Telecom operators in Nigeria, including MTN, Airtel, Globacom, and several Internet Service Providers (ISPs), are under growing investment pressure as data consumption surges to record highs across the country.
According to the latest data from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Nigerians consumed 1.15 million terabytes of data in August 2025, up from 1.13 million terabytes in July, marking the highest monthly usage ever recorded.
This growth continues a steady upward trend in data demand since January 2025, driven by streaming, mobile payments, and social media use in major urban centers such as Lagos, Abuja, and Kano.
Infrastructure Strain Hurting Quality of Experience
The NCC, in its latest report on network capacity, warned that the current infrastructure of Nigeria’s telecom networks is inadequate to support the country’s growing appetite for data.
The report linked the poor user experience, including dropped video calls, buffering during streams, failed transactions, and slow downloads, to capacity limitations on the networks.
“Capacity restrictions are concentrated in urban zones; the impact on rural service is extremely low,” the Commission stated. “This constraint is a localized issue tied to high-density areas.”
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) earlier confirmed that Lagos State has the highest number of internet users in Nigeria, followed by Ogun, Kano, Kaduna, and the FCT, which collectively experience the heaviest strain on broadband networks.
NCC Calls for Aggressive 5G Rollout and 4G Optimization
To close the widening capacity gap, the NCC has urged telecom operators to boost investments in network expansion and adopt a two-pronged approach:
- Accelerate 5G deployment nationwide, and
- Optimize existing 4G (LTE) networks to handle higher data volumes and improve performance.
The Commission said this is necessary to ensure consistent quality of service (QoS) as Nigeria’s internet penetration deepens and the number of connected devices continues to rise.
Data Now the Revenue Engine for Telcos
Despite the infrastructure strain, telecom operators are seeing record data revenues, making data services the new growth driver for Nigeria’s telecom sector.
In Q2 2025, MTN Nigeria reported that its data revenue jumped 85.6% to ₦701 billion, up from ₦377 billion in the same quarter of 2024.
Airtel Nigeria also recorded a 60.3% rise in data revenue to ₦260 billion ($168 million), compared with ₦185.4 billion ($117 million) in 2024.
“Data is the new oxygen,” said Airtel Nigeria CEO, Dinesh Balsingh. “That’s why we’re investing heavily in 5G and fibre to build a smart, scalable network that can carry the weight of Nigeria’s digital future.”
Massive Capital Expenditure to Meet Demand
To sustain this momentum, telcos are ramping up capital investments to boost capacity and network resilience.
MTN Nigeria disclosed that it invested ₦565.7 billion in network expansion in the first half of 2025, marking a 288.4% increase in capital expenditure (capex) year-on-year.
“The accelerated capex in H1 was deployed to support growth in data traffic as well as enhance service quality and user experience,” MTN said.
Similarly, Airtel Africa, the parent company of Airtel Nigeria, raised its Nigeria capex to $39 million in Q2 2025, up from $38 million in the same period last year.
With data consumption still climbing month after month, analysts say the trend will continue to push telcos toward deeper infrastructure investments, particularly in 5G, fibre expansion, and last-mile connectivity.
