NCC Seeks Fresh Investment As Nigeria’s Data Consumption Jumps 47%

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has called for increased investment in telecommunications infrastructure as Nigeria’s rapidly expanding digital economy puts growing pressure on existing networks.

The NCC Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Dr Aminu Maida, made the call in Abuja at the maiden Nigeria Digital Connectivity Investment Forum, organised by the Commission in partnership with Swedfund and Ookla.

Maida said the forum was convened to bring regulators, investors, infrastructure providers and development partners together to identify investment opportunities, address barriers to infrastructure deployment and develop partnerships capable of accelerating digital connectivity across the country.

According to him, Nigeria’s telecommunications sector has recorded remarkable growth over the past 25 years, driven largely by liberalisation, transparent regulation, private-sector participation and investor confidence.

He said the experience demonstrated the importance of maintaining an enabling regulatory environment that could attract investment while protecting consumers and promoting fair competition.

The NCC boss, however, noted that the next phase of growth would require significantly higher investment as individuals, businesses, schools and government services increasingly depend on broadband connectivity.

He disclosed that data consumption in Nigeria rose from about 1.13 million terabytes in July 2025 to approximately 1.66 million terabytes in July 2026, representing an increase of nearly 47 per cent in one year.

Maida said the trend, coupled with the growing use of cloud services, digital platforms and artificial intelligence, underscored the urgent need for network expansion, modernisation and improved quality of service.

He stressed that the investment challenge was no longer limited to extending network coverage to unserved communities.

“The investment challenge before us is not merely one of expanding coverage. It is also about ensuring that those already connected enjoy better service quality, improved user experiences, and infrastructure capable of supporting future technologies,” he said.

The EVC cited recent regulatory measures aimed at strengthening the investment environment, including the 2025 telecommunications tariff adjustment, engagements with state governments over Right of Way charges and the designation of telecommunications infrastructure as Critical National Information Infrastructure by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

He said the initiatives were designed to reduce deployment barriers, improve operators’ capacity to invest and strengthen investor confidence.

Maida also urged local and international investors, development finance institutions, infrastructure providers and other industry stakeholders to explore opportunities in Nigeria’s telecommunications sector.

He said the NCC was strengthening evidence-based regulation to improve transparency, enhance regulatory certainty and provide investors with clearer information about infrastructure needs and opportunities.

The Commission, he added, was working with Swedfund and Ookla to obtain independent data on network performance and consumers’ connectivity experiences.

Maida said such data was being combined with market and network information to provide a clearer picture of infrastructure gaps and investment opportunities across the country.

He also highlighted the NCC’s Consumer Data Lab, funded by the Gates Foundation and developed in collaboration with Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA).

According to him, the platform brings together Ookla network-performance data, consumer complaints and operators’ intervention reports, enabling the Commission to analyse connectivity challenges according to location and demographic characteristics.

He said the system would help determine whether network interventions were improving consumers’ experience and identify areas requiring further deployment or upgrades.

Also speaking at the forum, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, said digital infrastructure had become a critical determinant of a country’s investment climate, competitiveness and ability to participate in international trade.

Oduwole, whose keynote address focused on “Connectivity and Competitiveness: Digital Infrastructure as a Driver of Investment Climate and Trade,” said modern trade increasingly depended on private networks, data centres, digital platforms and secure data systems.

She described the forum as timely, stressing that digital infrastructure was now central to the ability to produce, connect, invest and trade in a modern economy.

The Swedish Ambassador to Nigeria, Anna Westerholm, said significant gaps remained in connectivity coverage, quality, affordability and supporting infrastructure.

She called for stronger collaboration among government, industry and investors, noting that reliable data on network performance and user experience could help identify investment priorities, reduce uncertainty and strengthen investor confidence.

Westerholm identified energy, cybersecurity and digital skills as important components of a sustainable connectivity ecosystem.

She said Sweden was interested in deepening commercial and investment relations with Nigeria, particularly in digitalisation and connectivity, adding that Swedish institutions and companies could contribute technology, commercial expertise, development finance, export financing and project-development support.

For Ookla, the Vice President of Sales, Middle East and Africa, Tristan Muhader, said connectivity had evolved beyond calls and internet browsing to become an essential operating layer for economic and public activities, including emerging artificial intelligence applications.

She said Ookla’s collaboration with the NCC provides independent, crowdsourced information on users’ connectivity experiences and helps identify areas where infrastructure investment could have significant impact.

Representing the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, the Director of the National Frequency Management Council, Adetunji Adeyemo, said reliable, affordable, resilient and accessible digital infrastructure was essential to Nigeria’s economic transformation.

He said the Federal Government had identified infrastructure, policy and innovation, entrepreneurship and capital as key strategic priorities.

The two-day forum is bringing together policymakers, investors, development finance institutions, telecommunications operators, infrastructure providers, technology companies and development partners to examine investment opportunities and strategies for expanding digital connectivity across Nigeria.