Telecom
How Insecurity Impacts Mobile Phone Subscription in Nigeria
Latest telecommunications special edition poll results released by NOIPolls Limited have revealed that a higher proportion of Nigerians use 2 phone lines either registered under one network provider or under two different ones.
This trend has been consistent from 2012 to 2014; however, a 5-point reduction in the proportion of Nigerians in this category was seen from 2012 to 2013 and 3-points increase in 2014.
An assessment of the mobile network used by Nigerians placed MTN as the highest used network in the past two years (2012-2013) and even in the present times; although subscription to this provider has consistently declined within this period.
According to the MTN group, this decline has been mainly due to ‘regulatory restrictions’ imposed by the telecoms watchdog and growing spate of unrest by Boko Haram especially in the Northern part of Nigeria.
Other Networks used by Nigerians in the order of higher subscribers include; Airtel (45%), Etisalat (33%), Glo (28%) and Visafone (1%).
In line with this, the proportion of Airtel subscribers which seemed steady from 2012 to 2013 at (39%), picked up by 6-points in 2014 (45%), thus, making it the only network that has seen a considerable growth in the proportion of its users.
This increase may have been driven by the discovery of the cheaper tariffs offered by this network compared with other networks.
More findings on the usage of phone lines revealed a higher proportion of subscribers (76%) use MTN as their main line; this could have been as a result of a first mover advantage earned by this operator.
In addition, 15% of mobile network subscribers indicated Airtel as their main line, 5% indicated Glo, while 4% of subscribers use Etisalat as their main line.
An assessment of the services provided by network providers revealed that a higher proportion (64%) of mobile phone users across all networks are getting value for money from their main network provider through the ‘quality of network services’ (27%), ‘bonus offers’ (25%) and ‘cheaper tariff’ (23%) among others.
Furthermore, MTN ranks highest for providing best services in Nigeria in 2014, followed by Airtel and Etisalat (68%, 17% and 11% respectively) and to further improve the quality of services of Network providers, subscribers have suggested the ‘reduction of tariff’ (30%) as a measure for improving the quality of telecommunication services while capitalizing on ‘wider network coverage’ (22%) and ‘improved network services’ (22%).
These were some of the key findings from the Telecommunications snap poll conducted in the week of November 17th 2014.
At the dawn of the 21st century, mobile network providers were granted licenses to operate in Nigeria, hence, the introduction of the Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) which subsequently changed the frontage of telecommunications in Nigeria.
In the present times, figures obtained from Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), reveals that the teledensity of the country’s telecommunications industry increased to 96.08 per cent in September, from the 90.78 per cent in March 2014 just as active lines in the nation’s telecommunications industry increased to 134,507,329 in September 2014.
Nigeria’s teledensity is currently calculated by NCC on a population of 130 million people.
Given this major breakthrough in the telecommunications industry, and with the competitive nature of the industry due to the advent of different players, ‘Quality of Service’ has been the major criteria for measuring the satisfaction of mobile network subscribers.
In line with Section 89 of the Nigerian Communications Act 2003 which mandates the Commission to monitor all significant matters relating to the performance of all licensed telecoms service providers, the Commission placed a ban on the sales of new SIM cards in March 2014 and on promotions or bonus offers on some mobile networks operators recently, following the failure of these operators to meet the various Quality of Service (QoS) Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
Against this background, NOIPolls conducted it special edition poll on the telecommunications in Nigeria, to explore the current state of the sector from the perspective of consumers. The poll sought to measure the following:
Key Findings:
Respondents to the poll were asked ten specific questions; only 6 of these questions are discussed in this release. With the aim of assessing the usage of mobile phone lines in Nigeria, respondents were asked: How many phone lines do you currently use?
Findings from the current poll highlights that a higher proportion of Nigerians use 2 phone lines.
These lines could either be registered under one network provider or under two different ones.
The use of 2 or more lines could probably be driven by the need to overcome certain issues associated with mobile network which could range from accessibility to cost. In addition, 33% of Nigerians use one line, 17% use 3 lines, while 7% confirmed they use more than 3 lines.
