Nigeria’s active telecom subscriptions rose above 200 million in September for the first time since April 2024, when the National Identification Number (NIN)-SIM verification exercise began to sharply reduce the number of active lines.

The Nigerian Communications Commission’s latest figures show 200,337,097 active subscriptions in September, up from 197,416,694 in August. 

The increase of nearly 2.9 million brings the total to 18.1 million above the 182.2 million recorded in January. 

The milestone marks a recovery from the fall in 2024, but the total remains about 24.4 million below the 224.7 million subscriptions recorded in December 2023.

The NCC’s 2024 year-end report said active subscriptions dropped to 164.9 million in December that year, a decline of 59.8 million. 

It attributed the fall to the removal of SIM cards not linked to verifiable NINs and the correction of a major discrepancy in one operator’s records. 

The number of subscriptions does not necessarily represent the number of Nigerians with phones, as one person may have several SIM cards. 

The NCC defines teledensity as the number of active telephone connections per 100 inhabitants. It put Nigeria’s teledensity at 92.41 per cent in September, up from 91.07 per cent in August. 

Internet subscriptions across mobile, fixed and voice-over-internet services rose to 160,911,376 in September, up from 158,520,893 in August, according to NCC data.

Broadband subscriptions reached 128,020,463, with penetration at 59.05 per cent. 

In August, the commission recorded 126,217,174 broadband subscriptions and penetration of 58.22 per cent.

Fourth-generation (4G) technology accounted for the largest share of connections in September at 54.37 per cent. 

Second-generation (2G) accounted for 36.42 per cent, while fifth-generation (5G) made up 5.05 per cent and 3G made up 4.16 per cent.