Nigeria’s internet consumption declined in September 2024, marking the first drop since February 2024.
This was according to the latest industry statistics report by the Nigerian Communications Commission.
Data usage fell to 850,249.09 terabytes in September, a slight 0.82 per cent drop from the 853,954.05 terabytes recorded in August.
This drop coincided with a decrease in subscriber base in the country in September.
The decline in subscriptions across telecom operators has been largely attributed to the recent verification of National Identification Numbers linked with SIM cards
As a result, the four major operators – MTN, Airtel, Globacom, and 9mobile – deactivated a total of 64.3 million lines.
The NCC report revealed that the verification exercise, which concluded on September 14, had a significant impact on Globacom and 9mobile in particular.
Globacom, which had 62.1 million active subscriptions in March, ended September with only 19.1 million subscribers, shedding a massive 43 million lines.
Similarly, 9mobile saw its subscription base drop from 11.6 million in March to 3.6 million by September, a loss of about 8 million subscribers.
The industry now has 154.6 million active subscriptions as of September 2024, down from the 219 million reported in March.
Despite the reduction, MTN retained its market leadership with 78 million active subscriptions, though it also lost 3.7 million users during the verification exercise.
Airtel, holding the second spot, ended September with 53.7 million subscriptions, a decline from the 63.3 million it had in March, reflecting a loss of 9.6 million subscriptions over six months.
Meanwhile, 5G adoption in Nigeria continues to show steady progress.
Penetration rose to 2.19 per cent in September, compared to 2.12 per cent in August and 1.95 per cent in July, underscoring increasing interest in the high-speed technology.
