Telecom
Africa Leads in Global Internet Bandwidth Growth
Africa leads the way in terms of bandwidth growth levels, experiencing the “most rapid” growth of international internet bandwidth and beating global growth estimates.
The continent experienced a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 44% between 2018 and 2022, reveals telecommunications market research and consulting firm TeleGeography.
Asia’s bandwidth growth is just behind the African continent, rising at a 35% CAGR during the same period, it reveals.
The telecoms analysis company’s latest data of Global Internet Geography was released this week, tracking internet capacity and traffic data sets. The research also examines factors impacting IP transit pricing and the role individual backbone operators play.
From a global perspective, the data shows the pace of internet bandwidth growth has been slowing. However, it’s still a near tripling of bandwidth since 2018, it notes.
TeleGeography research indicates global internet bandwidth rose by 28% in 2022, continuing the return to ‘normal’ from the pandemic-generated bump of 2020.
Total international bandwidth now stands at 997Tbps, representing a four-year CAGR of 29%. The firm further forecasts the Pbps era will soon be under way.
“After a tumultuous 2020 – with pandemic-induced volume surges and shifts in internet traffic patterns – network operators are back to adding bandwidth and engineering their traffic in a more measured manner,” says Paul Brodsky, TeleGeography senior research manager.
“Based on hard survey data gathered from dozens of regional and global network operators around the world, it’s clear the COVID-related expansion of internet traffic and bandwidth was a one-off phenomenon.”
International internet bandwidth growth largely mirrored that of internet traffic, it reveals.
Both average and peak international internet traffic increased at a compound annual rate of 30% between 2018 and 2022, slightly above the 29% CAGR in bandwidth over the same period, according to the research.
All of the stay-at-home activity associated with COVID-19 resulted in a spike in traffic in 2019-2020.
However, following the COVID-19 traffic surge in 2020, a global return to more typical usage patterns meant a decline in average and peak utilisation rates.
“The return to more normal usage patterns has resulted in a substantial drop in average and peak traffic for 2021-2022. Average traffic growth dropped from 47% between 2019-2020, to 29% between 2021-2022, while peak traffic growth dropped from 46% to 28% over the same time period.
“Global average and peak utilisation rates were essentially unchanged from last year, standing at 26% and 45% respectively, in both 2021 and 2022. In terms of pricing, providers’ shift to predominantly 100Gbps internet backbones continues to reduce the average cost of carrying traffic.
“Across seven major global hub cities, 10 GigE prices fell 16% compounded annually from Q2 2019 to Q2 2022, while 100 GigE port prices fell 25%.”
Future outlook
According to TeleGeography, the combined effects of new internet-enabled devices, growing broadband penetration in developing markets, higher broadband access rates and bandwidth-intensive applications will continue to fuel strong internet traffic growth.
While end-user traffic requirements will continue to rise, not all of this demand will translate directly into the need for new long-haul capacity, it states.
The research firm notes various factors will shape how the global internet will develop in the coming years. These include:
Post-COVID-19 growth trajectory: Initial evidence suggests the spike in the rate of bandwidth and traffic growth in 2020 from the pandemic was a one-time event and has largely returned to more traditional rates of growth. Operators indicated they no longer see the pandemic leading to upward adjustments to their demand forecasts.
IP transit price erosion: International transport unit costs underlay IP transit pricing. As new international networks are deployed, operational and construction costs are distributed over more fibre pairs and more active capacity, making each packet less expensive to carry.
The introduction of new international infrastructure also creates opportunities for more regional localisation of content and less dependence on distant hubs. As emerging markets grow in scale, they too will benefit from economies of scale, even if only through cheaper transport to internet hubs.
International versus domestic: While there’s little doubt that enhanced end-user access bandwidth and new applications will create large traffic flows, the challenge for operators will be to understand how much of this growth will require the use of international links.
In the near-term, the increased reliance on direct connections to content providers and the use of caching will continue to have a localising effect on traffic patterns and dampen international internet traffic growth.
Bypassing the public internet: The largest content providers have long operated massive networks. These companies continue to experience more rapid growth than internet backbones and they are expanding into new locations.
Many other companies, such as cloud service providers, CDNs, and even some data centre operators, are also building their own private backbones that bypass the public internet. As a result, a rising share of international traffic may be carried by these networks.
The need for Nigeria to think outside the box in its need to drive towards global relevance with innovations and scientific developments will be on the front burner at the NITRA Innovative & Scientific Conference scheduled to hold on Thursday July 23, 2026 in Ikeja, Lagos.
NITRA
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) will lead other delegates to discuss and take far-reaching decisions at the event, which has its theme as “Bridging Nigeria’s Digital Divide With Scientific Innovation”.
Other companies that have indicated interest in partnering with NITRA include mobile communications company, Tecno; Africa’s premier end-to-end AI solutions company, Hyperspace; and telecommunications data infrastructure company, Digital Realty.
Speaking on the proposed event, the Chairman, Nigeria Information Technology Reporters Association (NITRA), Chike Onwuegbuchi noted that the event will seek to create a platform for government and private organisations to deliberate on policies around scientific innovations in Nigeria, challenges, place of indigenous and foreign collaboration, roles of each stakeholder, and grassroots development in that regard, among others.
According to him: “The Federal government, with series of programmes and partnerships, has established the urgent need to create an ecosystem that thrives on scientific innovation, breeding institutions and individuals with a target of placing the country at the fore-front of Next-Gen development.
