Telecom
Nigeria May Re-introduce Telecom Tax to Obtain new $750m World Bank Loan

Nigeria may reinstate a previously suspended telecom tax and other fiscal measures as it seeks to secure a new $750 million loan from the World Bank, as per Nairametrics report.
This is according to the Stakeholder Engagement Plan for Nigeria – Accelerating Resource Mobilisation Reforms (ARMOR) P-For-R (P177308) program dated March 2024, between Nigeria and the World Bank.
A copy of the plan’s document was obtained and seen by Nairametrics suggest the government reintroduces the excises on telecom services, EMT levy on electronic money transfers through the Nigerian Banking System among other taxes.
President Bola Tinubu in July 2023 ordered the suspension of the 5% excise duty on telecommunications and the Import Tax Adjustment levy on certain vehicles.
However, it appears that this suspension may be lifted to meet the program targets for a new, yet-to-be-approved World Bank loan.
Nairametrics has confirmed that negotiations are ongoing between the Federal Government and the World Bank.
The program’s development objective is to strengthen the government’s financial position by enhancing its capacity to manage and mobilize domestic resources effectively, which includes improving tax and customs compliance and protecting oil revenues.
Affected stakeholders and sectors
The planned tax reforms under the ARMOR program are expected to have significant implications across various economic sectors.
According to the plan, affected stakeholders will include manufacturers of goods such as alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), telecom and banking service providers, as well as the general tax-paying public.
Importers and international traders will also feel the impact of these new fiscal policies.
Key industry groups such as the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) are engaged regarding the excise duties on telecom services.
The banking sector, represented by the Committee of Bankers, are engaged regarding the introduction of an Electronic Money Transfer (EMT) levy on transactions processed through Nigerian banks.
Additionally, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) will play a crucial role, particularly for those involved in producing targeted products such as tobacco and alcoholic beverages.
The plan document read:
“Domestic Revenue Mobilisation drive in the government ARMOR program seeks to increase revenue on some targeted industries and sectors of the economy. Specific groups and agencies within affected sectors include
“1. Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria: The introduction of excises on telecom services requires that all telcos are mobilised to fully participate in the collection of such revenue.
“2. Committee of Bankers: Introduction of EMT levy on electronic money transfers through the Nigerian Banking System would need the buy-in all banking institutions
“3. Manufacturer’s Association of Nigeria: Manufacturers of tobacco products, sugar sweetened beverages(SSBs) and alcoholic beverages who would be required to collect excises on their products are critical stakeholders for the introduction of the new excise regime. They are currently organised into various sectoral groups under the Manufacturer’s Association of Nigeria (MAN). Producers of alcoholic beverages organised under the Distillers and Blenders Association of Nigeria also need to key into the reforms
“4. Importers: Strategic partners involved in importation of different items into the country will be mobilised to participate in the ARMOR program. A key stakeholder group is the Association of Nigeria Customs Agents (ANCLA).
“5. Vehicle Importers and Manufacturers: Stakeholders in the automobile trade industry must be engaged on reforms involving the introduction of green taxes on high GHG emission vehicles. Local manufacturing and assembly of vehicles is growing through a phase of growth in Nigeria. The demand for vehicles is mostly met through importation by vehicle importers under the aegis of Association of Motor Dealers of Nigeria (AMDON).”
The document also emphasized the importance of engaging vulnerable groups to ensure they are not disproportionately affected by these changes.
It also said:
“Services that will be subjected to the newly introduced excises are regulated by key public sector agencies. The introduction of the new revenue measures will require the application of existing regulatory mechanisms available within these institutions. The concerned institutions include
“1. Nigerian Communication Commission
“2. Central Bank of Nigeria.
“There are also agencies with the mandate for making policies on some of the issues covered in the ARMOR program with respect to policy framework on matters of public interest in Health and Environmental Protection. The government institutions relevant to ARMOR in this regard are.
“1. Federal Ministry of Environment
“2. National Environmental Standards Regulatory and Enforcement Agency (NESREA)
“3. Federal Ministry of Health”
Telecom
PAT Taps Osi as CEO

Pan African Towers (PAT), a Nigerian infrastructure provider serving 9mobile and Spectranet, has appointed Echezona Osi as chief executive officer.

