By Radarr Africa Business Desk
ABUJA, November 14 (Radarr Africa) – Nigeria’s mobile data consumption could reach about 2 million terabytes by December, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Aminu Maida said in an interview published on November 9.
Maida said consumption was about 1.6 million terabytes in July and rose to 1.75 million terabytes by August 2026. Monthly growth is above 5%, and consumption has risen 39% from February to August.
He said the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003 requires tariffs to be cost-reflective, so operators can recover costs and earn a fair margin. The NCC models prices and sets a range within which operators choose their rates, rather than setting prices directly.
Maida said tariff adjustments were blocked twice in the past decade. In 2024, operators threatened load-shedding, which he said the NCC stopped. He cited cost pressures including reliance on foreign exchange for equipment and higher energy costs after the removal of the fuel subsidy.
He said telecoms’ contribution to gross domestic product was roughly flat at about 9% before the current reforms and is now about 10%.
On consumer protection, Maida said the NCC’s Quality of Experience approach covers the whole consumer journey, from choosing a provider to switching or leaving. Since he returned to the regulator in 2023, he said, the focus has moved from network-side quality of service to the user’s experience. The NCC website hosts a crowdsourced national coverage map that lets consumers compare providers by location.
Quality-of-service rules were amended in 2024. Operators are now assessed monthly at local government level instead of state level. Sanctions include monetary penalties and compensation to consumers, which the NCC pays quarterly. Maida said the second cycle is under way, and argued that combining compensation with fines is more effective than fines alone.
Maida also addressed the student data scheme, under which students receive 100 MB a day for approved educational platforms. He stressed that it is not free or unlimited internet, and said the NCC is working with the Ministry of Education on the content.
On infrastructure, Maida said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu signed an Executive Order in 2024 designating telecom assets as Critical National Information Infrastructure, making vandalism a serious crime. An early-2024 fibre cut combined with a bush fire disconnected the south from the north for a period, overloading other networks.
A framework with the Federal Ministry of Works and the Office of the National Security Adviser now requires notice before road works so that operators can relocate fibre. Maida cited Edo State as a success. He also flagged government agencies and landlords denying operators access to sites, which degrades service.
Looking ahead, Maida said the main goal is more reliable, robust internet to boost productivity. He pointed to Project Bridge, a 90,000-kilometre fibre project led by the Minister, which aims to expand and strengthen the fibre backbone.
Earlier this year the NCC gave a picture of the growth. In May it said Nigerians consumed about 45,800 terabytes of data every day, with total consumption of 1.42 million terabytes in March 2026, up from 995,000 in March 2025. Daily use in March 2025 was about 32,100 terabytes. The NCC said at the time that operators invested more than N2.5 trillion in 2025, of which mobile network operators accounted for N2.13 trillion and tower companies N373.8 billion.
Maida said in May that the NCC had launched the Telecommunications Identity Risk Management System and signed a memorandum of understanding with the Central Bank of Nigeria on phone-linked electronic fraud.
The NCC is also working to open fibre access to buildings, so homes and businesses can use Wi-Fi and reduce pressure on mobile networks, he said.
