Telecom
COVID-19: E-commerce companies cry out under weight of restrictions by Govt security operatives
At a time when global players in the e-commerce sector have seen the peculiarities of their operations come to the fore in helping governments and people in other climes observe social distancing and stay in supply of essential items without leaving their homes, the Nigerian e-Commerce sector is instead buckling under the weight of heavy restrictions by state actors and law enforcement officials; leading to no end of frustrations for players in the sector.
E-commerce giants in other climes such as Amazon and Alibaba, for instance, have played important roles in the fight against COVID-19 in other parts of the world, working in concert with the government in helping people ensure social distancing through wholesome adoption of online and contact-less shopping.
However, investigations reveal a sorry tale of huge pains and frustrations among e-Commerce players in Nigeria, in stark contrast to what obtains elsewhere.
The likes of Konga and Jumia, two of the biggest operators in the Nigerian market have endured difficulties at the hands of government enforcement agents, despite being the best means of contact-less shopping that can help in curbing the spread of the virus.
Research shows that in a number of countries and even in Africa, e-Commerce players have been supported and encouraged by the government in the fight against COVID-19.
But here in Nigeria, the situation is different.
The Nigerian government and some state governors have not only failed in openly backing the operations of e-Commerce players as an essential ally in the COVID-19 crisis, but a situation where security operatives are frustrating the operations of e-commerce companies due to the ongoing lockdown and border closures has further worsened matters.
A source at Konga, who spoke on condition of anonymity provided some insights into the dire situation.
‘‘E-Commerce is a cost-intensive venture all over the world, one which relies on a number of very expensive applications which must be constantly paid for.
“Konga, for instance, is burning a lot of cash to keep the business going and employing thousands of Nigerians directly and indirectly.
“Yet, we are taking huge losses in meeting the commitments to our customers, many of whom rely on us for essential deliveries.
“Our merchants, who we also rely on in meeting the numerous online orders, cannot open their shops due to the lockdown.
“These merchants are individuals who have all being trained on essential safety procedures such as wearing masks, gloves and social distancing and, as such, pose little infection risk.
“In addition, we have to endure undue delays in the course of reaching the customers. For instance, a truck making essential intra-state deliveries is often delayed for a minimum of six days, thereby causing huge pains for the company and consumers,’’ he lamented.
‘‘Even when granted exemption letters, the situation on the streets is far from ideal. We have encountered severe delays and huge frustration as a result of the overzealous actions of some security operatives who sometimes refuse to grant access to delivery personnel or in other cases, even turn them back. The government needs to do something about this.’’
Also, feedback from sources at Jumia, who pleaded not to be named, paints a picture of frustrations.
‘‘In virtually every other country, e-Commerce is being deployed as a critical weapon in the fight against COVID-19. Consumers are encouraged to go online and leverage e-Commerce for contact-less shopping by staying at home and receiving their essential deliveries including groceries at their doorsteps.
“Shoppers can also pay via e-channels which obliterates the use of cash or POS. But in Nigeria, we have hardly seen any form of institutional support in this regard.
‘‘In fact, we have seen a situation where delivery is constantly being hampered by the harassment of our riders, vendors and delivery men on a daily basis.
“This happens to both intra-state and inter-state deliveries. As a result, deliveries that should take 24 hours due to the absence of traffic on the roads now stretch for days or don’t even happen at all in some cases.
“Also, our staff, who actually are essential service providers, equally face serious difficulties and in some cases, harassments by security operatives on their way to and from work.
Continuing, the source stated: ‘‘Government has a critical role to play in nipping this worrisome situation in the bud as the operations of most e-commerce companies are suffering.
‘Worse still, when consumers encounter undue delays for an item ordered online, they would naturally turn to offline markets, thereby worsening the risk of community transmission of the virus.’’
Indeed, with the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic which broke out in Wuhan, China but which has since spread across the globe, virtually every country has had their national life and normal economic activities disrupted.
Subsequently, a number of measures have come into force in helping curb not only the spread of the dreaded virus, but also halt community transmission, which has been identified as one of the most worrisome aspects of the war against COVID-19.
Specifically, there is an emphasis on behavioural changes, with social distancing and improved personal hygiene emerging as essential guides.
