Telecom
‘Broadband Access in Nigeria’ Not Broad Enough, Not Qualitative Enough- Report
By peter oluka
Despite Nigeria’s 5+ submarine cables, carrying a combined capacity of 10+ TBPS, Nigeria still suffers from low broadband penetration.
In an attempt to increase penetration, the Federal Government’s Presidential on Broadband drafted a Broadband plan which was eventually enacted into a policy with goal of increasing fixed broadband penetration to 30% by 2018.
Meanwhile, with a reported Broadband penetration of approximately 21%, Nigeria seems to have met her National Broadband Plan target of reaching “by the end of 2017, a fivefold increase in broadband penetration over the 2012 penetration rate (of between 4-6%)”.
However, in its Policy Brief dated June 2017, titled: ‘Broadband Access in Nigeria: Not Broad Enough, Not Qualitative Enough’ Paradigm Initiative Nigeria (PIN) passed a damning verdict on the state of ‘Broadband Nigeria’; although the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) putting fixed broadband penetration in Nigeria at 0.01%, admittedly, the bulk of this broadband access has been through mobile broadband.
Internet penetration in Nigeria is put at 47%, according to the ITU.
According to the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), there were just over 90 million active mobile internet subscriptions on GSM and CDMA networks as of April 20175.
The report by PIN continues: Although Nigeria’s broadband plan envisaged that mobile broadband would be the most popular medium for the actualization of the plan, perhaps it was overly optimistic in its plans for the rollout of Terrestrial wireless networks, Fibre, Cable, Digital Subscriber lines and Satellite Networks, given Nigeria’s historic challenges with infrastructure development.
As earlier noted, fixed broadband penetration is 0.01% and infrastructural and policy challenges has limited the effectiveness of Nigeria’s only real claim to a national broadband network – mainly 3G and lately 4G Mobile broadband, resulting in resulting in poor quality of service.
Nigeria’s Systemic Infrastructure Obstacle
Speaking on the backdrop of the report, Babatunde Okunoye, research assistant at Paradigm Initiative, said that Nigeria’s low fixed broadband penetration must be set against the background of the Terabytes of broadband capacity which lay underutilized at landing points of International submarine cable on the Lagos coast.
The successful outlay inland of this capacity, the report observed, has been hindered by factors including unfavourable government policies such as multiple taxation and Right of Way requirements.
“In a country that could only boast 200,000 telephone lines 40 years after independence for a population of over 120 million, Nigeria had always had challenges delivering infrastructural dividends to its citizens.
“The now rested state monopoly Nitel, despite not having to contend with the limiting factors earlier mentioned, and empowered by the biggest spender in the economy (the Federal Government), could only deliver fixed telephone lines to a privileged few (200,000 or 0.001% of the population) over 4 decades”, the report said.
This infrastructure challenge was not peculiar to Telecoms alone, but was also seen in the poor state of critical infrastructure in Nigeria.
Against this background of historical poor infrastructure delivery outcomes in Nigeria, it can be argued that the National Broadband Plan (2013-2018), in its far-reaching plans for an elaborate broadband infrastructure deployment across the nation was overly optimistic in its timeframe.
This is particularly true in its plan for city-wide fibre deployment, which can be as involved as providing fixed telephone line access.
As envisaged by the National Broadband Plan, the best hope of delivering on Nigeria’s broadband plan is by ensuring that the spread of Nigeria’s 3G and relatively new 4G mobile networks which has largely helped broadband penetration to reach 21% is widened and the Quality of Service (QoS) improved.
The Nigerian government is already taking steps to deepen broadband penetration through the licensing of six slots of the 2.6 GHz spectrum for the deployment of 4G services in 2016 and the planned licensing of broadband services on the 5.4 GHz spectrum bank and allocation of 70/80 GHz band (E-band), amongst other plans.
The success of Nigeria’s GSM network is itself quite a story because in some respects, it defied Nigeria’s infrastructure challenges, partly being because it did not require the same level of elaborate layout of infrastructure house to house and street to street as required in fibre deployment for instance; a number of Telco Towers sufficing for each coverage area – plus backhaul infrastructure.
