Nigeria’s 5G subscriptions rise to 1.24% in March 2024 – NCC

Nigeria’s 5G subscriptions rise to 1.24% in March 2024 – NCC

Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has recently announced that subscriptions for 5G connectivity have maintained a steady increase, reaching 1.24% of the country’s total connections as of March 2024.

The data shows that the total number of active mobile connections in the country stood at 219 million, meaning that around 2.7 million Nigerians have subscribed to the latest technology.

As of December 2023, 5G penetration in the country stood at 1.04%. This increased to 1.11% in January 2024 and then 1.18% in February. This steady growth is likely to continue as more people switch to 5G networks.

Despite the growth of 5G, 2G still remains the dominant technology in Nigeria, accounting for 56.97% of all connections in Nigeria as of March 2024. 3G accounts for 9.04% of the 219 million subscriptions, while 4G accounts for 32.74% as of March 2024.

The cost of 5G devices is one of the main barriers to 5G adoption. The high cost of smartphones in Nigeria, due to soaring inflation, has deterred many people from upgrading to a 5G connection.

According to the Chief Technical Officer of MTN Nigeria, Mohammed Rufai, the problem of device compatibility is also a major issue, which is why telecom operators have continued to maintain their 2G and 3G networks while investing in 4G and 5G.

MTN launched the first 5G network in Nigeria in September 2022, while Airtel launched the same in June 2023. Mafab Communications, which secured the 5G license at the same time as MTN, rolled out the service in late 2023.

MTN initially rolled out its 5G service in seven cities and is currently expanding the service.

Airtel rolled out the service in four states with plans to roll out in six more states within the first year of the launch. Mafab also launched its 5G service in Abuja with a promise that the first phase of its rollout would be in six cities across the country.