Nigeria Lost 9m Data Subscribers in 2021 over SIM Registration

The Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) registration on 2020 cost Nigeria over nine million data subscribers in 2021, according to  Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), 2021 Annual report and Accounts for the year.

The report which was released recently also said that active telecom subscribers declined by 4.67 percent from 204,601,313 subscribers in December of 2020, to 195,463,898 subscribers in December 2021.

Also, active internet subscription decreased by 7.99 percent from 154,301,185 to 141,971,560 while broadband subscription witnessed a reduction of 9.19 percent in 2021 from 45.02 percent to 40.88 percent.

The report stated: “Active telecom subscribers declined by 4.67 percent from 204,601,313 subscribers in December of 2020, to 195,463,898 subscribers in December 2021.

“Active internet subscription also decreased by 7.99 percent from 154,301,185 to 141,971,560 during the period under review. This represents a loss of about nine million data subscribers in 2021.

”Broadband subscription witnessed a reduction of 9.19 percent in 2021 from 45.02 percent to 40.88 percent.”

NCC said: “The overall decline can be attributed to the audit of the subscriber registration database during which the sale, registration and activation of new SIM cards were suspended until the completion of the exercise.

“The policy also restricted foreigners and visitors from purchasing mobile lines, just as it made it difficult for existing users to retrieve their lost lines.”