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Telecom

LASIMRA, ALTON Collaborate on Telecoms Infrastructure Enumeration, Audit

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The Lagos State Infrastructure Maintenance and Regulatory Agency (LASIMRA) has announced the commencement of the enumeration of communication towers and masts across Lagos State in collaboration with Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON).

In a statement signed by Prince Oyekanmi Elegushi, the General Manager/Chief Executive Officer, LASIMRA. “The Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) is pleased to collaborate on this important initiative.

This project is vital for addressing public safety concerns raised by the Lagos State Government regarding abandoned communication towers and will deliver significant benefits to our industry and the broader public”.

The Lagos City Mast and Tower Enumeration Project aims to develop a comprehensive and up-to-date database of all communication towers in Lagos State. While many towers are owned by non-telecommunication entities—such as broadcasting companies (television and radio stations), government agencies, emergency services (police, fire, military, and defense organizations), financial institution, private security firms, and others—there is often a public misconception that all towers belong to network operators.

The Lagos State Government has highlighted the need to address critical issues related to public safety, structural integrity, and the potential risks associated with abandoned towers.

This enumeration exercise will help clearly identify and distinguish telecom operators’ towers from those owned by other entities, enabling better regulatory oversight, improved infrastructure management and for further action by the Lagos State Planning authorities.

According to Engr. Gbenga Adebayo, chairman, ALTON, “this initiative, endorsed by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and jointly sponsored by our members, demonstrates our commitment to self-regulation, proactive risk management, and safeguarding public interest.

“By maintaining a robust and secure infrastructure in Lagos State and across the Nation, will strengthen industry-led solutions, enhance our reputation, and foster stronger relationships with regulators and stakeholders.

Through this project, we aim to promote public safety, support environmental sustainability, and ensure compliance with regulatory standards. The initiative will also serve as a framework for similar future projects in other major cities across Nigeria as we proceed to Phase 2.

“We call on all stakeholders to support this exercise, ensuring its success in the public interest and for the safety and well-being of all. ALTON remains committed to working with Lagos State Government through LASIMRA and all relevant stakeholders to achieve these goals”.

 


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Telecom

Telcos May Collapse without 50 Percent Tariff Hike-   MTN Chief

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Tobe Okigbo, MTN Nigeria’s chief corporate services and sustainability officer
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Tobe Okigbo, MTN Nigeria’s chief corporate services and sustainability officer,  has painted a bleak picture during the telecom CEOs forum in Lagos, emphasising the urgent need to address pricing challenges.

Telcos May Collapse without 50 Percent Tariff Hike-   MTN Chief

Tobe Okigbo, MTN Nigeria’s chief corporate services and sustainability officer

He highlighted the contrast between soaring costs for essential goods—like tomatoes, bread, and potatoes, which have increased by over 100% in the past year—and stagnant telecom tariffs.

“The discussion should not be about whether we should increase prices; it should be about whether we want a telecom sector that continues to drive the Nigerian economy. If operators can no longer sustain services due to financial strain, the cost of restoring the industry will be immense,” Okigbo stated.

Unlike electricity, which offers backup solutions like generators, telecommunications networks have no such alternatives. Network failures would cripple businesses, financial transactions, and everyday communication.

The proposed 50% tariff increase, Okigbo stressed, is not about profit but survival, necessary to maintain network operations, enhance service quality, and expand coverage to unconnected rural areas.

“The last cost study was conducted in 2021 but was never implemented because the government felt the suggested price hikes were too high. The reality is, the study recommended a 100% increase, but the government only approved 50%,” Okigbo explained.

Fiber cuts and vandalism pose significant challenges. MTN Nigeria experiences 37 fiber cuts daily, while Airtel suffers 44, largely due to construction activities and theft.

These disruptions degrade service quality, leading to dropped calls and slow internet speeds. Okigbo believes the government’s designation of telecom infrastructure as Critical National Infrastructure (CNI), with stricter penalties for damaging telecom assets, will improve service quality within the next three months.

Engr. Gbenga Adebayo, chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), echoed these concerns, warning of widespread insolvency if financial losses continue.

“The telecom sector is the superhighway of the economy. If it collapses, the entire economy will suffer. The number of telecom operators has already declined due to financial pressures. Without urgent action, the sector could hit a tipping point from which recovery would be extremely difficult,” Adebayo cautioned.

Adebayo dismissed arguments for artificially low telecom prices due to economic hardship.

“Telecom operators cannot subsidise the economic difficulties in other sectors. If prices stay unsustainably low, service quality will deteriorate, and ultimately, the industry will collapse,” he warned.