The use of 2 phone lines seems like the norm across all geo-political zones, except for the North-West zone where the higher proportion of the residents use one phone line.
The North-East zone (33%: 22%+10%) and the South-West zone (31%: 23%+8%) accounted for the highest proportion of respondents who use 3 or more phone lines.
A 3-year trend analysis on the usage of phone lines in Nigeria revealed a consistent trend of 2 phone line usage by Nigerians from 2012 to 2014, however there was a 5-point reduction in the proportion of Nigerians in this category from 2012 to 2013 and 3-points increase in 2014.
More findings revealed that more residents from the North-East zone use more than 3 phone lines in 2014 compared with the past 2 years with a significant increase of 9-points from 2013 (1%) to 2014 (10%).
A view of the trend on phone usage across age-groups revealed that Nigerians within the age-group of 18-21 years have increasingly adapted the use of 2 phone lines over the years; from 2012 where it was lowest to 2014 (41%) with the highest record.
This increase in this category of Nigerians has stimulated a drop in the use of 1 line by this age-group. On the other hand, respondents aged 61+ have continuously reduced the use of 3 or more lines to settle for the use of 1 to 2 lines from 2012 to 2014.
Subsequently, with the aim of exploring the mobile network providers used by Nigerians, respondents were asked: Which network provider(s) do you currently use?
Findings revealed that MTN is the highest used line as confirmed by the vast majority of respondents (91%); this is followed by Airtel (45%) and Etisalat (33%). While 28% of Nigerians use Glo, only 1% of Nigerians use Visafone.
This finding validates the data of the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) which revealed the movement of Airtel Nigeria Limited up to the second place in terms of market share on the number of mobile subscribers on its network with MTN maintaining the first position.
Trend analysis on the network providers used by Nigerians from 2012 to 2014 depicts a consistent decline in the proportion of Nigerians who subscribe to MTN from 2012 to 2014 with a total decline of 4-points within this period.
According to the MTN group, this decline has been mainly due to ‘regulatory restrictions’ imposed by the telecoms watchdog and the growing spate of unrest by Boko Haram especially in the Northern part of Nigeria.
While a significant 10-point decline in the proportion of Glo subscribers from 2012 (38%) to 2013 (28%) was seen, there has been no difference in this category of subscribers since then. The same applies to Etisalat with an 8-point decline from 2012 (40%) to 2013 (32%) although a slight 1-point increase was recorded in 2014.
On the other hand, the proportion of Airtel subscribers which seemed steady from 2012 to 2013 at (39%), picked up by 6-points in 2014 (45%), thus, making it the only network that has seen a considerable growth in the proportion of its users, among other findings by NOIPolls.
Nigeria is partnering with Burkina Faso on Project Building Resilient Digital Infrastructure for Growth (BRIDGE), to extend terrestrial fiber-optic routes through Niger and Benin, aiming to cut Burkina Faso’s internet transit costs by up to 50 percent.
Dr. ‘Bosun Tijani, minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy and Dr. Aminata Zerbo-Sabané, his Burkinabe counterpart, have sealed a deal to establish a joint technical committee for regional digital integration at a meeting in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso’s capital.
At the centre of the discussions was BRIDGE, Nigeria’s connectivity initiative aimed at expanding access to faster, more affordable and resilient internet infrastructure.
Under the proposed collaboration, technical teams from both countries will assess connectivity routes linking Nigeria to Burkina Faso through Nigeria-Niger-Burkina Faso and Nigeria-Benin-Burkina Faso corridors.
The assessment is expected to identify a viable pathway for lowering Burkina Faso’s internet connectivity costs by up to half.
The two countries also agreed to establish a Technical Working Committee to develop an implementation framework for the partnership.
The cooperation will extend beyond fibre infrastructure to other areas of the digital economy.
Nigeria and Burkina Faso plan to explore collaboration on digital skills and talent development, including the potential sharing of Nigeria’s 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) model.
The countries will also seek to strengthen ties between their startup ecosystems, support Burkina Faso’s Innovation Campus and collaborate on artificial intelligence, local-language technologies, shared computing infrastructure, cybersecurity and research.
