical precision, vocal maturity and artistic expression before an audience of family members, music enthusiasts and industry stakeholders.
The concert formed part of the long-running partnership between the MTN Foundation and the Musical Society of Nigeria (MUSON), which has, since 2006, provided scholarships for hundreds of talented young Nigerians to receive formal music education through the MUSON Diploma School. The programme continues to serve as one of the country’s foremost platforms for developing professional musicians and strengthening Nigeria’s creative economy.
Speaking at the close of the concert, Nwodike expressed appreciation to the MTN Foundation for its sustained support of the scholarship programme over the past two decades. He also thanked the Director of the MUSON Centre, faculty members, mentors and other stakeholders whose dedication has contributed to the school’s continued success.
“For nearly 20 years, the MTN Foundation has remained a steadfast partner in our mission to nurture young musical talent. We are deeply grateful for that commitment. I also want to thank the Director of the MUSON Centre, our faculty, mentors and everyone whose dedication has helped the MUSON School of Music continue to grow and thrive. Their support has made this programme what it is today, and our graduates are a testament to that collective effort,” he said.
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