Nigeria’s Broadband Penetration Declines, Hindering Government’s 2025 Target

In a report released by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Nigeria’s broadband internet penetration declined by 0.28%.

Nigeria’s broadband internet penetration stood at 48.21% in the month of March, a 1% percent increase when compared to the 48.20% obtained at the beginning of the year.

In March 2023, the country’s teledensity, a statistic that counts the number of active telephone connections per 100 people residing in an area, fell to 118.48% from 119.01% in February, largely as a result of the reduction in actively connected lines reported by operators.

The report further revealed that since June 2022, the average growth rate of Nigeria’s broadband penetration was about 0.5% despite the high rate of smartphone penetration in the country.

Despite Nigeria’s ambitions, there has been a lack of positive growth in broadband coverage, posing a potential setback to the government’s goal of achieving 75% broadband internet penetration by 2025, according to Investors King.

Almost three years after the launch of Nigeria’s National Broadband Plan, which aimed to cover 90% of the population by 2025, the country’s broadband penetration rate has remained sluggish.

In January 2020, Nigeria’s Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Pantami, inaugurated the Nigerian National Broadband Plan 2020-2025 under the directives of President Muhammadu Buhari. The plan set a target of reaching a minimum penetration rate of 70% among at least 90% of the population by the plan’s end.

The broadband plan, designed to provide data download speeds of 25 Mbps in urban areas and 10 Mbps in rural areas, aimed to ensure effective coverage for at least 90% of the population by 2025.

With the limited availability of broadband internet, particularly in rural areas, the World Bank urged Nigeria in January 2023 to increase its broadband penetration, aiming to provide internet access to people in remote regions.

However, there is hope on the horizon with the recent launch of the Starlink Satellite in Nigeria. The federal government believes that the adoption of this internet service by Nigerians will contribute to an overall increase in broadband penetration throughout the country.