Bosun Tijani, the minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, has disclosed that the anticipated hike in telecom service prices may push the floor costs of calls, SMS, and data up by between 30 and 60 percent.
This is less than the 100 percent that telecommunication firms have asked for. The minister disclosed this recently while appearing on a Channels TV program, where he insisted that the 100 percent increment requested by the telecom operators is impossible.
The minister noted that the increase will be between 30 percent and 60 percent. “It shouldn’t be more than anywhere between 30 percent to 60 percent.”
If the 60 percent is adopted, the average cost of phone calls will increase from N11 to N18.33 per minute, SMS charges will rise from N4 to N6.67, and the price of a 1GB bundle will increase from N1,000 to at least N1,667.
Tijani highlighted that increasing costs by 100 percent will be harmful to citizens who are dependent on telecom services. “This sector is responsible for driving growth in our country, it will be harmful to our people to allow the MNOs to increase by 100 percent,” said Tijani.
This announcement follows a decade-long agitation for tariff hikes by telcos, who have faced a harsh operating environment that has spiked their operating cost by 300 percent over the years. Record losses since 2023 after a significant devaluation of the naira have further compounded telcos’ woes, increasing their requests for tariff hikes.
In December, Tijani agreed that tariffs would go up in the interests of the industry’s sustainability. Karl Toriola, the chief executive officer of MTN Nigeria, emphasised that while telcos have asked for a 100 percent increase, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) may not approve that quantum of increase as it is sensitive to the country’s current economic situation.
However, he noted, “We are hopeful and optimistic that the realities are staring us in the face and the right decision will be taken for the sustainability of the industry.”
