Nigeria’s sustained investment in telecom infrastructure is beginning to translate into measurable improvements in internet performance, with average 4G download speeds reaching 33Mbps by the end of 2025. According to Aminu Maida, executive vice chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the gains reflect years of network upgrades, fibre expansion and regulatory reforms.
The improvement places Nigeria ahead of many African peers, where average mobile speeds often remain below 20Mbps. Broadband penetration also crossed 50% in 2025, rising to 50.58% by November, while active mobile subscriptions reached 172.71 million and data users stood at 142 million nationwide.
Faster speeds have been driven by aggressive infrastructure deployment, including the rollout of 2,800 new network sites in 2025 to strengthen mobile backhaul capacity. Although 5G adoption remains modest, its presence has helped ease congestion on 4G networks, contributing to overall performance gains as data consumption hit 1.24 million terabytes.
Maida described the shift as part of a broader economic transformation, noting that “pipelines of oil are giving way to pipelines of fibre.” He added that regulatory priorities have evolved from technical compliance toward delivering a holistic quality of experience for consumers.
Despite progress, challenges remain. Affordability concerns, rural access gaps, fibre cuts and infrastructure vandalism continue to affect service stability. The NCC reported more than 19,000 fibre cuts in the first eight months of 2025, underlining the need for stronger coordination to protect critical infrastructure and sustain network improvements.
