- Adds Fresh 887,426 New Users in October
The coverage, adoption and usage of high-speed internet otherwise known as broadband in Nigeria has reached 86.95 million subscribers in the country.
This is according to the latest industry statistics obtained from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the telecoms industry’s independent regulator.
The latest data indicated that telecom operators connected 887,426 new users to broadband networks in October, thus giving broadband penetration an uptick to 45.55% in the month from 45.09% the previous month.
This also brought broadband connectivity closer to its all-time high of 87.68 million connections equivalent to 45.93% penetration attained two years ago in October, 2020 prior to SIM-NIN harmonisation directive by the federal government the following month of the year which slowed down the process.
Broadband refers to high-speed Internet access that is always on and faster than the traditional dial-up access and it includes several high-speed transmission technologies.
Broadband penetration has become a major metrics for measuring growth and development of the telecoms sector as it refers to the number of active internet subscriptions with access to at least 3G, 4G and 5G networks.
Currently, the Nigerian government is harnessing regulatory resources and policy initiatives at its disposal to drive broadband penetration in the country to at least 70% by 2025.
This target is enshrined in the Nigerian National Broadband Plan (NNBP 2020-2025) which defines broadband as connectivity delivering a minimum of 10 Megabits per second in rural areas and a minimum of 25 Mbps in urban areas to every Nigerian at an affordable price and quality by 2025.
Meanwhile, as broadband penetration hit 45.55% in October, total internet connectivity in the country stood at 152.71 million while total active lines for telephony rose to 214.70 million with teledensity jacking up to 112.47% in the same month.
These metrics indicate positive traction of the telecoms sector and its resultant impacts on the Nigerian economy.
For instance, the recently released Q3-2022 GDP report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) revealed that the Information and Communication sector grew by 10.5% yearly in real terms.
The Telecommunication & Information services sub-sector was the primary driver for growth in the sector. It recorded a 10.1% year-on-year expansion in Q3-2022 and contributed 12.9% of the nation’s GDP in the period under review.
Aggressive growth initiatives and synergy between the public and private sectors have primarily driven growth in the sector, according to experts.
In the public sector, numerous policies and strategies implemented by the Federal Government have driven growth of the sector in general and broadband in particular.
Frameworks such as the National Broadband Plan 2020–2025, which target 70% broadband penetration by 2025, the SIM Card Registration Policy, and the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy 2020–2030, among others, serve as the principal policies driving Nigeria’s digital transformation.
More recently, Business Metrics Reported that the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) removed a bottleneck in broadband penetration by reducing the Right of Way (RoW) charges by 90% to N14.5 per linear data for operators who want to deploy greenfield broadband infrastructure projects in the city.
Speaking recently at a forum, the executive vice chairman and chief executive officer of the NCC, Professor Umar Danbatta emphasized important roles so far played by effective regulation and enabling policies in the success of the sector since its deregulation 22 years ago.
According to him, “diligent implementation of various telecommunications policies, strategies and regulatory frameworks has continued to enhance the nation’s capacity to deepen citizens’ access to digital resources, transform media and knowledge production and positively impacting Nigeria’s economic and social progress.”
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