NCC Commissions PwC To Review Competition In Nigeria’s Telecoms Sector

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has commissioned PwC to conduct a comprehensive, data-driven review of competition in Nigeria’s telecommunications sector, as the industry grapples with slowing global growth and rising pressure from over-the-top (OTT) digital platforms that are reshaping traditional revenue models.

The review, the first of its kind in more than a decade, is aimed at ensuring that competition in the sector remains fair, effective and sustainable amid rapid technological change.

It will examine key issues including market concentration, pricing behaviour, barriers to entry, consumer switching patterns and monetisation opportunities, using internationally recognised analytical metrics.

Speaking at a stakeholders’ forum in Lagos on Tuesday, Head of Policy, Competition and Economic Analysis at the NCC, Omotayo Mohammed, said the exercise is designed to strengthen regulatory certainty and support competition-led growth, rather than single out market winners or losers.

“This exercise is not about naming winners or losers. It is about strengthening regulatory certainty and ensuring that competition-led growth continues to deliver innovation, affordability and quality of service to consumers,” Mohammed said.

He explained that the PwC-led study will rely on extensive data submissions from telecom operators, with a two-week window for compliance, alongside stakeholder interviews and follow-up workshops. All information provided, he added, will be protected by strict confidentiality safeguards.

According to the NCC, the findings of the assessment are expected to guide proportionate regulatory interventions that will preserve competition, sustain long-term investment and reinforce Nigeria’s positioning within the global digital economy.

Director of Strategy at the PwC Network, Akolawole Odunlami, said global industry growth has slowed to between two and three per cent annually, compared with around four per cent before the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Those pressures are being felt across markets, not just in Nigeria,” Odunlami said.

He noted that in sub-Saharan Africa, subscriber numbers continue to rise, but average revenue per user (ARPU) is declining due to intense price competition, rising operating costs and changing consumer behaviour.

“The African story is paradoxical. Subscriber numbers are rising, but revenue per user is falling,” Odunlami said, adding that digital-first consumers now demand integrated experiences built around connectivity, self-service apps, entertainment, social media, payments and collaboration tools, rather than standalone voice and messaging services.

According to him, OTT platforms such as WhatsApp and Microsoft Teams have accelerated the shift away from traditional telecom revenue streams towards data-centric digital offerings.

“Connectivity is no longer the product. The product is the experience powered by connectivity,” he said.

In response to these shifts, Odunlami said telecom operators globally are increasingly integrating lifestyle and financial technology services into their platforms to capture more value from their customer base.

He also highlighted the slow pace of 5G adoption in Nigeria and across sub-Saharan Africa.

While 5G is expected to account for about 64 per cent of global connectivity by 2028, adoption in Nigeria and the wider region is projected at between 14 per cent and 17 per cent in the short to medium term, constrained by infrastructure gaps, slow device uptake and limited investment in research and development.

Odunlami stressed that government has a broader role to play beyond regulation.

“Government’s role is not just regulation. It must also support infrastructure development and R&D to unlock next-generation connectivity,” he said.

Reiterating the purpose of the ongoing study, Odunlami described it as diagnostic rather than punitive.

“This is not punitive. It is about understanding how market leadership is achieved and exercised,” he said.

The NCC said the outcome of the PwC-led assessment will help shape future competition policy in the telecoms sector at a time of accelerating digital disruption and evolving consumer expectations.