Telecom
Africa Leads in Global Internet Bandwidth Growth

Africa leads the way in terms of bandwidth growth levels, experiencing the “most rapid” growth of international internet bandwidth and beating global growth estimates.
The continent experienced a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 44% between 2018 and 2022, reveals telecommunications market research and consulting firm TeleGeography.
Asia’s bandwidth growth is just behind the African continent, rising at a 35% CAGR during the same period, it reveals.
The telecoms analysis company’s latest data of Global Internet Geography was released this week, tracking internet capacity and traffic data sets. The research also examines factors impacting IP transit pricing and the role individual backbone operators play.
From a global perspective, the data shows the pace of internet bandwidth growth has been slowing. However, it’s still a near tripling of bandwidth since 2018, it notes.
TeleGeography research indicates global internet bandwidth rose by 28% in 2022, continuing the return to ‘normal’ from the pandemic-generated bump of 2020.
Total international bandwidth now stands at 997Tbps, representing a four-year CAGR of 29%. The firm further forecasts the Pbps era will soon be under way.
“After a tumultuous 2020 – with pandemic-induced volume surges and shifts in internet traffic patterns – network operators are back to adding bandwidth and engineering their traffic in a more measured manner,” says Paul Brodsky, TeleGeography senior research manager.
“Based on hard survey data gathered from dozens of regional and global network operators around the world, it’s clear the COVID-related expansion of internet traffic and bandwidth was a one-off phenomenon.”
International internet bandwidth growth largely mirrored that of internet traffic, it reveals.
Both average and peak international internet traffic increased at a compound annual rate of 30% between 2018 and 2022, slightly above the 29% CAGR in bandwidth over the same period, according to the research.
All of the stay-at-home activity associated with COVID-19 resulted in a spike in traffic in 2019-2020.
However, following the COVID-19 traffic surge in 2020, a global return to more typical usage patterns meant a decline in average and peak utilisation rates.
“The return to more normal usage patterns has resulted in a substantial drop in average and peak traffic for 2021-2022. Average traffic growth dropped from 47% between 2019-2020, to 29% between 2021-2022, while peak traffic growth dropped from 46% to 28% over the same time period.
“Global average and peak utilisation rates were essentially unchanged from last year, standing at 26% and 45% respectively, in both 2021 and 2022. In terms of pricing, providers’ shift to predominantly 100Gbps internet backbones continues to reduce the average cost of carrying traffic.
“Across seven major global hub cities, 10 GigE prices fell 16% compounded annually from Q2 2019 to Q2 2022, while 100 GigE port prices fell 25%.”
Future outlook
According to TeleGeography, the combined effects of new internet-enabled devices, growing broadband penetration in developing markets, higher broadband access rates and bandwidth-intensive applications will continue to fuel strong internet traffic growth.
While end-user traffic requirements will continue to rise, not all of this demand will translate directly into the need for new long-haul capacity, it states.
The research firm notes various factors will shape how the global internet will develop in the coming years. These include:
Post-COVID-19 growth trajectory: Initial evidence suggests the spike in the rate of bandwidth and traffic growth in 2020 from the pandemic was a one-time event and has largely returned to more traditional rates of growth. Operators indicated they no longer see the pandemic leading to upward adjustments to their demand forecasts.
IP transit price erosion: International transport unit costs underlay IP transit pricing. As new international networks are deployed, operational and construction costs are distributed over more fibre pairs and more active capacity, making each packet less expensive to carry.
The introduction of new international infrastructure also creates opportunities for more regional localisation of content and less dependence on distant hubs. As emerging markets grow in scale, they too will benefit from economies of scale, even if only through cheaper transport to internet hubs.
International versus domestic: While there’s little doubt that enhanced end-user access bandwidth and new applications will create large traffic flows, the challenge for operators will be to understand how much of this growth will require the use of international links.
In the near-term, the increased reliance on direct connections to content providers and the use of caching will continue to have a localising effect on traffic patterns and dampen international internet traffic growth.
Bypassing the public internet: The largest content providers have long operated massive networks. These companies continue to experience more rapid growth than internet backbones and they are expanding into new locations.
Many other companies, such as cloud service providers, CDNs, and even some data centre operators, are also building their own private backbones that bypass the public internet. As a result, a rising share of international traffic may be carried by these networks.
Telecom
9mobile Nigeria Inks Agreement to Roam with MTN

