As Nigerians increasingly upgrade to 5G-enabled smartphones, a surprising digital paradox is emerging: around 50% of device owners cannot actually access 5G networks in the areas where they live or work. The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) revealed this in its fourth-quarter 2025 industry performance report, highlighting a mismatch between device adoption and network availability.
Edoyemi Ogoh, NCC’s Director of Technical Standards and Network Integrity, explained that many consumers remain unable to use 5G due to limited coverage. The gap is most visible outside major urban centers and central business districts, where network infrastructure has not yet caught up with demand.
Data from Lagos and Abuja illustrate the problem. In Lagos, the share of 5G device users without network access dropped from 70.9% in Q3 to 55.4% in Q4 2025. In Abuja, it declined from 65.6% to 47.4% over the same period. While these figures indicate gradual progress, they underscore that 5G rollout remains heavily concentrated in major cities, leaving rural and peri-urban areas underserved.
This urban-rural divide is also reflected in network performance. Median download speeds in cities improved from 19 Mbps to 20.5 Mbps in the last quarter of 2025, while rural areas experienced slower speeds and widening upload gaps. Telecom operators such as MTN and Airtel show strong urban performance, while others, including Glo and T2, lag behind, further deepening inequalities in digital access.
The NCC warns that bridging this coverage gap is critical for Nigeria’s digital economy. Without broader network expansion, the benefits of 5G—like high-speed streaming, cloud-based services, and digital commerce—remain concentrated in cities. The Commission recommends accelerating 5G site deployment, upgrading rural towers to at least 4G, and providing incentives for operators to expand into underserved regions. Only then can Nigeria fully leverage 5G for innovation, productivity, and economic growth.
source: techeconomy