Telecommunication giants MTN Nigeria and Airtel Africa have ramped up their investments in network infrastructure to meet the growing demand for data in Nigeria. The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) reported a staggering 93.35% increase in monthly internet usage, reaching an all-time high of over 1 million terabytes in January 2025. This surge is attributed to the rising popularity of digital services, particularly social media and streaming platforms, which are major drivers of data consumption.
MTN Nigeria’s data traffic surged by 42.9% in the last quarter of 2024, with the average data usage per subscriber climbing by 33.6%. Similarly, Airtel Africa witnessed a 37.2% increase in average data usage, with smartphone users consuming 11.2GB of data per month. To accommodate this surge, both companies significantly increased their capital expenditure (capex) in the fourth quarter of 2024 and plan to continue boosting investments in 2025 to support network expansion and meet growing data demands.
MTN spent N225.85 billion in Q4 of 2024, which accounted for nearly 51% of its total annual capex. Although this represents a slight decline from the previous year, the company remains committed to strengthening its network infrastructure. Airtel Africa, meanwhile, allocated $456 million in capex for the nine months ending December 2024 and plans to invest an additional $294 million before March 2025 to reach a total of $750 million in capex.
Despite slowing investments during much of 2024 due to economic challenges and foreign debt repayments, both MTN and Airtel have been pushing for greater investments to enhance network capacity. The recent approval of a tariff hike by the NCC, which marks the first adjustment since 2013, is expected to provide the telcos with the necessary funds to improve infrastructure and services. Both companies are optimistic that these investments will lead to enhanced network quality and better customer experience in the coming years.
SOURCE: BUSINESS DAY