With the rolling out of the 5G network in Nigeria, industry analysts have projected that foreign direct investment (FDI) in the telecommunications industry will increase to $150 billion in the next two years. According to them, the 5G network and other emerging technologies will attract more foreign investment into the country, noting that investors across the world are willing to invest in the new technologies in the developing country. They said Nigeria would attract more FDI than other African countries due to its large economy and population.
 
Strategically located and positioned between West and Central Africa, Nigeria is undoubtedly Africa’s business hub with easy access to other regions of the world. Nigeria offers many investment and business opportunities and advantages in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector with about 65 per cent of its youths being IT-savvy. Nigeria’s tech startups have attracted over $2 billion in funding as of 2022.
 
Between 2015 and 2022, 383 tech startups raised a combined $2,068,709,445. That is according to the Nigerian Startup Ecosystem Report 2022, released by start-up-focused content and research company, Disrupt Africa, which utilises Disrupt Africa’s datasets, expertise and networks to document what startups are doing what in the country, who is making investments, and who is providing ecosystem support. Official figures show that Nigeria’s foreign direct investment in the ICT sector has risen from an aggregate of $50 million in 2001 to $32 billion in 2015 and $38 billion in 2016.
 
More details at:
https://www.newtelegraphng.com/telecoms-analysts-project-150bn-fdi-by-2024
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Internet access in Nigeria grew in 2022 as mobile Internet subscriptions rose to 154.28 million, new industry statistics from the Nigerian Communications Commission have revealed.
 
This was an 8.94 per cent growth from 141.62 million mobile Internet subscriptions as of December 2022, showing a sustained growth in Internet usage through mobile devices in the country.
 
GSMA, the global association for telcos, in its report: ‘The Mobile Economy Sub-Saharan Africa 2022,’ recently said, “As the primary way most people access the internet in Sub-Saharan Africa, mobile is driving digital inclusion.
 
This is as broadband subscriptions grew by 15.83 per cent from 78.04 million as of December 2021 to 90.39 million as of December 2022.
 
More details at:
https://punchng.com/internet-subscriptions-rose-to-154-28-million-in-2022
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The number of mobile subscriptions in Nigeria rose to 222.23 million in 2022 despite the implementation of the Federal Government’s National Identification Number-Subscriber Identity Module policy.
 
At the start of the policy in April, over 72.77 million active telecommunication subscriptions were barred from making calls. But the industry has since shaken off the effect of this and grew by 13.89 per cent in 2022.
 
According to new data from the Nigerian Communications Commission, the total number of subscriptions grew from 195.13 million as of December 2021 to 222.23 million as of December 2022...
 
More details at:
https://punchng.com/mobile-subscriptions-hit-222-million-amidst-sim-nin-restrictions
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Statistics from the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) have revealed a 53 per cent rise in the values of bills paid online, otherwise known as e-Bills. Specifically, the latest NIBSS data revealed that the value of bills paid through electronic channels in 2022 rose to $6.1 billion from $5 billion recorded in 2021.
 
Besides, customers transferred $42.1 billion via mobile in 2022, according to NIBSS. This is a 142 per cent increase year-on-year compared to $17.4 billion worth of transactions in 2021.
 
More details at:
https://guardian.ng/business-services/nigerians-pay-n2-8tr-bills-electronically-transfer-n19-4tr-with-mobile-phones 

Shipments of used smartphones, including officially refurbished and used smartphones, reached 282.6 million units in 2022, where its unit growth represented an 11.5 per cent increase over the 253.4 million units shipped in 2021.
 
Last year, the International Trade Centre (ITC) claimed that Nigeria spent $2.35 billion on telephone importation in three years. ITC, an international body that focuses on trade, said the country spent $807.95 million on the importation of phone sets in 2019; $765.57 million in 2020 and $772.25 million in 2021.
 
More details at:
https://guardian.ng/business-services/vendors-in-nigeria-others-stake-99-9b-on-415m-used-smartphones 

Airtel Nigeria has announced the acquisition of a new 5G spectrum and an additional spectrum for its 4G network for a price of $316.7 million. With this acquisition, the company can now roll out a 5G network and expand its 4G services in Nigeria.
 
While Nigeria’s Internet users grew to 84 million in 2022, it represents just 38% of the population, showing there’s still room for improvement...
 
The promise of 5G is high-speed Internet connectivity that promises to enhance our Internet experience and unlock several opportunities in Nigeria’s digital space.
 
More details at:
https://techpoint.africa/2023/01/09/airtel-acquires-5g-spectrum
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The number of mobile subscriptions in Nigeria grew by 23.48 million from January to November 2022, the latest industry statistics from the Nigerian Communication Commission have shown.
 
This pushes the total number of mobile subscriptions in the country to 218.61 million, a new record high.
 
MTN remains the largest contributor to mobile subscriptions with 86.44 million subscriptions, followed by Globacom with 59.95 million subscriptions.
 
Airtel has 59.38 million mobile subscriptions, while 9mobile has 12.84 million. According to telecommunication companies, the reason for sustained growth in mobile subscriptions can be linked to a restriction on outgoing calls on SIMs that have not been linked with their National Identification Numbers.
 
More details at:
https://punchng.com/mobile-subscriptions-grow-by-23-million-hit-218million
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The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has said that active internet users in Nigeria are now over 152.2 million, just as active mobile users in the country cross over 210 million.
 
The Executive Vice-Chairman (EVC) of the commission, Professor Umar Garba Danbatta, disclosed this over the weekend during the NCC Day at the 43rd Kano International Trade Fair organised by the Kano Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (KACCIMA).
 
Danbatta, who was represented by the Deputy Director, Consumer Affairs, of the commission, Banji Ojo, also said preparations had gone far for the commercial launch of the fifth generation (5G) network in Nigeria.
 
He said, “In Nigeria today, the number of active mobile subscription reached about 210 million as at August 2022, with a teledensity of 109.99 per cent.
 
More details at:
https://dailytrust.com/internet-subscribers-in-nigeria-exceed-150m-ncc
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The number of active telecommunication subscribers hit 214.35 million in October, according to new industry statistics from the Nigerian Communications Commission.
 
This is the highest number of recorded telecom subscribers in the nation since the total number of subscribers peaked at 207.58 million in October 2020, months before the SIM-NIN linkage.
 
On what has driven subscriber growth in 2022, telcos disclosed that more subscribers were getting new SIMs in a bid to circumvent restrictions on SIMs that had not been linked with their National Identification Numbers.
 
According to the global industry’s association, Nigeria has a sizeable number of its population under the age of 18, indicating that its subscriber growth would remain strong for the foreseeable future as more young consumers crossed into adulthood and subscribed to mobile services.
 
More details at:
https://punchng.com/nigerias-telecoms-subscribers-hit-214-million 

The contributions of telecommunications to the nation’s real Gross Domestic Product increased by 10.52 per cent year-on-year to hit $16.2bn in the first nine months of 2022.
 
In the corresponding period of 2021, the sector contributed $14.7bn to real GDP. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the sector contributed $26.7bn to nominal GDP within the period under review, a 17.83 per cent y-o-y increase from the $22.7bn it was in the corresponding period of 2021.
 
The NBS explained the gross output of telecoms and information services as, “Revenue from telephone, telex, facsimile, telegraph, and other income from satellite and internet services.
 
More details at:
https://punchng.com/telecoms-contribution-to-gdp-increases-by-10
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