The Minister of Communication, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani has said the recent hike in telecom tariffs is due to inflation and operational costs.
This is according to the approval by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
The NCC approved a 50% tariff hike after telecom operators requested for 100% increase.
The NCC decided to go for a lower increase to balance and ensure industry sustainability. But this has been met with opposition from the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers who have threatened to take the commission to court.
While presenting the ministry’s 2025 budget to the National Assembly, Tijani said tariff increase leads to higher consumer prices because of the impact on imported goods.
He explained that these tariffs are one off sales tax and not a driver of inflation.
Beyond tariff, Tijani revealed a huge federal investment plan to upgrade Nigeria’s telecommunications infrastructure.
According to him, the government will allocate N6 billion for the deployment of 90,000km of fibre optic cables to increase the country’s capacity from 35,000km to 125,000km. This will boost connectivity across the country and position Nigeria as a regional leader in telecom services.
Tijani stressed the need for robust infrastructure to address the fibre optic deficit many African countries are faced with.
He urged Nigerian companies to expand beyond local market and tap into opportunities to serve neighboring countries. This he said is what South Africa did when it leveraged its global businesses to strengthen its economic security.
The minister also lamented the underfunding of the ministry which restricts its ability to regulate the sector.
He said private telecom companies only invest in profitable areas and leave underserved regions without infrastructure. With more funding, Tijani believes the ministry can regulate the sector better and generate more revenue.
Senator Shuaib Salisu, co-chairman of the Senate Committee on Communication commended the telecom sector for its contribution to the economy and asked for the review of the ministry’s budget.
The committee passed a motion for the increase of the ministry’s 2025 budget to enable it to perform its functions.
This is a clear indication of the need for government and private sector collaboration to drive growth in Nigeria’s telecom industry and make it affordable and accessible to consumers.