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Telecom

GSMA Cites Mobile Broadband as Catalyst for Growth in Africa

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No doubt, explosive growth in mobile connectivity has already transformed the lives of millions of people across Africa.

According to GSMA research, Sub-Saharan Africa has been the world’s fastest-growing mobile region over the last five years and is forecast to continue to lead global growth through 2020.

By then, the number of unique mobile subscribers in the region is expected to pass the half billion mark as mobile services become increasingly affordable and accessible to millions of currently unconnected citizens.

As government and business leaders prepare to convene in Cape Town to “Reimagine Africa’s Future” at the World Economic Forum on Africa 2015, Mortimer Hope, director for Africa at GSMA, said that, now is an opportune time to examine the impact of mobile as a critical enabler of socio-economic development and the conditions required for further growth in the region.

In 2013, the mobile industry contributed 5.4 per cent of overall GDP in Sub-Saharan Africa.

By 2020, it is expected to contribute US $104 billion to the economy, representing an estimated 6.2 per cent of the region’s projected GDP.

Hope noted that the mobile ecosystem is also a significant source of employment in the region, directly employing nearly 2.5 million people in 2013 and indirectly supporting a further 3.7 million jobs.

According to him, these statistics demonstrate the success story of mobile growth in Africa to date. However, governments and business stakeholders still have a great deal of work to do if Africa is to fully reap the benefits of mobile for citizens and businesses alike.

The Director for Africa at GSMA said, “Sub-Saharan Africa remains the world’s least penetrated mobile region. By June 2015, just 40 per cent of the region’s population had a mobile subscription. Despite strong projected growth in mobile connections, this figure is forecast to rise to just 49 per cent by 2020.Beyond voice services, access to mobile broadband for all will be vital for socio-economic development.

“Over the coming years, millions of citizens will access the Internet for the first time via low-cost smartphones and mobile broadband networks, providing an essential gateway to a wide range of services. Mobile brings access to healthcare where there are no doctors, access to education where there are no teachers, access to financial services where there are no banks. There is clearly huge potential but multi-stakeholder action is needed on several fronts if we are to make mobile broadband access ubiquitous”.

He explained that key to optimising Africa’s mobile opportunity is building a stable regulatory and business environment.

“This includes clear and transparent spectrum management processes to support the mobile industry’s investment in network infrastructure. Today, mobile networks remain the most scalable source of connectivity worldwide and between 2015 and 2020, the industry is forecast to invest US $84 billion in capital expenditure in Sub-Saharan Africa.

“Spectrum harmonisation and the release of Digital Dividend spectrum to mobile are crucial in meeting African governments’ objectives of expanding mobile coverage. Tackling high levels of taxation in certain markets will make services affordable to a greater cross-section of society. Collaboration with application developers and educational institutions to increase digital literacy and create local content will help bring more people online and give them access to the information they want,” Hope said.

He added that, ultimately, mobile broadband empowers people and businesses. “It has unmatched potential to accelerate socio-economic development and bridge the digital divide worldwide. Urgent action to remove barriers to mobile broadband deployment will encourage investment and drive the next wave of growth and innovation that will foster digital inclusion and support future economic growth for the African continent,” he said according to GSMA Intelligence and The Mobile Economy Sub-Saharan Africa 2014.

 


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Telcos Hit by Major Outages across Lagos, Enugu, Others

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About nine Nigerian states suffered network disruptions in the first week of June 2025 due to multiple fibre cuts, according to data from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) live incident portal.

Telcos Hit by Major Outages across Lagos, Enugu, Others

As a result, the issues subscribers face include prolonged blackouts affecting voice, SMS and data services.

The affected customers are Airtel and 9Mobile subscribers in Lagos, Enugu, Delta, Akwa Ibom, and Abia.

The nationwide disruptions have underscored vulnerabilities in telecom infrastructure.

The outages have left customers stranded, impacting everything from basic communication to digital transactions and business operations.

Data from the platform of the NCC showed that residents of Ikorodu in Lagos are currently experiencing disruptions in SMS, voice, and data services from 9Mobile following a power outage that began in the early hours of June 9, 2025.

The outage has been traced to a diesel shortage at the network’s switch site, leading to a complete power failure.

As of now, the issue has persisted for nearly nine hours, with restoration efforts still ongoing.

Other affected customers are Airtel subscribers. Airtel customers in Ughelli South, Delta State, have been facing a prolonged disruption in data services due to an ongoing power outage that began on June 7, 2025.

The outage stems from multiple generator faults at site DL0231 — DG1 has a faulty injector pump, while DG2 remains unstable due to the same issue.


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Gaps on Phone Number Recycling Fuel Identity Theft, Data Breaches- ICIR

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When Okezie Kelechi lost his SIM card, the one he had used since his secondary school days, he didn’t think much of it.

Gaps on Phone Number Recycling Fuel Identity Theft, Data Breaches- ICIR

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.

 

 


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Airtel Recommits to Fraud Prevention after NCC’s N104m Fine for SIM Registration Breaches

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Airtel Nigeria has restated its commitment to transparency, customer safety, and regulatory collaboration following recent regulatory enforcement by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

Airtel Recommits to Fraud Prevention after NCC’s N104m Fine for SIM Registration Breaches

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.

 

 

 

 


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