5G deployment, others to push Nigeria’s telecom market value to $11.43bn

A report by market intelligence firm, Mordor Intelligence, has projected that the Nigerian telecom market value would reach $11.43 by 2029.

According to the report, the market is expected to grow at a cumulative average growth rate (CAGR) of 4.70% between 2024 and 2029. The firm puts the current value of the market at $9.09 billion.

While noting that the Nigeria telecom market has undergone significant transformation over the past few years owing to various initiatives taken by the Government to boost the country’s internet infrastructure and a broadband connection, Morodor said increase in data consumption from businesses as well as individuals, growth in 5G deployments across the country and various innovations by the significant telecom market vendors will drive the projected market value.

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Highlighting other factors pushing the growth of the country’s telecom sector, the report said:

“Increased smartphone adoption in Nigeria has fueled the development of a dynamic digital services sector. Currently, millions of Nigerians use mobile apps, including social networking sites, e-commerce, and financial services. These apps could leverage smartphones’ capabilities to offer speed, convenience, and efficiency, encouraging more people to invest in smartphones.

“In addition to these expansions and collaborations, the growing adoption of digital technologies and government support in aiding the same alongside the 5G technology implementation across the country is analyzed to boost the demand for telecom towers significantly.”

Morodor noted that Nigeria’s surge in e-commerce and digital service platforms has also been driving the demand for reliable telecom services.

It added that as more consumers shift towards online platforms for shopping, payments, and other services, the need for a strong telecom infrastructure becomes important. The convenience of accessing these services through mobile devices is believed to have accelerated the growth of telecom users.

The market intelligence further observed that the launch of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS 2020-2030) by the Nigerian government would fuel the demand for mobile telecom services in Nigeria due to its application in providing low-cost telecom services to the end users.

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“Additionally, in October 2022, The Nigerian Communication Commission stated that the country’s broadband subscriptions majorly depend on 3G and 4G networks contributing 44.5% of the total broadband subscriptions in Nigeria, and the regulator has planned an objective to increase it to 70% by 2025.

“Therefore, the demand for data and voice services in the consumer segments, the increase in the number of smartphones, and the country’s national digital economy policy are driving the adoption of mobile services in Nigeria, supported by the vendors’ partnerships and expansion to offer 4G and 5G based mobile telecom services in Nigeria during the forecast period,” the firm stated.

The latest data from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) shows that active mobile subscriptions in the country stood at 220.3 million as of August 2023.

During the same period subscriptions for internet service stood at 159 million, out of which 86.9 million were broadband subscriptions.

In July last year, the NCC also declared that investments in the country’s telecom industry comprising foreign direct investment (FDI) and local investment, had reached $75.6 billion as of 2021.