Nigeria’s active mobile subscriptions rose 29% in two years to 200.3 million in September 2026, recovering from the sharp decline that adopted the enforcement of the National Identification Number (NIN)-SIM linkage coverage.
The rebound, nonetheless, stays concentrated amongst two operators, with MTN and Airtel accounting for about 86% of active connections, leaving Globacom and T2 with a a lot smaller share of the market.
MTN had 104.6 million active subscriptions in September, whereas Airtel had 68 million. They collectively accounted for about 172.7 million out of the 200.1 million recorded throughout the 4 operators. Globacom had 23.5 million, whereas T2 had 3.6 million, according to the latest data from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
The 200 million mobile subscriptions discuss with active cellphone traces, not that 200 million individuals personal or use mobile telephones. One particular person can have a number of SIM playing cards, and active connections additionally embody SIMs utilized in routers and different units.
The determine marks a brand new milestone because the full enforcement of NIN-SIM linkage in 2024, which led to a pointy discount in reported connections. The coverage required mobile subscribers to hyperlink their cellphone traces to verified nationwide identification numbers. The coverage was introduced in 2020, however its enforcement intensified in 2024 as operators accomplished the verification and disconnection of traces with out legitimate NIN data.
In its 2024 year-end performance report, the NCC stated active subscriptions fell from 224.7 million in 2023 to 164.9 million in 2024, a lack of 59.8 million connections or 26.6%. The fee attributed the decline to eradicating SIM playing cards not linked to verifiable NINs and correcting a significant discrepancy in a single mobile community operator’s subscriber figures.
By August 2024, the regulator stated more than 153 million SIM cards have been linked to NINs, representing 96% compliance. It subsequently set September 14, 2024, as the ultimate deadline for operators to finish the train.
Rising mobile subscriptions
The rise in mobile subscriptions has additionally been accompanied by larger knowledge consumption, which grew by about 51% year-on-year in September 2026 to 1.73 million terabytes. However, the shift in the direction of quicker networks stays uneven. 4G accounted for 54.37% of mobile connections, whereas 5G represented simply 5.05%. Older applied sciences, 2G and 3G, nonetheless accounted for 36.42% and 4.16%, respectively.
As demand for connectivity grows, the NCC’s figures additionally present an growth in fastened broadband infrastructure. Fibre-to-the-X subscriptions, which cowl connections to properties, workplaces, streets and hubs, elevated by about 67% between the primary and third quarters of 2026, pointing to progress in fibre entry past mobile networks.
These developments come as telecommunications accounts for a bigger share of Nigeria’s financial exercise. The sector contributed 9.72% to GDP within the second quarter of 2026, up from 9.20% within the corresponding interval of 2025. The NCC famous that figures for late 2024 and early 2025 have been affected by the National Bureau of Statistics’ GDP rebasing.