Furthermore, restrictions have been placed on areas of high human concentration such as airports, schools, religious gatherings and most importantly, markets.
Consequently, e-Commerce has emerged as a ready-made channel for helping people carry out contact-less shopping, observing social distancing and the important call to stay at home, while also coping seamlessly with the shut-down of offline markets.
As a matter of fact, evidence abounds of how e-commerce has been leveraged to great effect in other climes and even in other African countries in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In Germany and New Zealand, two of the countries that have made the most progress with respect to curbing the COVID-19 pandemic, e-Commerce has been one of the secrets.
Even in other African countries such as Morocco, Ghana, Uganda – where citizens were advised in a government communique to opt for online shopping options as a means of getting essential items delivered to homes – and in Ghana – where e-Commerce was given special status and Ghanaians urged to rely more on digital channels for the delivery of food and other essentials; the situation is different.
In fact, same special deployment of e-Commerce in aiding the citizenry observe the essential regulations of social distancing and reducing unnecessary contact in crowded markets has been identified in China, Spain, France, the United Arab Emirates, among others.
However, in Nigeria, the situation is almost the opposite.
A number of Nigerians, left with little choice due to afore-mentioned challenges encountered by e-Commerce players, are increasingly relying on open-air markets – which manage to escape the subsisting ban – to shop for their essentials.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the country is currently battling to stop ongoing community transmission of COVID-19 as confirmed cases continue to rise by the day. Going by recent figures released on Saturday by the country’s disease-fighting agency, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Nigeria has recorded 1182 cases of COVID-19; with Lagos in particular, accounting for nearly 60 per cent of the cases.
Yet, e-Commerce companies, which have the capability to reach the last mile with essential deliveries, are not given free rein to operate.
Further buttressing the points raised above, the source at Konga called on the government to take action.
‘‘We expect the government and the authorities to act. E-Commerce companies in Nigeria can play a key role in the fight against COVID-19, as can be seen from the examples in other countries.
“The Nigerian government should provide more institutional support and some form of public backing for this budding sector as this would go a long way in not only encouraging more Nigerians to embrace the needed behavioural change central to the COVID-19 fight but would also ensure less hassles from other state actors on the highways,’’ he concluded.
Nigeria is currently battling hard to rein in the rampaging COVID-19 pandemic.
While there has been no formal restriction of e-commerce players, the government has equally stopped short of any form of official public pronouncement or declaration to ensure that the services of e-Commerce companies are protected and not disrupted by security agencies enforcing the lock-down.
In addition, the government has failed in toeing the path of other countries in leveraging e-commerce to great advantage in helping Nigerians stay in supply of essential products while complying with the lockdown.
When Okezie Kelechi lost his SIM card, the one he had used since his secondary school days, he didn’t think much of it.
He was shocked weeks later to find out it had been reassigned to someone else.
“I had no idea that if your SIM card has been inactive for more than three months, they will resell it,” he wrote on social media.
“They recycled my SIM card and sold it. Same number, I have had it since secondary school.”
Kelechi’s story is far from unique.
Across Nigeria, more people are waking up to the realities of what is known as SIM recycling, a process where telecommunication companies reassign inactive phone numbers to new users. While allowed under existing rules set by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the practice is now raising serious concerns over data privacy, fraud, and national security.
A regulatory gap with real-life consequences
Experts in Nigeria’s telecommunications and security sectors are increasingly warning that the NCC’s failure to establish stronger oversight of SIM recycling is endangering millions.
“Beyond the data breaches, this issue posed a big threat to national security. I have always maintained the need for a central data system in Nigeria,” said Daniel Makolo, a retired senior official of the Nigerian Immigration Service to The ICIR.
“There’s much more to this if we don’t pay attention to an appropriate central data mining system that gives us a history of each person in the country.”
Ayodele Ajayi, an engineering professor at the Federal University of Technology, Akure, explained the security risks from his own experience.
“I used to have one Airtel number, but I travelled out. Before I came back, it was reallocated to another user,” he said.
Because phone numbers are tied to Bank Verification Numbers (BVNs) and National Identity Numbers (NINs), reassigning them can expose people to identity theft and financial loss.
The NCC should find a way to notify users when their numbers are at risk of being deactivated, Ajayi urged.
