Telecom
Spectrum Hoarding Chokes Africa Telecoms Growth
African governments are stifling telecoms development by failing to sell more bandwidth to mobile phone operators, a mistake that could undermine growth in the world’s poorest continent, according to Reuters.
After an explosion in the use of mobiles for phone calls, consumers in countries such as South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya are increasingly using them to access the Internet.
That requires more spectrum, the range of radio waves set aside for cellular networks. But many governments in sub Saharan Africa lack the motivation, know-how and money needed to auction more bandwidth to meet the demand, industry participants and analysts say, which bodes ill for economies.
Reuter said that the World Bank estimates that with every 10 percent growth in broadband penetration, African economies grow by a corresponding 1.4 percent.
“The governments do not know how to release it and do not see the importance of prioritising the release of spectrum,” said Peter Lyons, a director of spectrum policy at GSMA, a UK-based mobile industry body.
There is little fixed-line broadband infrastructure to carry the rising data traffic on the continent, so the growing demand for Internet connection can only be delivered through mobile networks. More than half of Internet activity is on handsets.
Mobile data is expected to grow by 46 percent annually over the next four years, according to GSMA. It also expects Africa’s 35 million 3G connections to grow nearly five-fold to 160 million by 2016.
“Governments and regulators are not prepared for the coming growth because they have been dragging their feet in allocating spectrum to support the mobile data networks,” said Lyons.
Many African authorities lack the expertise to run auctions for spectrum licences. The few engineers and lawyers that have telecoms experience are already working for the mobile phone firms and many governments can’t afford to hire advisors from abroad.
Even when they are in a position to seek outside help, red tape can get in the way. In South Africa, the continent’s most advanced economy, telecoms regulator ICASA has to get the communications minister’s permission to recruit foreign experts. One such request sat on the desk of successive ministers for years.
ICASA says the process of licensing additional spectrum started last year, but was delayed because it had to consider a policy paper from the minister.
“ICASA will continue with its process as soon as the policy direction has been concluded and published,” a spokesman for the regulator said.
Dobek Pater, a telecoms analyst at South Africa-based consultancy Africa Analysis, said another problem is that some governments need to find out who holds what spectrum and whether it can be reallocated from other users, such as the military or analog television.
“There are spectrum constraints that we have been running into in most countries across Africa,” Pater said.
Some analysts say many African governments do not fully appreciate the correlation between mobile growth and economic expansion.
GSMA calculates that if the top six markets released new spectrum, it would create $34 billion in economic growth between 2015-2020, which could translate into 15 million jobs.
In 2011, the industry accounted for 4.5 percent of sub- Saharan GDP and contributed $32 billion to economies there, including $12 billion in tax revenue, GSMA said.
“The mobile networks are not necessarily cows to be milked but a horse to pull the nation forward. And if that horse cannot breathe, it cannot move forward as fast as it could,” GSMA’s Lyons said. (Editing by David Dolan and Erica Billingham)
Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), official industry umbrella body and pressure group for major mobile network operators in the country, has faulted claims that foreign direct investments (FDIs) into the sector slumped significantly in quarter one (Q1).
Gbenga Adebayo, Chairman, ALTON
ALTON, said that with N2.13 trillion spent in 2025 on network upgrades and expansion that they would invest an additional N1.86 trillion on network expansion this year.
The body was reacting to the claim by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) that FDIs into the sector slumped significantly in quarter one.
The telcos commended the Federal Government for its continued support of the industry, while calling for a more comprehensive framework to track and report investments coming into the sector.
The operators highlighted the importance of accurate data in shaping investor perceptions and guiding policy decisions.
The association noted that while the NBS recently released its Q1 Capital Importation Report, the figures presented do not fully capture the scale of capital deployment within Nigeria’s telecoms industry.
“This disparity between reported foreign capital inflows and actual infrastructure investment highlights a gap in how sectoral capital deployment is currently measured and reported,” the statement read.
ALTON, in the statement, signed by Gbenga Adebayo and Damian Udeh, chairman and publicity secretary, respectively, expressed appreciation to the Federal Government for approving a strategic 50 per cent tariff increase in 2025, describing it as a pivotal intervention that rescued the industry from financial distress.