It is a known fact that digital and scientific innovations are crucial, not only to the survivability of a nation, but also to the sustainability of its growth and development, with significant effect on economic strength, global image, defense and security, government capabilities to function, and public health and safety, communication and digital footprint, among others.
The federal government is actively driving scientific innovation to foster economic diversification and build a $1 trillion economy by 2030. Efforts are heavily focused on commercializing research, establishing massive research funds, and funding strategic infrastructure, particularly in technology, biotechnology, and healthcare. Core government initiatives and policies include the newly instituted National Research and Innovation Development Fund (NRIDF), which aims to mobilize about $500 million annually to support research and the commercialization of scientific outputs; and the Nigeria Genomic City, a multi-ministerial initiative aimed at transforming Nigeria into a leading hub for genomics, precision medicine, and biotechnology. It is designed to protect indigenous data, stimulate artificial intelligence in health, and develop a highly skilled scientific workforce.
According to the General Secretary of NITRA, Mr. Chidiebere Nwankwo, the forum will also be a vehicle to propagating the views of decision makers to the public, thereby furthering the cause of public awareness and information dissemination on the topic.
The focus, he said will be on how Nigeria can sustain digital innovative growth and scientific development in Nigeria
The board of global payments company, PayPal, says a 53 billion dollars takeover offer from financial technology firm, Stripe, and private equity company, Advent International, does not adequately reflect the company’s long-term value.
PayPal
According to reports, the proposed acquisition, valued at 60.50 dollars per share, remains under consideration, with the board yet to formally respond to the offer.
The directors are said to be evaluating not only the financial value of the proposal but also the structure of the financing, the timeline for completing the transaction and the likelihood of obtaining regulatory approvals.
They are also considering the possibility of competing bids emerging.
Although the offer represents a premium of about 28 per cent above PayPal’s recent share price, the board believes the company could deliver greater value to shareholders if its ongoing turnaround strategy succeeds.
Following reports of the bid, PayPal shares gained about two per cent to close at 56.73 dollars.
Sources familiar with the discussions said Stripe and Advent have secured approximately 50 billion dollars in debt financing from JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley, while both firms would jointly contribute 17 billion dollars in equity.
Under the proposal, the two companies would jointly own PayPal instead of dividing its operations.
PayPal, Stripe, Advent International, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley have all declined to comment on the proposed transaction.
The discussions come as PayPal seeks to strengthen its business after years of increasing competition from rivals including Apple Pay, Google Pay and emerging financial technology firms.
The company, which was valued at about 360 billion dollars in 2021, now has a market capitalisation of approximately 36 billion dollars.
Since assuming office as Chief Executive Officer in March 2026, Enrique Lores has embarked on a restructuring programme aimed at improving operational efficiency and restoring growth.
The restructuring includes the creation of three business divisions comprising Checkout, Venmo and Consumer Financial Services, and Payments and Crypto.
The company is also targeting 1.5 billion dollars in cost savings through the deployment of artificial intelligence technologies.
PayPal’s latest financial results indicated signs of recovery, with first-quarter revenue rising seven per cent year-on-year to 8.35 billion dollars, while total payment volume increased by eight per cent to 464 billion dollars.
If approved, the transaction would combine two of the world’s largest digital payments companies.
The combined business would process an estimated 3.7 trillion dollars in annual payment volume, significantly strengthening its position in the global online payments market.
However, analysts expect the proposed acquisition to face intense regulatory scrutiny because of the companies’ combined market share in merchant payment services.
To address possible antitrust concerns, the bidders have reportedly considered options, including separating PayPal’s Braintree business or other assets if required by regulators.
Sources said Stripe and Advent remain interested in pursuing the acquisition despite the board’s reservations, although negotiations are expected to continue.
Market observers are also awaiting PayPal’s earnings report scheduled for July 28 for further indications of the company’s financial recovery and future growth prospects.
Concerns over network reliability and its impact on Nigeria’s growing creator economy took centre stage at MTN Nigeria’s Data on Trial event, where content creator and streamer, Jarvis, challenged telecommunications operators to improve connectivity for digital creators.
Speaking during the event, Jarvis asked whether there were locations in Nigeria where uninterrupted internet connectivity could support real-life (IRL) streaming without network disruptions.
“Are there places where there is no breakage when streaming IRL?” she asked.
Her question highlighted the challenges faced by content creators who depend on stable internet services for live streaming, content uploads and real-time engagement with audiences.
Responding, MTN Nigeria’s Chief Technical Officer, Mr Yahaya Ibrahim, said network performance depends on several factors, including location, network coverage, device capability and the number of users connected to a particular base station.
He noted that operators continue to invest in expanding network capacity to meet the growing demand for data services.
Earlier, MTN’s General Manager, Network Performance and Quality Assurance, Mr Michael Ndukwe, explained the evolution of mobile network technology in Nigeria, from first-generation (1G) services to the current fifth-generation (5G) technology.
According to him, each phase of technological advancement has significantly increased network capacity and enabled new digital services.
Ndukwe cited Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) data showing that Nigerians consumed about 13.2 million terabytes of data in 2025.
He added that data usage reached approximately 4.06 million terabytes in the first quarter of 2026, reflecting the country’s increasing reliance on digital platforms and online services.
According to him, the growth is being driven by wider adoption of 4G and 5G networks, increased smartphone penetration, the proliferation of smart devices and expanding use of social media platforms.
Participants at the event noted that as more Nigerians build businesses and careers around digital content, access to reliable and high-speed internet has become critical to sustaining the country’s digital economy and creator ecosystem.
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