He also recounted an incident he witnessed at a bank, “a woman was narrating how she used to have a particular number but lost it. Somebody saw the number and started using it.
The woman said that before she could act, the person who got the number had started using it and had connived with a bank office to almost wipe out all her savings.
“Upon arriving at the bank to check her account balance, she found out that she had only N50,000 left from about N5 million she had saved up.”
Ajayi emphasised that while recycling is a practical move for telcos to manage limited number availability, more caution is needed.
“Let people know so they can migrate their data to another line, particularly now that almost every channel we use is linked to the phone number, including our bank verification number (BVN)”, he stated.
Kelechi recalled that his number was reassigned to another user despite still being active on WhatsApp.
“I used to wonder why random Hausa boys were always messaging me and calling me baby.
He added that “when I finally visited MTN office in Nigeria, I was told the line has been sold to someone else. E pain me, I no go lie.”
Another social media user Elizabeth Kandi, @DrETKandi warning others about the hidden risks of SIM inactivity alleges that when reassigned the new user can have access to your USSD banking.
“If your Nigerian number was connected to your Nigerian bank accounts for USSD, if you didn’t use it for long, the network provider can disconnect and sell the number to someone else…but that person would be able to access your money via USSD,” Kandi wrote.
Her post underscores the growing fear that recycled numbers, still linked to sensitive services like mobile banking, can open the door to fraud and financial loss
Why do Telcos recycle SIMs?
At a virtual stakeholder meeting in April 2025, NCC Executive Vice Chairman Aminu Maida acknowledged the concern noting that with the evolving landscape, it has become necessary to address emerging challenges that could undermine consumer rights.
He further noted that the Quality-of-Service Business Rules 2024 stipulate that a prepaid line without a revenue-generating event for six months must be deactivated.
This means if a prepaid SIM card goes unused for six months (i.e., no calls, texts, or data use), it must be deactivated.
If the inactivity continues for another six months, the number may be recycled/reallocated to a new user.
In Section 28 of the NCC’s draft business it is stated that all recycled SIMs must be purged of any NIN attached to allow a new user to link their own NIN. But real-world cases suggest that in practice, many recycled numbers are not properly sanitised before reassignment.
The business case for SIM recycling
For telecom operators, recycling isn’t just a technical choice, it’s economic.
Gbenga Adebayo, chairman, Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), explained that subscribers do not have ownership rights to SIM cards in their possession, as the telecom operators pay procurement and recurring costs for each registered subscriber.
He further explained that SIM cards are “recycled” to prevent number exhaustion while reducing the cost of generating and maintaining them.
“SIM cards are reassigned to reduce the dormant subscribers, as telcos are profit-oriented organisations,” Adebayo said.
In the exercise of its powers under Section 70 of the NCC Act (2003), the commission made provisions for the development of a new numbering plan for Nigeria. Under the provision, telcos are obligated to pay a sum that is the ‘numbering plan fees’ to maintain their allocated numbers.
Airtel Nigeria has restated its commitment to transparency, customer safety, and regulatory collaboration following recent regulatory enforcement by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
The NCC had served Airtel Nigeria a notice of sanction over some alleged SIM infractions in Kano State and consequently slammed a fine of N104 million on the telecommunications firm.
NCC had in a letter, addressed to Airtel Nigeria Chief Executive Officer, dated May 26, 2025, signed by Chizua Whyte, head, Legal and Regulatory Services, and Mohammed Dari, acting head, Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement, on behalf of Dr Aminu Maida, executive vice chairman, NCC, titled: ‘Notice of Sanction: Non-Compliance with SIM Registration Directive in Kano,’ where the infractions were spelt out.
According to NCC, Airtel infractions include unauthorised SIM registrations using 198 unapproved devices, resulting in 8,275 registrations outside the 281 verified Airtel shops; premature activation of 63 MSISDNs prior to proper SIM registration, contrary to the provisions of the Registration of Communications Subscribers Regulations 2022; failure to conduct effective eyeballing, leading to 407 fraudulent SIM registrations with multiple NINs, contrary to the provision of the Registration of Communications Subscribers Regulations 2022 and failure to provide satisfactory explanation for SIM registrations conducted between 12.00 a.m and 6.00 a.m.
