Reported by Ariajegbe Sylvia Esezobor
The Nigerian Communications Commission has called for increased investment in telecommunications infrastructure after data consumption surged by almost 47 per cent within one year, with Nigerians consuming approximately 1.66 million terabytes in July 2026 compared with 1.13 million terabytes in the corresponding period of 2025, warning that keeping pace with demand will require sustained capital inflows into networks that are already under strain.
The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NCC, Dr Aminu Maida, made the call on Tuesday at the opening of the Nigeria Digital Connectivity Investment Forum in Abuja, organised in partnership with Swedfund and Ookla. The forum brought together government officials, investors, development finance institutions and industry operators to explore financing opportunities for Nigeria's digital infrastructure. "We can see the demand in our figures. Nigerians consumed about 1.66 million terabytes of data in July this year, up from 1.13 million a year earlier. That is an increase of almost 47 per cent in twelve months," Maida said. "Keeping pace will require sustained investment, both to expand networks and to improve the experience of people already connected". The figure of 1.66 million terabytes in July 2026 represented the highest monthly volume in the regulator's published series, following 1.53 million terabytes in June and 1.50 million in May. Between January and July 2026, Nigerians consumed approximately 10.18 million terabytes of data, compared with about 7.09 million terabytes during the same period in 2025, an increase of roughly 43.6 per cent.
Maida said pressure on telecommunications networks would increase as cloud services and artificial intelligence became more widely used, making reliable connectivity increasingly important to businesses and consumers. He noted that the NCC had been improving conditions for investment, including through the 2025 tariff adjustment, which addressed financial pressures on operators and their capacity to invest, with an expectation of improved services. The tariff adjustment, approved in January 2025, was the first in eleven years and triggered more than N1 trillion in new investments by telecom operators, with capital expenditure reaching approximately N2.13 trillion in 2025 and planned capital expenditure for 2026 standing at about N1.86 trillion. Maida also said the designation of telecommunications infrastructure as Critical National Information Infrastructure and engagement with state governments on Right of Way were helping to protect telecom assets and reduce deployment costs. The NCC boss said the regulator was also using network performance data and consumer complaints to identify service gaps and areas requiring further investment. "We are making evidence-based decision-making central to how we regulate. For investors, that should mean a clearer understanding of where the opportunities lie and greater confidence in the basis for our decisions," he said.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, said digital connectivity had become economic infrastructure critical to trade and investment. She noted that the telecommunications sector accounted for more than nine per cent of Nigeria's Gross Domestic Product in the first quarter of 2026, while mobile technologies and services contributed about $240 billion to Africa's economy in 2025. Oduwole said Nigeria had more than 25 data centres operational or under construction, highlighting growing investment opportunities in the digital economy. "For investors, the message is straightforward: Nigeria is not approaching digital connectivity simply as a social infrastructure requirement. It is an investable economic opportunity," she said. She identified opportunities in data centres, cloud services, fibre, broadband, fintech, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and digital logistics, while stressing the need for policy predictability and regulatory coordination.
The Swedish Ambassador to Nigeria, Anna Westerholm, said gaps remained in coverage, quality, affordability and supporting infrastructure despite progress in expanding connectivity. "Data should not be the end point. Its real value comes when we use it to make better decisions and turn those decisions into action," she said. Westerholm said reliable data could reduce uncertainty, strengthen investor confidence and help identify areas where additional investment would have the greatest impact. The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, represented by the Director of the National Frequency Management Council Secretariat, Adetunji Adeyemi, said the government was committed to deepening broadband penetration and expanding digital infrastructure across the country.
The investment forum comes amid a paradox in Nigeria's telecom sector. Despite data consumption growing at nearly 47 per cent annually, foreign investment into the sector plunged by 91 per cent in the first quarter of 2026, with the National Bureau of Statistics recording only $7.24 million in foreign capital, down from $80.78 million in the corresponding period of 2025. The figure represented the weakest quarterly performance for telecom investment in more than four years. Total capital importation into Nigeria surged to $10.37 billion in the first quarter of 2026, an 83.8 per cent increase, but more than 96 per cent of that flowed into banking and financial assets, reflecting a preference among foreign investors for short-term opportunities with quicker returns rather than long-term infrastructure commitments. The Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria has disputed the NBS data, arguing that it undercounts telecom investment, while the NCC has noted that operators invested more than N2.5 trillion in network expansion and upgrades in 2025, one of the highest annual investment levels recorded by the industry.
The infrastructure requirements are expanding as data demand grows. The NCC recorded 319,735 total fibre-to-the-home subscriptions in the second quarter of 2026, with MTN accounting for 176,468. More than 5,000 fibre-optic cable cuts were recorded during the first half of 2026, largely associated with road construction, excavation and other civil works. Maida has warned that damage to fibre infrastructure could result in failed calls, blocked payments, interrupted services and lost economic opportunities. The economic exposure is becoming more significant as digital transactions expand: the value of transactions conducted through Point of Sale terminals reached N18.78 trillion in the first quarter of 2026, up 79 per cent from N10.49 trillion in the first quarter of 2025.
The Federal Government has set a target of attracting $750 million in private investment into Nigeria's cloud and data infrastructure over the next 24 months, alongside plans to deploy 90,000 kilometres of additional fibre under Project BRIDGE, expanding the national network from about 35,000 kilometres to 125,000 kilometres. Industry stakeholders have proposed long-term financing mechanisms, including sovereign digital infrastructure bonds, to fund fibre expansion, with commercial data-centre capacity remaining below 100 megawatts despite Nigeria's growing digital economy.
The political context of the NCC's call is significant. The 2027 general elections are less than four months away, with the presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for January 16, and the governorship and state assembly elections for February 6. President Bola Tinubu is seeking a second term on the All Progressives Congress platform, while former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress and former Anambra Governor Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress are among the major challengers. The telecom sector's ability to attract investment and sustain network quality is a critical component of the government's economic agenda, and the contrasting figures of surging data consumption and collapsing foreign investment present a challenge that any administration will have to address. For Nigerian consumers, the immediate concern is whether the networks they depend on for work, commerce, education and entertainment can handle the growing demand. For investors, the message from the NCC is that the demand is real, the regulatory environment is improving, and the opportunities in data centres, fibre, cloud services and digital infrastructure are substantial. Whether that message translates into capital inflows will be determined by whether the broader economic conditions that have deterred foreign investment, including exchange rate volatility and policy uncertainty, are addressed.
For the NCC, the forum is part of a broader strategy to shift attention from expanding network coverage to ensuring the industry's long-term financial sustainability. As Nigeria marks 25 years of GSM, the sector has grown from fewer than 400,000 connected telephone lines in 2001 to more than 195 million active subscriber counts, driving teledensity to roughly 90 per cent. But the infrastructure gaps remain, and the demand continues to grow. As Maida put it, keeping pace will require sustained investment, both to expand networks and to improve the experience of people already connected. The figures speak for themselves: 1.66 million terabytes in one month, up from 1.13 million a year earlier, is a demand signal that no investor can afford to ignore.
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