According to the association, the tariff adjustment restored operational viability, closed critical revenue gaps and enabled operators to reinvest in infrastructure and service quality.
The association emphasised that the policy intervention transformed the sector from a struggling model into a sustainable, growth-focused industry.
“The timely investment enabled operators to transition from financial distress to a sustainable, growth-focused model characterised by significant capital reinvestment,” ALTON stated.
The statement revealed that telecom operators, tower companies, and other players in the sector recorded a total capital expenditure of N2.13 trillion in 2025. For 2026, planned capital expenditure stands at N1.86 trillion, with funds directed towards network infrastructure expansion, technology upgrades, and operational investments critical to maintaining service quality and coverage.
These commitments, ALTON stressed, are fundamental to advancing Nigeria’s digital economy objectives and improving services for millions of subscribers nationwide.
While the NBS report indicated a sharp decline in foreign capital importation into the telecom sector, from $80.78 million in 2025 to just $7.24 million in Q1 2026, ALTON argued that this metric only reflected a portion of the actual investment activity.
The association explained that much of the sector’s capital deployment now comes from domestic sources, including reinvested operational earnings.
These financial mechanisms, ALTON noted, are not fully reflected in conventional foreign capital importation metrics, thereby painting an incomplete picture of the industry’s health.
To address this reporting gap, ALTON proposed a collaborative engagement among the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the NBS, and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The goal, according to the association, is to develop a more inclusive and transparent investment-tracking framework that accurately reflects both foreign and domestic capital flows.
ALTON reassured the Nigerian public that telecom operators remain committed to continuous investment in network expansion, modernisation, resilience and service quality improvements.
The association pledged to work closely with regulators and government institutions to ensure that the sector’s contributions to national development are comprehensively documented and appropriately recognised.
With sustained collaboration and government support, ALTON said Nigerians can expect uninterrupted access to digital services that drive economic growth, innovation, financial inclusion, and overall national development.
Princess Emiko
The regulatory and digital infrastructure pillars of Nigeria’s telecommunications ecosystem, led by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Digital Realty, and IHS Nigeria, have rallied robust support for the upcoming 2026 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum (NDSF) on Internet Governance for Development (IG4D) and its prestigious industry awards.
The annual high-level forum is scheduled to hold this Thursday, June 11, 2026, at the prestigious Banquet Hall, Welcome Centre Hotels, Lagos, anchoring its deliberations on the crucial theme: “Sustaining WSIS Vision with Multistakeholder Synergy in Nigeria.”
The Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of the NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, is set to deliver the Keynote Address, highlighting the regulatory framework required to preserve the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) vision through inclusive, multi-stakeholder partnerships.
Joining the regulatory commission in driving this momentum is IHS Nigeria, the nation’s premier digital infrastructure champion boasting a footprint of over 16,000 telecom towers and 15,000km of fiber optic cables across the country. Alongside data center colocation leader Digital Realty, these organizations are heavily backing the forum as part of their commitment to promoting critical national infrastructure and securing Nigeria’s digital possibilities.
Speaking ahead of the event in Lagos, Ogbuefi Remmy Nweke, the Editor-in-Chief of host media organization ITREALMS Media Group, commended the immense institutional support flowing from the public and private sectors.
“Achieving sustainable internet governance and digital trust requires an intentional alignment of regulation and infrastructure,” Nweke remarked. “The active collaboration of the NCC, IHS Nigeria, and Digital Realty ensures that the 2026 forum will move beyond mere dialogue to produce clear, actionable policy recommendations for our digital economy.”
The event will be presided over by Dr. Olusola Teniola (hon), Director, Strategic Business Initiatives, ipNX Nigeria and former President, Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), who will deliver the Chairman’s Opening Speech on the 2026 NDSF blueprint.
Earlier, leading telecommunications, technology, and internet governance stakeholders have thrown their weight behind the 17th milestone edition of the annual Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum (NDSF) on Internet Governance for Development (IG4D), including ICT infrastructure leader MTN Nigeria; the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON); premier software and DNS infrastructure firm Upperlink Limited; and the Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NiRA), managers of the .NG country code Top Level Domain name.
Media & Event Contact: The Secretariat Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum (NDSF) / ITREALMS Media Group Banquet Hall, Welcome Centre Hotels, Lagos Website: www.itrealms.com.ng
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