Airtel Nigeria is approaching the 18,000-cell-site mark as the telecommunications operator accelerates network deployment across the country, adding more than 1,000 new sites annually and extending high-speed mobile connectivity deeper into rural communities, according to the company's latest annual report.

The expansion places Airtel as an operator making one of the largest sustained infrastructure commitments to Nigeria's digital economy, with the company's network now spanning all 774 Local Government Areas in the country.

More than 99 per cent of Airtel Nigeria's sites are 4G-enabled, with the company continuing to add new capacity and upgrade existing infrastructure as demand for mobile connectivity rises.

The report said the Nigerian operation added more than 1,050 new sites during its 2025-26 financial year, a pace that represented a significant increase from the approximately 15,000 sites Airtel operated two years ago. By early 2026, the operator had crossed 17,000 sites, after adding about 2,000 sites in two years.

At a recent media roundtable, Airtel's Chief Executive Officer, Dinesh Balsingh, said the company intended to maintain the large scale of network expansion during 2026.

"Everyone has the right to digital connectivity, including people in deep rural markets and small communities," Balsingh said.