With exactly two years of the Broadband Plan left (2017-2018) and the fixed broadband penetration rate at 0.01%, there is an urgent need to revise the National Broadband Plan for fixed broadband, the report recommended.
“The remaining 2 years also provides the opportunity to solidify the gains of the national spread of mobile broadband.
“A key metric which captures the quality of Internet access in Nigeria is the Average Connection speed, put at 3.9 Mbps (compared to a global average of 7.2 Mbps), according to Akamai’s ‘State of the Internet’ Q1 2017 report”.
“This cannot be divorced from the state of Network infrastructure in the country. In the United States and the United Kingdom for instance, there is an average of 1 Telecommunications base station for 2,300 and 2,100 customers respectively”, the PIN report suggests.
In Nigeria however, there are about 39,000 Telecommunications base stations for a population of over 180 million, an average of 1 for 4,600 consumers7.
The state of Network infrastructure is centrally linked to the poor Quality of Service (QoS) in mobile broadband delivery in Nigeria.
According to the Customer satisfaction survey conducted by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in 2012, nationally, there were marginally more respondents reporting that their connection speed was “slow or very slow” than those reporting it as “fast or very fast”.
This policy brief, which follows Paradigm Initiative’s first policy brief on broadband9, stresses that the years 2017-2018 provides another opportunity to revise the National Broadband Plan, perhaps extending the target year beyond 2018 in respect of fixed Broadband (fibre), while rallying to meet the targets for mobile broadband in terms of Quality of Service (QoS) as also noted in the plan.
A major hindrance to the scheduled outlay of terabytes of fibre broadband from the Nigerian coast to the Nigerian interior has been the policy bottlenecks of multiple taxation and right of way requirements which have burdened ISPs. In this regard, it is important to call on the Federal Government to get its priorities right.
“The proposed plan for second and third national satellites, in our opinion, is wasteful, because resources allocated for this project can be used to broaden Internet access. We are of the opinion that the government can do with 1 or 2 satellites for now – there is no empirical evidence the current satellite (NigComSat-1) has given a good return on investment and financing planned for a third satellite can be channelled instead to funding tax breaks and right of way abstentions for ISPs. A nation that cannot in the 21st century provide reliable broadband access to the majority of its citizens has no business in space in the first place.
“Another immediate priority for the government will be to formulate policies that will prioritize a marked increase in the spread of 3G/4G networks – given they are the only realistic route for achieving some of the goals of the Broadband Plan within the current timetable.
“The licensing of six slots of the 2.6 GHz spectrum for the deployment of 4G services in 2016 was therefore a step in the right direction. Indeed, the Broadband plan notes that, At this juncture 3G (or HSPA) mobile broadband technology provides the fastest way for the delivery of universal mobile broadband access in Nigeria now and in the near future, while targeting LTE technology for future high capacity networks.
“3G and LTE are indeed the most ideal solutions for leapfrogging Nigeria to high speed broadband delivery
“Therefore all hands must be on deck to ensure that the worthy goal of connecting every Nigerian to a superfast and reliable broadband network is realized.
“Nigeria’s 47% and 21% Internet penetration and broadband penetration rates respectively can be partly explained by the concentration of telecom signals in highly populated urban areas and the neglect of the rural countryside where broadband affordability and consequently demand is a challenge. [Source: OpenSignal 3G and 4G LTE Cell Coverage Map]
“The figure above shows gaps between the National Planned and National Existing Broadband Fibre Infrastructure (37,104 km) in Nigeria. This challenge has been identified by the National Broadband Plan as critical to achieving broadband penetration target of 30% by 2018. [Source: Universal Services Provision Fund/Nigerian Communications Commission]”.
African women remain among the most digitally excluded globally, with smartphone affordability and digital literacy among the key barriers. New data from the 2025 GSMA Mobile Gender Gap Report, launched recently, reveals a persistent global gender gap in mobile internet use across low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
It further notes that literacy, digital skills, safety, and affordability of data also remain critical barriers. The report highlights that 885 million women across these regions still do not use mobile internet, with nearly 60% of them living in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.
