Our chart today draws on broadband data from the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC). The data shows that Nigeria’s broadband internet subscriptions have trended upward since Oct ’21, apart from a slight decline in Feb ’22. Mobile broadband accounts for a dominant share of (over 99%) Nigeria’s broadband connections largely due to the ease and relatively low cost of acquiring mobile lines. As such, the growth in broadband connections broadly mirrors the steady increase in active mobile lines, and by extension, mobile internet subscriptions.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Based on the data, total broadband connections increased by 1% m/m and 19% y/y to about 93 million in Feb ’23.
The modest growth resulted in an increase in broadband penetration to 48.5%, up from 48.2% the previous month and 40.9% the year-earlier period.
The steady rise in mobile broadband penetration can be attributed to significant broadband infrastructure investments across the country by GSM network providers.
We believe these investments have been stimulated by the federal government’s implementation of the National Broadband Plan (NBP 2020-2025) which seeks to achieve 90% population coverage and a broadband penetration rate of 70% by 2025.
The steady growth in broadband penetration is laudable considering its positive impact on economic activity, especially in fields like e-commerce and fintech that have experienced rapid growth.
The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) estimates that a 10% increase in broadband penetration will lead to additional GDP growth of 2.0% and 1.8% for low and middle-income countries respectively.
Recently, Airtel Nigeria announced the commencement of its 5G technology in four different locations across the country. The telecom operator joins other 5G service providers in Nigeria, including MTN Nigeria and Mafab Communications Limited.
We anticipate that the continuous rollout of the Fifth-Generation (5G) network by GSM operators will accelerate broadband penetration growth.
