Poor Infrastructure: Telecoms Operators to Invest $8.5bn

• Poor Infrastructure: Telecoms Operators to Invest $8.5bn

Mobile network operators in Nigeria are planning to invest as much as $8.5 billion in the telecommunications sector to bridge the infrastructure gap.

According to the Global System for Mobile communication Association, this represents an increase of $1.6 billion when compared with spending in the last two years.

A report by the GSMA Mobile Economy West Africa 2019 put Nigeria’s mobile Internet at 30 per cent of the population.

About 41 per cent of the population has access to mobile network broadband but yet to subscribe.

“The improved macro-economic outlook for the sub-region, following the economic recession in Nigeria in 2016, bodes well for demand for telecoms services. Along with increasing investments in 4G networks, this will support capex growth over the medium term. From 2019 to 2020, mobile operators in the sub-region will spend $8.5bn on network infrastructure and services – an increase of $1.6bn over the previous two years,” it added.

Experts at GSMA noted that more access to the internet would enhance social and economic benefits for individuals and communities.

According to the GSMA report, mobile is the main platform for accessing the internet in West Africa, saying the number of mobile internet users in the region rose to about 100 million by the end of 2018, representing an increase of 19 million when compared to 2017.