Nigeria’s telecommunications sector experienced one of its steepest declines in recent years, as active voice subscriptions fell by 59.7 million in 2024 due to the strict enforcement of the National Identification Number–Subscriber Identity Module policy, according to the Nigerian Communications Commission’s 2024 Subscriber/Network Performance Report.
The number of active subscribers decreased from 224.7 million in 2023 to 164.9 million by December 2024, marking a 26.6 per cent drop year-on-year.
The telecom regulator explained that the substantial decline was caused by the removal of SIM cards not linked to verifiable NINs and by a major mobile network operator correcting a long-standing subscriber count discrepancy.
This clean-up was part of the Federal Government’s multi-year initiative to link all SIM cards with valid NINs, a policy launched on 4 February 2020 and jointly enforced by the NCC and the National Identity Management Commission.
Following several deadline extensions between 2023 and 2024, a final cut-off date of 14 September 2024 was established. From 15 September onwards, any SIM card without a verified NIN was automatically deactivated.
The government introduced the linkage primarily to “curb the criminal use of anonymous SIM cards,” enhance national security, and establish a more dependable national identity database. The policy is also designed to improve service delivery, broaden financial inclusion, and support digital payment systems across the economy.
In September, President Bola Tinubu announced that over 126 million Nigerians had been enrolled in the National Identity Database, as the Federal Government expanded the system’s capacity from 100 million to 250 million records to ensure universal coverage and remove enrolment bottlenecks.
Furthermore, the report noted that teledensity reflected the scale of the clean-up, dropping from 103.66 per cent in 2023 to 76.08 per cent in 2024. Internet subscriptions also declined, falling from 163.8 million to 139.3 million, a loss of 24.6 million users, representing a 14.98 per cent contraction during the review period.
Despite the decline in subscriber figures, the regulator highlighted ongoing progress in network coverage. Nigeria achieved over 95 per cent cellular coverage, while broadband penetration slightly increased from 43.71 per cent to 44.43 per cent, supported by widespread availability of 3G (89 per cent), 4G (84 per cent) and 5G (13 per cent) networks.
However, the latest NCC industry data indicate that the sector is beginning to stabilise and recover. Active telephone subscriptions rose to 173.54 million in September 2025, up from 171.57 million in August, reflecting continued market adjustment following the 2024 clean-up.
Internet subscriptions on GSM networks also increased marginally to 140.36 million, while teledensity improved to 80.05 per cent, signalling renewed momentum in user growth and network activity.