While mobile internet is the primary way women in LMICs access the internet, offering critical lifelines to health, education, and financial services, the pace of female adoption has stalled, leaving 235 million fewer women than men connected.
Claire Sibthorpe, head of digital inclusion at GSMA, highlighted that the gender gap had narrowed significantly between 2017 and 2020, but progress flatlined in recent years.
Although 2023 brought a slight improvement, restoring the gap to 15%, 2024 saw minimal change, with the gap settling at 14%.
The disparity is most severe in Sub-Saharan Africa, where women are 29% less likely than men to use mobile internet.
“It’s disheartening that progress in reducing the mobile internet gender gap has stalled. The digital divide is driven by deep-rooted socio-economic and cultural factors that disproportionately impact women,” said Sibthorpe.
GSMA projects that closing the gender gap by 2030 could add $1.3 trillion to GDP across LMICs and deliver $230 billion in revenue to the mobile industry.
The report, funded by the UK FCDO, Sida, and the Gates Foundation, stresses the urgent need for targeted investment and policy action to bridge the digital divide and ensure that no woman is left offline.
“The mobile internet gender gap is not going to close on its own. It is driven by deep-rooted social, economic, and cultural factors that disproportionately impact women,” said Sibthorpe.
In a recent interview, MTN Nigeria reaffirmed that its ongoing infrastructure investment is a strategic step to improve network quality, speed, and nationwide coverage.
Speaking on Beyond the Headlines with Nifemi Oguntoye, Ugonwa Nwoye, Chief Customer and Experience Officer at MTN Nigeria, explained that although public concern is valid, the company undertook several internal cost-efficiency measures before making structural adjustments.
She emphasised that improved investment is critical to fast-tracking improvements across MTN’s network.
Nwoye explained that MTN undertook extensive internal reforms before embarking on structural changes needed to support this scale of investment.
The company completed its phased roll-out of the increase between February and March, ensuring that every existing data plan was below the 50% increase, and most remained below 25%.
She also noted that customers were proactively informed about all changes, particularly when certain legacy plans were retired and replaced with new ones. “We gave customers six to eight weeks’ notice,” she explained.
“This is why it has taken us some time to complete this process, where we let customers know that at a certain date, this particular tariff is not going to exist.”
Nwoye stressed that MTN had exhausted other internal measures before turning to broader structural updates. Now, with the new pricing structure in place, the company is accelerating its investment in infrastructure, spending over ₦200 billion in the first quarter of 2025 alone, a 159% increase from the same period last year. A total capital expenditure of ₦800 billion is planned for the year.
She noted that this investment is a direct outcome of long-term operational restructuring aimed at improving service quality.
She added, “We are investing over ₦800 billion this year alone in our infrastructure. This will translate into better customer experience, reduced congestion, faster internet speeds, and wider network reach.”
This investment will support the upgrade of over 1,000 cell sites and the expansion of more than 2,000 transmission links nationwide.
Nwoye stressed that these upgrades are designed to deliver faster data speeds, fewer dropped calls, and broader network reach, especially in underserved areas.
She acknowledged the public’s expectations for immediate service improvements but emphasised that large-scale infrastructure takes time to deploy.
Nonetheless, MTN expects customers to begin experiencing visible improvements in network performance by the second half of the year.
In a sector where service quality and customer satisfaction are closely watched, MTN maintains that its ongoing investments are not merely capital commitments but vital enablers of improved digital experiences across Nigeria.
Remita, the pioneering Nigerian payment technology platform developed by SystemSpecs, is charting a bold new course with its planned expansion into markets across Africa.
What began as a payroll feature in an HR application has now become a robust ecosystem processing over ₦60 trillion annually—one that stands on the verge of reshaping the continent’s fintech landscape, Mr. Deremi Atanda, Managing Director/CEO of Remita Payment Services Limited, says in an exclusive interview that will grace the cover of eGovernance Nigeria Magazine.
The forthcoming edition of eGovernance Nigeria Magazine, a publication of the Technology Times media brand owned and operated by Digital Transformation Media Limited (DTML), will spotlight this extraordinary journey, and present Remita’s evolution as an inspiring tale that informs, educates, and entertains readers about indigenous innovation making global strides.
