The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has engaged global consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to conduct a comprehensive assessment of competition within Nigeria’s telecommunications industry, addressing concerns around market dominance and ensuring fair, effective, and sustainable competition.
The initiative, launched through a high-level stakeholder engagement in Lagos at the Sheraton Hotel in Ikeja, reflects the NCC’s strategic intent to preserve healthy competition in a sector undergoing rapid technological change.
The PwC-led review will examine market concentration, pricing behaviour, barriers to entry, consumer switching patterns, and monetisation dynamics, using internationally recognised analytical metrics.
Speaking at the forum, Omotayo Mohammed, Head of Policy, Competition and Economic Analysis at the NCC, said the exercise is designed to strengthen regulatory certainty and promote competition-led growth rather than single out 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.
The study will rely on extensive data submissions from telecom operators, with a two-week compliance window, alongside stakeholder interviews and follow-up workshops. The NCC confirmed that all submitted information will be protected under strict confidentiality safeguards.
The commission expects the findings to guide proportionate regulatory interventions that preserve competition, sustain long-term investment, and reinforce Nigeria’s position within the global digital economy.
Akolawole Odunlami, Director of Strategy at the PwC Network, noted that global telecom industry growth has slowed to between two and three percent annually, compared with around four percent before the COVID-19 pandemic.
“In Sub-Saharan Africa, subscriber numbers continue to rise, but average revenue per user is declining due to intense price competition, rising operating costs, and changing consumer behaviour. These pressures are being felt across markets, not just in Nigeria,” he said.
The forum brought together licensed operators, industry associations including ALTON and ATCON, consumer advocacy groups, and media representatives. PwC outlined a methodology based on granular data collection and formal submissions from all ecosystem participants to ensure the final report reflects the realities of the 2026 market.
In line with the NCC’s participatory regulatory approach, the consultation marks the first in a series of engagements planned throughout the review process.
