By Boluwatife Oshadiya
Key Points
- Active voice subscriptions rose to 179.6 million in Q4 2025.
- Internet subscriptions increased to 148.2 million.
- MTN retained market dominance in both voice and internet categories.
- Lagos recorded the highest number of telecom subscribers nationwide.
- 9mobile recorded the highest subscriber outflow through mobile number porting.
Main Story
Nigeria’s telecommunications sector recorded continued growth in the fourth quarter of 2025, with active voice subscriptions rising to 179.64 million and internet subscriptions climbing to 148.17 million, according to the latest telecom data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The report, which was compiled using data from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), showed that active voice subscriptions increased by 8.92 per cent year-on-year from 164.93 million recorded in Q4 2024.
Quarter-on-quarter, voice subscriptions also rose by 3.52 per cent.
Similarly, active internet subscriptions increased by 6.38 per cent year-on-year from 139.28 million in Q4 2024, while quarter-on-quarter growth stood at 5.12 per cent.
Operator Performance
The report showed that MTN maintained its dominance in Nigeria’s telecom market during the period under review. MTN recorded 93.06 million active voice subscribers and 79.87 million internet subscribers, representing the largest market share among operators.
Airtel followed with 60.89 million active voice subscriptions and 52.03 million internet subscriptions. Globacom recorded 22.23 million voice subscribers and 14.85 million internet subscribers, while 9mobile posted 3.23 million active voice subscribers and 780,237 internet subscribers.
Smaller operators, including Smile and other internet service providers, accounted for relatively minimal contributions to overall subscriptions. Based on the report’s market share estimates, MTN accounted for approximately 51.8 per cent of voice subscriptions, Airtel held about 33.9 per cent, while Globacom and 9mobile accounted for 12.4 per cent and 1.8 per cent respectively.
Regional Distribution
The South-West zone recorded the highest concentration of telecom subscribers nationwide.
According to the report, the South-West accounted for 49.24 million active voice subscriptions and 48.35 million internet subscriptions.
The North-West followed with 35.07 million voice subscriptions and 33.91 million internet subscriptions.
The North-Central recorded 31.53 million voice subscribers and 30.48 million internet users, while the South-South posted 25.13 million voice subscriptions and 24.49 million internet subscriptions.
The North-East and South-East recorded the lowest figures.
At the state level, Lagos retained its position as Nigeria’s telecom hub, recording 21.58 million active voice subscriptions and 18.60 million internet subscriptions.
Kano and Ogun states followed behind Lagos in overall subscriber numbers.
Bayelsa recorded the lowest telecom subscription figures, followed by Ebonyi and Ekiti states.
Porting Activities
The report also highlighted mobile number portability trends during the quarter. A total of 1,399 subscribers ported between telecom operators during Q4 2025. MTN recorded the highest number of incoming ports with 964 subscribers, while Globacom and Airtel recorded 217 and 206 incoming ports respectively.
On the outgoing side, 9mobile experienced the highest subscriber churn, with 945 subscribers leaving the network. Airtel recorded 136 outgoing ports, while MTN and Globacom recorded 157 and 161 outgoing ports respectively.
Industry Context
Nigeria’s telecom sector remains one of the country’s fastest-growing industries and continues to play a major role in financial inclusion, digital payments, e-commerce, and internet connectivity.
The sustained growth in subscriptions reflects increasing smartphone adoption, expanding broadband penetration, and rising demand for digital services across households and businesses.
Industry stakeholders have, however, continued to raise concerns over infrastructure costs, foreign exchange pressures, energy expenses, and regulatory challenges affecting telecom operators.
What’s Being Said
Analysts say the continued dominance of the South-West region reflects the concentration of economic activity, urbanization, and stronger digital infrastructure in Lagos and surrounding states.
Experts also note that the high subscriber outflow from 9mobile signals ongoing competitive pressures within the telecom industry, as larger operators continue to expand network coverage and service offerings.
What’s Next
Industry observers expect Nigeria’s telecom market to continue expanding in 2026, driven by rising data consumption, fintech growth, digital transformation initiatives, and increasing internet penetration.
Attention will also remain on broadband infrastructure investments, tariff policies, and ongoing regulatory reforms aimed at improving service quality and expanding connectivity nationwide.