“We’ve become an ecosystem of rails, products, and services—robust,” Atanda, Managing Director/CEO of Remita explains during the exclusive interview with eGovernance Nigeria Magazine.
“Layering all of that with the many different customers we’ve had, typically every year we process in excess of maybe ₦60 trillion in transactions in Nigerian Naira. And this can only grow, especially as we begin to think of a vibrant Pan-African expansion. We’re at the fringe of that.”
In a compelling narrative that mixes grit, vision, and innovation, Atanda recounts Remita’s early days. “What many people know today as Remita actually started out as a feature within our HR/payroll application.
“You process salaries, and you just want to pay—so just remit salaries. And by the way, that’s where the name ‘Remita’ came from: Remittance. We just took out one ‘T’ and left it at ‘A.’”
Even the company’s logo carries symbolism of that transformation. “I don’t know if you’ve seen our logo—it has three dots, in ascending size. There are many stories in that logo. It started as a feature, and then we brought it out as a product,” Atanda explains.
Yet the road was not without its bumps. “The first time we brought it out as a product was to bid for the National Pension Commission. This was in 2004, with the PenCom Act.
“We packaged this into a product in less than two weeks to take care of end-to-end pensions as it was conceived. Trust me, that vision is still viable today. But we lost that bid.”
Undeterred, SystemSpecs pivoted. “We went back and said, ‘What do we do with this asset?’ If it’s not going to work for pensions, let it become a product. And that’s how we renamed pensions.com.ng as Remita, and it became a product.”
As demand grew, Remita expanded beyond payroll. “Some people want to do their own payroll and just make payments, so let them have a site to go to. Later, it evolved into not just payroll payments. People wanted to do other types of payments. If you want to do non-salary payments, you go to Remita,” he says.
Today, Remita has fully matured into a standalone company. “So those three things—feature, product, company. That’s been the evolution.” With a Tier 1 licence from the Central Bank of Nigeria, Remita is now a fintech powerhouse. “We do switching, we do payment service provisioning, we do super agency, we do terminals—everything you can think about. We provide some basic services within the payment space, including payment service advisory.”
A lesser-known chapter of Remita’s growth includes building Nigeria’s first account-to-accountswitch. “Before TSA, we had built a rail—Nigeria’s first account-to-account switch, worked with all the banks. Not many people know that story. Account-to-account. The front of it, the application, and the rail—first of its kind.”
On the pivotal Treasury Single Account (TSA) deal with the Federal Government of Nigeria, Atanda reveals, “TSA was a happenstance. The government was looking to solve a problem, and we were looking to get regulated. It’s that term people use—when they say ‘luck,’ it’s just preparation meeting opportunity.”
Reflecting on the journey, he adds, “These have been some of those moments where you feel validated, where the visionary leadership that set the business up feels the vision is being realized.”
Today, Remita employs over 300 Nigerians and looks beyond its home shores. “The vision is huge, and we’re committed to that. So, we see exponential growth, and we’re positioning for that.”
Mr. Shina Badaru, Chairman of DTML, says Remita’s story is an inspirational example of local innovation with global relevance. “Remita’s success highlights the critical role of indigenous technology solutions in redefining Africa’s digital economy,” he says.
“As the cover story of the next issue of eGovernance Nigeria Magazine, we aim to showcase how homegrown innovation is not only solving problems locally but is also poised to transform markets across the African continent.”
According to Badaru, “Remita’s inspiring journey connects seamlessly with our article of faith to continue to showcase Nigeria’s growing contributions to the global technology industry.”
eGovernance Nigeria Magazine is a flagship DTML platform with operations across print, digital, TV, events, and e-commerce channels.
“This feature not only celebrates Remita’s evolution,” Badaru adds, “but also signals a pivotal shift in the narrative of Nigerian and African technology—from survival to scale, from local impact to continental transformation.”
As Remita sets its sights on Africa, it is poised to bring financial inclusion, digital infrastructure, and innovative fintech solutions to new and underserved markets. With a strong foundation and visionary leadership, the company is ready to deliver the next phase of its remarkable journey.
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