Echezona Osi
Adefolarin Ogunsanya, company’s, board chairman, explained in a statement that Osi would succeed Oladipo Badru, whose tenure lasted nine months in acting CEO position. Osi has more than 28 years of experience in the telecommunications sector across various regions of Africa.
Prior to his appointment as CEO, he had served as the head of network deployment at Airtel Nigeria, operations director and chief technical information officer at MIC Tanzania, chief technology officer roles at IPT PowerTech Nigeria, Rhino Niger Networks and Biswal Nigeria.
He obtained a degree in electrical/ electronic engineering from the University of Benin and a postgraduate diploma in data science and business analytics from the University of Texas.
Telecom
NCC Introduces N10m Licence Fee for Bulk SMS Service

Companies sending bulk international text messages, also known as Application-to-Person (A2P) messages, will now have apply for a licence that costs N10 million.
This is part of new rules introduced by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) aimed at cleaning up the system, fighting fraud, blocking spam messages and stopping money from leaving the country unchecked.
These A2P messages are the kind customers get from banks, online stores, hospitals and political campaigns, automated texts sent from apps to their phones.
According to the commission, the bulk international text message system has been poorly regulated, allowing misuse and invasion of privacy.
“The International SMS Service Ecosystem in Nigeria has not been fully brought under regulatory control. It has been observed that the excessive use of the Short Message Service has led to fraud, spam and illegal activities,” the NCC said.
The regulator warned that without action, the problem would worsen as more people use mobile phones and digital services.
To solve this, the NCC is creating a central platform, or gateway, through which all international bulk text messages must pass through.
The agency said this would help to monitor messages in real time, ensure proper fees are paid, and make sure the money stays in Nigeria where it can contribute to the economy.
As part of the incoming change, service providers must follow strict rules, including strong data protection, spam filters, and message encryption.
Also, they must also work with local mobile networks and make sure all messages come from a verified sender
The NCC warned that any message without a proper sender ID will be blocked and not delivered to users.
To protect users from unwanted texts, the new rules say companies must get clear permission before sending any promotional content.
The rule also says people must also be able to choose whether they want to receive such messages or not.
Companies are now required to keep records of all messages for at least six months and must clearly state all charges involved.
The NCC said fees for help requests, cancellations, or service info must be transparent and not include hidden charges.
The commission will issue licences to several providers to encourage healthy competition but may limit new licences if needed.
Only companies that show they can stop fraud and safely deliver messages will be allowed to operate. They must also regularly report their message traffic and finances to the NCC.
It warned that any company that breaks the rules risks getting fined, suspended, or having its licence revoked.
Offences like charging illegal tariffs, ignoring security rules, or avoiding taxes will be punished, the NCC said.
The commission added that the new rules follow the Nigerian Data Protection Act 2023 and support the federal government’s goal of strengthening cybersecurity and controlling Nigeria’s digital space.
The framework will also be reviewed from time to time to keep up with new technology and market trends.
Telecom
MTN Nigeria Targets $1Bn Cloud Market with Largest Modular Data Centre

MTN Nigeria has launched what it claims is the country’s largest prefabricated modular data centre, marking a bold push into the country’s fast-growing cloud market and taking aim at global giants such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud.

Karl Toriola, CEO, MTN Nigeria.
The shift comes as demand for cloud services in Nigeria soars — driven by the uptake of mobile apps, fintech tools and e-learning platforms — while foreign providers have become costlier in the wake of the naira’s sharp devaluation.
“This is one of the biggest data centres in West Africa and probably one of the biggest in Africa,” said Karl Toriola, CEO, MTN Nigeria.
He described the new Tier III-certified facility, with locally hosted cloud services, as “transformative for the technology ecosystem in Nigeria and very supportive of the federal government’s agenda”.
MTN Nigeria, the country’s largest telecoms provider, has so far invested $120m in the first phase, delivering an IT load of 4.5MW. A second phase, set to double capacity to 9MW, is budgeted at $135m.
“We already have data centres that are running our existing capacities,” Toriola said.
“We will go to 9MW in short order, possibly 14MW, and we can expand even further.”
He said the facility would allow local hosting for tech developers, large enterprises including banks and oil companies, and government agencies — markets long dominated by foreign cloud providers.
“Multinational companies such as Netflix, Facebook and Instagram can also host a lot of their data here. That improves the quality of service and reduces the cost of storage,” he added.
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