On the matter, the letter revealed that there were some letter exchanges and subsequent meetings on the infractions between the telecom regulator and Airtel, starting from January 12, 2025, March 19, 2025, March 24, 2025, and March 27, 2025, respectively.
Apparently, after investigations and responses from Airtel, the NCC was not satisfied and this led to the fine of N104 million, which was to be paid within seven days from the date the letter was issued.
Specifically, NCC fined Airtel N5 million, N12 million, N81.4 million and N5 million for the infractions respectively.
Reacting, Airtel, expressed appreciation to the NCC for uncovering the infractions, describing the development as a critical opportunity to strengthen internal processes and further align with national security and regulatory expectations
“We thank the NCC for its vigilance and continued support in protecting the integrity of the telecoms ecosystem. Airtel takes these findings seriously and is already implementing corrective measures,” a spokesperson for the company said.
Only recently, Airtel Nigeria’s CEO recently announced that the company is doubling its investment in the country, focusing on network expansion, fiber-to-the-street rollout, 4G/5G deployment, customer care upgrades, and digital infrastructure security.
These investments reinforce Airtel’s long-term vision of building a resilient and forward-looking telecom network that meets the evolving needs of Nigerians.
“Our systems are constantly evolving to stay ahead of scammers and malicious actors,” the spokesperson added. “This is not just about compliance; it’s about our responsibility to the millions of Nigerians who rely on Airtel daily.”
Airtel Nigeria says it will continue to work closely with the NCC and other arms of government to ensure high standards of service and safety for all telecom users nationwide.
Kenya is celebrating its regulatory ecosystem being ranked as the most progressive in Africa. The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) has ranked the East African country first in its most recent ICT Regulatory Tracker.
ITU’s ICT Regulatory Tracker is an evidence-gathering tool for decision-makers and regulators. It demonstrates the effectiveness of regulatory systems in the age of technology.
The ITU evaluates the design of the national regulatory authority, the scope of the regulatory mandate, the obtaining regulatory environment, and the robustness of the competition framework in member countries.
Kenya received 93 points, up from 92 in 2023, and now leads the continent in best practices for ICT regulations.
Nigeria and South Africa finished second and third, with 92 and 88 points respectively. Malawi, Egypt, Rwanda, Morocco, Uganda, Burkina Faso, and Senegal complete the top 10 list.
Globally, Kenya was ranked 20th out of 194 countries covered.Italy led the rankings, with 100 points.
The regulator, Communications Authority (CA) of Kenya, said the achievement underscored Kenya’s commitment to creating a robust, technology-neutral regulatory environment that supports innovation, affordability and access.
Steve Isaboke, permanent secretary for broadcasting and telecommunications, visited CA Centre in Nairobi following the announcement on Thursday.
“The ranking is a clear testament of the excellent work that CA has done in spearheading Kenya’s digital transformation and driving digital access for all,” he said.
“After 25 years, CA’s regulatory regime has attained maturity, and gained global recognition. This ranking shows that the CA staff and leadership are executing their work diligently.”
Cyber Crime: Hackers to Hold Secret Conference 3.0 July 25
FG Enrolls 59,786 Inmates on NIN Platform
Gaps on Phone Number Recycling Fuel Identity Theft, Data Breaches- ICIR
Wema Bank Workers, Others Arraigned over Alleged N8.9Bn Cybercrime
Music Stars, Comedians Light Up “Evening with Glo” in Ijebu Ode
Telecom2 days agoAirtel Recommits to Fraud Prevention after NCC’s N104m Fine for SIM Registration Breaches
Telecom2 days agoMTN’s Female Leadership Surges to 41.4%, Doubles Industry Average
Broadcasting2 days agoNCC Warns DJs: Playing Music Without License Could Lead to 5-Year Jail Term
Telecom2 days agoTikTok Rolls Out Personalization Tools for Nigerian Users
News2 days agoIHS Nigeria Reaffirms Commitment to raising Nigeria’s Next Tech Giants from the Ilorin Innovation Hub
General News2 days agoInterswitch, Bank of Sierra Leone Champion Financial Inclusion @ Sierra Leone Fintech Forum 2.0
General News2 days agoNITDA Makes Case for Inclusive Tech for Special Needs
E-Financial2 days agoGambaryan, Binance Executive Leaves Company after 8-Month Detention in Nigeria