9mobile, Nigerian operator, has reportedly gained approval for roaming on the MTN Nigeria network in a deal that some commentators suggest could improve its position in the market and, more specifically, tempt back lost subscribers.
After finally gaining regulatory approval from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), 9mobile plans to launch national roaming services on the MTN network from this month.
Under the agreement, 9mobile subscribers will gain access to MTN’s infrastructure for calls, texts and data in areas where 9mobile’s coverage is weak or unavailable.
For 9mobile, the deal offers a cost-effective way to expand coverage without the heavy investment required for nationwide infrastructure.
According to ITWeb Africa, the decision comes nearly five years after initial discussions – much longer than expected due, the Techloy news service said, to regulatory bottlenecks, shifting market conditions, and unclear execution timelines.
It may, however, prove pivotal for 9mobile, whose market share has dwindled to 1.72% in April 2025, down from 6.6% in 2020 when the proposal was first submitted. Indeed, in 2015 the company once known as Etisalat Nigeria had over 23 million subscribers and a 15.7% market share.
Of course, there’s also something in this for MTN. In exchange for network access, MTN gains utilisation rights to 9mobile’s underused spectrum in the 900MHz, 1800MHz, and 2100MHz bands – key frequencies for expanding coverage and improving data capacity.
For MTN, which serves over 84 million subscribers, this additional spectrum could reduce congestion and improve service quality.
The company has also had financial difficulties in the Nigerian market due to the naira’s substantial depreciation; this deal could support better service provision at a reduced cost.
That said, MTN Nigeria’s results for the first quarter to March 31 2025 were apparently much improved, and the company recently announced a massive capital expenditure drive for 2025 of some NGN900 billion (US$568.5 million) as it seeks to significantly enhance network service quality in major cities like Lagos and Abuja and extend improvements to other areas.
Telecom
Banks, Telcos to Start Deducting USSD Charges from Airtime Today

Banks and telecom companies will begin deducting USSD banking charges directly from customers’ airtime instead of their bank accounts beginning from today, June 3.
USSD, otherwise Unstructured Supplementary Service Data, is a communications protocol used by GSM cellular telephones to interact with a mobile network operator’s computers.
First City Monument Bank (FCMB) announced this change in an e-mail message to customers, following a directive from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
Key details:
Each USSD session will cost ₦6.98 per 120 seconds, charged by your mobile network.
You will be asked to approve the charge before it’s deducted from your airtime.
If you prefer, you can use other banking channels like ATMs, mobile apps, or internet banking.
This change is part of a move to end the long-standing debt dispute between banks and telecoms over unpaid USSD fees.
As of late 2024, banks owed telecom companies ₦160 billion. For example, MTN was owed ₦42 billion by Nigerian banks.
By shifting USSD fees to customers’ airtime, the telcos aim to recover these debts and avoid future issues.
Telecom
IHS Nigeria Moves to Enhance G4S Secure Solutions Site Patrols and Increase Operational Efficiency with Patrol Vehicles

IHS Nigeria, a subsidiary of IHS Holding Limited and one of the largest independent owners, operators, and developers of shared telecommunications infrastructure in the world by tower count, has formally commissioned 65 Response, Patrol, and Escort (RPE) vehicles to G4S Secure Solutions Nigeria Limited, its long-standing security partner.
The commissioning ceremony which held in Ikeja GRA, Lagos, underscores IHS Nigeria’s commitment to operational excellence, safety, and strategic partnerships.
The fully equipped vehicles, customized with radio systems, public address systems, medical kits, ladders, and amber lights, are expected to significantly enhance G4S’s patrol capabilities and enable proactive risk mitigation across IHS Nigeria’s infrastructure footprint in the country.
Speaking at the event, Jubril Saba, Vice President, Operations at IHS Nigeria, remarked: “IHS Nigeria is delighted to formally hand over these Response, Patrol and Escort (RPE) vehicles to our valued security partner, G4S Secure Solutions Nigeria Limited. As a company, we recognize that the success of our operations lies not only in our technology and infrastructure but also in the strength of the partnerships we build and sustain.
G4S has been an essential partner in protecting our sites, supporting our teams, and ensuring operational continuity across the country. This initiative is more than just a commissioning of vehicles; it is a reaffirmation of our commitment to the safety of our people and assets, our drive for operational excellence, and our belief in strong partnerships.
We understand that securing our infrastructure and communities is critical to sustaining high-quality services nationwide, and we are confident this fleet will enhance G4S’s capacity to support us.”
Also speaking at the event, Jonas Ahl, Managing Director of G4S Secure Solutions Nigeria Limited, expressed his appreciation for the partnership:
“We are proud to receive these 65 custom-built patrol vehicles from IHS Nigeria. Each unit is fully outfitted to meet the specific security needs of our operations, equipped with communication systems, emergency response tools, and visibility-enhancing features. These vehicles will not only improve our response times and field presence but also enable us to reduce risk and deter criminal activity more effectively.
I would like to thank the IHS team for their excellent collaboration throughout this project. We are proud to serve IHS and remain committed to protecting the assets that power connectivity across Nigeria.”
This strategic gesture reinforces IHS Nigeria’s position as a socially responsible and security-conscious industry leader, while highlighting the value of operational synergy with trusted partners like G4S.
The deployment of these vehicles marks another milestone in IHS’s mission to secure its infrastructure and deliver uninterrupted service to millions of users across the country.
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