He used a powerful analogy to illustrate the industry’s plight: “If a patient needs 100 litres of oxygen and you only provide 10, we all know what happens. The proposed 50 litres is already a compromise—a lifeline that allows us to survive, recover, and contribute to the economy,” he said.

Following government approval of the 50% price increase, telecom operators have submitted tariff adjustment proposals to the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

Ugonwa Nwoye, MTN Nigeria’s chief customer relations and experience officer, confirmed the ongoing regulatory process, stating that customers should expect phased price adjustments in the coming weeks, with full implementation anticipated by February. Operators have pledged transparency in communicating the new rates and minimising service disruptions.


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Telecom

Customers’ USSD Access Intact as Banks’ Settle USSD Debt

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Almost all e nine banks earmarked for disconnection from Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) service over a N160 billion debt have reportedly made good progress in terms of repayment, guarantees that none of them will lose access to USSD services.

Customers’ USSD Access Intact as Banks’ Settle USSD Debt

USSD is a communication protocol that allows users to send short messages and commands to their mobile network operator’s computers. USSD is also known as “feature codes” or “quick codes”.

USSD is a crucial payment gateway for many Nigerians, and its disconnection would have cut off many from essential banking services.

In a notice on January 15, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) revealed that it would cut off the USSD access of nine banks over their inability to settle their USSD accumulated since 2019 by January 27. However, these banks have rushed to de-escalate the issue, ensuring that their customers will continue to use USSD for financial services.

At the weekend, Gbenga Adebayo, chairman, Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), disclosed, “The matter has been de-escalated. Money has been paid, and we are making progress thanks to the regulators.”

Earlier in the week, Karl Toriola, chief executive officer,  MTN Nigeria, noted that telcos and banks have resolved their differences. “The USSD debt issue is resolved, thanks to the masterstroke by both the Central Bank of Nigeria and NCC.”

On Tuesday, January 28, BusinessDay reported that five of the nine banks had made some form of payment before the NCC’s deadline of January 27. The nine banks that would have been affected by the commission’s disconnection move included Fidelity Bank Plc (770), First City Monument Bank (329), Jaiz Bank Plc (773), Polaris Bank Limited (833), Sterling Bank Limited (822), United Bank for Africa Plc (919), Unity Bank Plc (7799), Wema Bank Plc (945), and Zenith Bank Plc (966).

Commercial banks have been unable to settle a payment dispute with telcos over USSD infrastructure since 2019, prompting the CBN and the NCC to order banks to pay a chunk of the USSD debt owed to telcos.

In a December 20 memo, the CBN and the NCC gave banks a December 31, 2024, deadline to pay 85 percent of all outstanding invoices (from February 2022). According to the NCC, nine of the 18 banks indebted to the telcos cleared over 90 percent of their debt by the deadline.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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Telecom

MTN has Spent N11Bn to Fix 2,502km Fibre Cables – GSMA

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MTN Nigeria, the country’s biggest telecom operator, spent N11.1 billion repairing and relocating 2,502km of fibre-optic cables over two years, according to data from the new GSMA Nigeria Digital Economy report.

MTN has Spent N11Bn to Fix 2,502km Fibre Cables – GSMA

It stated that if these funds had been used for rollout instead of maintenance, the operator with 77 million subscribers could have laid an additional 870 km of new fibre.

The costs showed that MTN spent N4.4bn in the 2022 financial year to repair 1,069km of fibre and an additional N6.7bn in 2023 to fix 1,433km.

It attributed the fibre damages to construction activities, road projects, and acts of vandalism.

The impact of fibre cuts continues to hinder network expansion, with funds allocated to repairs potentially diverting resources from expanding coverage in under-served areas.

“As a result, fibre networks in Nigeria are more expensive to build and maintain than they otherwise would be. These costs are substantial. For instance, MTN Nigeria was required to relocate 1,069km of fibre cables in FY22 and a further 1,433km in FY23. The budgets allocated for these activities were N4.4bn and N6.7bn, respectively,” the document stated.

According to Angela Wamola, head of Sub-Saharan Africa – GSMA,, “Vandalism and other forms of damage have been causing significant losses to the sector. In some cases, the affected areas are easily accessible and can be quickly repaired.

However, the damage has resulted in sustained complaints from consumers about the availability of services. This is one of the areas we’ve modeled in our report, which highlights the impact of vandalism on the evolution of connectivity in Nigeria.”

As of 2023, Nigeria had deployed 78,676km of fibre-optic cable, with most concentrated in urban areas like Lagos (7,864.60km), Edo (4,892.71km), FCT (4,472.03km), Ogun (4,189.18km), and Niger (3,681.66km).

 


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