Tijani said the engagement forms part of Nigeria’s broader outreach to neighbouring countries, following a recent visit to Benin Republic, with planned engagements in Niger and Chad.
Federal government said the broader objective is to leverage the country’s expanding digital infrastructure and capabilities to support shared economic opportunities across borders, strengthen regional digital integration and position Nigeria as a digital gateway connecting West Africa and the Sahel.
As the federal government is thinking os helping Burkina Faso, Nigeria’s internet cost is too high.
The cost of internet in Nigeria is driven by a 50% tariff floor increase approved by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), pushing average mobile data to over ₦431 per GB.
Major telecom networks, fiber providers, and satellite services like Starlink have raised prices due to severe inflation, local currency devaluation, and expensive diesel maintenance for cell towers.
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.
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 percent 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. Airtel Africa’s latest annual report said the Nigerian operation added more than 1,050 new sites during its 2025-26 financial year.
The pace represents 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.
The current expansion has also taken the network further into locations that have historically been underserved by telecommunications infrastructure. These communities include Kukawa, Borno State; Okomu-Udo, Edo State; Chimbi, Niger State; Orile Ijaiye, Oyo State; Kopii, Benue State; and Aran-Orin, Kwara; among others.
Airtel has previously said a significant portion of its network investments is targeted at deep rural communities, small towns and the fringes of major cities. At a media roundtable in February, 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.
The impact of the growth extends beyond the ability to make calls or browse the internet. Wider network availability gives families more reliable access to one another, enables businesses to communicate with customers and suppliers, and supports access to digital banking, education, healthcare and government services.
For farmers in remote areas, mobile connectivity can provide access to current crop prices, weather information, market information and agricultural advisory services. For small businesses, reliable mobile data supports payments, customer acquisition, logistics and digital commerce. For communities, connectivity can improve access to health and social services and help residents participate more fully in the digital economy.
Airtel’s network strategy is also increasingly focused on improving the experience delivered through the infrastructure already in place. In 2025, the company upgraded capacity on about a quarter of its existing sites, deploying higher-capacity radios and moving portions of its backhaul from microwave to fibre.
The operator has also reported a continued addition of spectrum to strengthen its spectrum position. Since November 2025, it has added 20MHz spectrum, which is on track for full integration on all sites this quarter.
Balsingh said the company’s investment programme was designed to improve coverage, capacity and resilience, with the benefits ultimately reflected in the quality of service experienced by customers.
“We have invested with discipline and clarity to strengthen our network nationwide. Those investments are now translating into measurable improvements in performance, customer experience and reach, including in underserved communities,” he said.
Third-party measurements have also continued to provide evidence of changing network performance in Nigeria. Ookla’s Speedtest Global Index, for example, reported a median mobile download speed of 97.74 Mbps for Nigeria in June 2026.
For Airtel, the network expansion not only extends the geographical footprint; but also increases the speed, capacity and stability available to existing customers.
Director of Marketing, Ismail Adeshina, said the company’s network investments were ultimately aimed at making connectivity more useful in the everyday lives of Nigerians, as increasing numbers of consumers, families and businesses depend on mobile services for communication, commerce and access to essential services.
Airtel’s infrastructure programme is also contributing to the wider development of Nigeria’s digital economy.
“With mobile connectivity increasingly serving as the platform for financial services, commerce, education, healthcare, agriculture and enterprise, expanding the physical network effectively increases the number of Nigerians able to participate in those activities,” Adeshina said.
National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) is calling for a unified, cross-sector push to translate the framework of the Nigerian Startup Act (NSA) into practical benefits for local entrepreneurs and investors.
The Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa, CCIE, represented by the National Coordinator, Office for Nigerian Digital Innovation (ONDI), Ms Victoria Fabunmi, in a group photograph with participants from various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) at the Nigerian Startup Act (NSA) Incentives Activation Co-Creation Workshop in Abuja.
Speaking at the NSA Incentives Activation Co-Creation Session in Abuja, organised by NITDA’s subsidiary, the Office for Nigerian Digital Innovation (ONDI), the NITDA boss stressed that while enacting the legislation was a historic milestone, its ultimate success will be measured by its tangible impact on everyday tech ventures.
