The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani has announced that prices are expected to rise by 30-60 percent.
The revelation comes days after Tijani confirmed that telecom services tariffs would increase, but not by the proposed 100 percent.
According to Tijani, the telecommunications sector is heavily reliant on investment to drive Nigeria’s economic growth. He said investors in the sector must continually invest in equipment to remain relevant, despite the challenges posed by inflation.
“I think the telecommunications tariff increase should not be more than 30 to 60 percent.
“The sector is about investment in infrastructure; the technologies are changing, so you have to keep investing in technology. Things like 3G will be decommissioned at some point because you have higher technology, so they have to keep investing in equipment. And we all know that there is inflation. For us, as we are protecting them, we want to keep importing capital in the sector. The foreign direct investment in our sector in the first quarter of 2024, driven by telcos, was close to $199 million; this is bigger than the entire inflow in 2023. We can’t get to a $1 trillion economy if mobile network operators are investing at a snail’s pace,” he stated.
Telecommunication operators have been advocating for approval to increase service tariffs, citing the rising inflation in the country. The implementation of key policies by the present administration, such as the removal of fuel subsidy and the unification of exchange rates, has significantly contributed to the increase in economic inflation across Nigeria.