The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), says the telecommunications and ICT services contributed N2.508 trillion to Nigeria’s GDP in the first quarter of 2023 just as number mobile phone subscribers in Nigeria rose to 223.8 million as of April 2023.
In a statement issued by NCC Director, Public Affairs, Reuben Muoka, one of the key highlights of the telecoms industry performance within the period was the generation of 820.8 million dollars for the Federal Government from 5G spectrum licences fees.
“The fees were paid by three operators, MTN, MAFAB, and Airtel.’’
The NCC noted that following the issuance of the licences in December 2021, MTN and MAFAB already launched 5G services, while Airtel, which received its licence in December 2022, is set to launch the service in June.
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Muoka added growth statistics of the telecoms industry showing an impressive record of contributions to the Nigerian economy, citing that the number of phone subscribers in Nigeria as of April 2023 stood at 223.6 million.
He added that the number of Internet subscribers for the same period was 157 million, while broadband subscriptions stood at 92 million.
Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose by 3.52% year-on-year in real terms in the fourth quarter of 2022, an improvement compared to 2.25% recorded in the previous quarter but a decline when compared to 3.98% recorded in the corresponding period of 2021.
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According to the NBS, the GDP growth in Q4 2022 was driven mainly by the services sector, which recorded a growth of 5.69% and contributed 56.27% to the aggregate GDP.
Although the Agriculture sector grew by 2.05% in the reference period, its performance was significantly hampered by severe incidences of flood experienced across the country, accounting for lesser growth relative to the fourth quarter of 2021 which was 3.58%.
Moreover, the Industry sector was still challenged, recording -0.94% growth and contributing less to the aggregate GDP relative to the third quarter of 2022 and the fourth quarter of 2021. Basically, the performance of agriculture and Industry reduced in 2022 relative to 2021, while the performance of the Services sector improved in 2022.