Nigeria adds 45m telecom subscriptions in 10 years

Nigeria's telecommunications market expanded from 150.3 million active subscriptions in July 2016 to 195.1 million in July 2026, marking a 29.8 per cent increase over a decade. This growth was characterized by periods of rapid expansion, temporary declines, and a major contraction in 2024. The 2024 contraction saw a 54.06 million, or 24.5 per cent, drop in subscriptions, following the enforcement of the National Identification Number-SIM linkage policy, which led to the disconnection of unverified lines.

Despite this, the market began to recover, with active subscriptions increasing by 25.78 million in the following year, representing a 15.2 per cent rise to 195.11 million. The industry has recovered 17.1 per cent of the 2024 losses. However, the market remains 25.61 million subscriptions below the 2023 peak, indicating the recovery is not yet complete.