Nigeria’s data consumption rose by almost 47 per cent in one year to about 1.6 million terabytes in July 2026, raising concerns about the capacity of the country’s digital infrastructure to meet growing demand.
The figure was captured in the communiqué issued in Abuja after the Nigeria Digital Connectivity Investment Forum 2026, organised by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in partnership with Swedfund and Ookla.
The two-day forum, held on September 29 and 30, brought together government officials, regulators, investors, financiers, mobile network operators, fibre and tower companies and other stakeholders to examine investment opportunities in Nigeria’s digital infrastructure.
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Participants said subscription numbers, currently estimated at about 195 million, could rise to 350 million within the next 10 to 15 years.
They also warned that emerging technologies, particularly cloud computing and artificial intelligence, would place additional pressure on telecommunications networks, data centres and power infrastructure.
The forum noted that telecommunications and information services accounted for 9.72 per cent of Nigeria’s real Gross Domestic Product in the second quarter of 2026.
It further noted that mobile technology contributed about $240 billion to Africa’s economy in 2025, while Nigeria’s position as co-champion of the African Continental Free Trade Area Protocol on Digital Trade could strengthen its role as a digital services hub for the continent.
However, participants said the major challenge was no longer simply network coverage.
According to the communiqué, mobile broadband covers about 90 per cent of Nigerians, but smartphone ownership is only about 27 per cent, while broadband penetration stands at 57.4 per cent against a 70 per cent target.
The forum identified device affordability, digital skills and trust as major constraints to meaningful connectivity.
It therefore recommended that coverage investments should be accompanied by measures to put affordable devices in the hands of users, including locally manufactured devices and SIM cards.
Participants also identified shared rural networks, satellite services that can connect directly to unmodified handsets, micro-cabling and solar-powered rural sites as emerging models that could reduce the cost of extending connectivity to underserved communities.
The forum called on the Federal government to accelerate Project BRIDGE, the proposed 90,000-kilometre national fibre backbone, as part of efforts to address the country’s middle-mile connectivity gap.
It also urged the NCC to advance open-access and wholesale regulation, publish a national Nigeria Digital Connectivity Index report and finalise its direct-to-device framework.