Delivering remarks on behalf of NITDA Director-General Kashifu Inuwa, ONDI National Coordinator Victoria Fabunmi emphasised that Nigeria must now transition from policy design to operational delivery.
Inuwa noted that while early structural achievements such as setting up the Startup Consultative Forum and launching the digital startup portal have established vital channels for dialogue, the true test of the law lies in whether founders can easily access the relief and resources promised to them.
He said the establishment of the Startup Consultative Forum and its governance structures had created an important platform for sustained engagement among stakeholders, but stressed that the real test of the legislation would be its impact on businesses operating within the innovation ecosystem.
According to him, government agencies, private-sector actors and other ecosystem stakeholders must work collectively to remove institutional bottlenecks and ensure that startups can access the opportunities created by the Act.
Inuwa said the participating institutions possessed different mandates, resources and policy instruments that, if properly coordinated, could significantly improve the operating environment for Nigerian startups.
“We want to go to the next level. We want to be able to say that the actors in our ecosystem have been able to benefit significantly from the legislation that has been passed, and it wouldn’t happen without everyone sitting in this room,” he said.
He urged stakeholders to shift attention from the mere existence of the legislation to its practical implementation, particularly the activation of incentives designed to promote investment, innovation and enterprise growth.
The DG noted that the implementation of the NSA involved institutions across several sectors, including trade, finance, communications, innovation, digital economy, science and technology.
He said bringing these institutions together was necessary to identify gaps, clarify responsibilities and develop workable mechanisms for delivering the incentives to intended beneficiaries.
Inuwa also urged stakeholders to embrace continuous engagement and feedback, noting that the success of the Act would depend largely on the ability of implementing institutions to work together and respond to the evolving needs of the startup ecosystem.
He said recommendations from the session would contribute to ongoing efforts to strengthen the implementation framework and create an environment where Nigerian startups could scale, attract investment and compete effectively in global markets.
In a context-setting presentation, “Operationalising the Incentive Provisions of the Nigerian Startup Act,” Ms Elma Andah, Acting Lead, Strategy, Research and Analytics at ONDI, said the Act provides more than 31 incentives distributed across six major categories.
She identified the categories as tax and fiscal incentives, regulatory support, funding access, exports and trade, ecosystem enablers, and training and capacity building.
Andah explained that implementing the incentives required the participation of more than 15 government institutions, making inter-agency coordination central to the success of the legislation.
She said the Nigerian Startup Act, signed into law on October 19, 2022, was designed to promote innovation, improve access to funding, strengthen collaboration and position Nigeria as a leading technology and innovation-driven economy in Africa.
According to her, Nigeria’s startup ecosystem has continued to demonstrate significant potential, with more than 3,000 startups and several globally recognised technology companies.
She added that Nigerian startups attracted about $410 million in funding in 2024, despite the challenging economic environment.
Andah highlighted several areas of progress under the Act, including engagements with states on adoption, the operational startup support engagement portal, improved startup labelling timelines, the Startup Consultative governance framework, the Startup Investment Seed Fund framework and ongoing efforts to operationalise the regulatory sandbox framework.
She, however, stressed that the interconnected nature of the incentives meant that no single institution could deliver them independently.
“No single institution can deliver all these incentives alone. Implementation requires coordination across more than 15 MDAs,” she said.
Using practical examples, Andah explained that a startup seeking funding could simultaneously require tax incentives, while an enterprise seeking to export its products might need regulatory approvals. Investors seeking tax credits could also depend on access to the startup labelling system.
She consequently challenged participating institutions to clearly establish ownership of the incentives assigned to them, strengthen coordination, simplify access procedures and introduce effective monitoring and accountability mechanisms.
The session therefore provided stakeholders with an opportunity to identify implementation gaps and develop practical approaches for ensuring that the incentives contained in the Startup Act are accessible to startups, investors, innovation hubs and other beneficiaries.
The outcome, stakeholders noted, is expected to support a more coordinated implementation of the NSA and strengthen its contribution to Nigeria’s innovation, investment and economic development objectives.
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