Nigerian telecom subscribers (phone lines) have now reached 200 million for the first time in two years. The milestone comes after the 2024 NIN-SIM enforcement that saw approximately 70 million phone lines disconnected from the telecoms subscriber base.
Latest industry data from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) shows that telecom subscribers increased by 2.9 million phone lines to 200.3 million in September 2026, up from 197.4 million in August 2026. The growth marks the continued adoption of new SIM cards across the country and how connectivity continues to expand.
Also read: Nigerian telecoms suffer 44,678 fibre cuts in 9 months, NCC data shows.
The latest count signifies another round of telecom subscriber increase after the NIN-SIM implementation that saw phone line connections drop by approx. 70 million from 224.7 million in December 2023 to 154.9 million in September 2024.
In a December 2023 notice, the NCC directed MTN, Airtel, Globacom and 9mobile (now T2mobile) to bar SIMs that had not been linked to their owners’ NINs by February 28, 2024. Another notice from the commission also asked the Global Satellite Mobile Communications operators to bar SIM holders whose NINs have been submitted but not verified by March 29, 2024, and interdict those who have fewer than five lines linked to an unverified NIN by April 15, 2024
Recall that the federal government had, on December 16, 2020, introduced the SIM-NIN synchronisation initiative meant to enable security agencies to track criminals.
The initiative involves validating the NIN with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) and matching the subscriber’s NIN records with the SIM registration information to ensure proper subscriber identification.
While telecom operators enforced widespread barring ahead of the July 31 final deadline, it triggered subscriber outrage, which prompted the NCC to order an immediate temporary reactivation of the affected lines on July 29, 2024.
Telecoms subscribers have now crossed 200 million while teledensity increased from 91.07% to 92.41%.
MTN maintains lead in Nigeria’s telecom subscribers
In the latest industry update, MTN extended its lead by adding 2.1 million users in September 2026 to 104.65 million users. Airtel stays second with 68.04 million subscribers after adding approximately 600,000 new users during the month.
Globacom stays third with 23.8 million active phone lines, following about 300,000 new subscribers. T2mobile (9mobile) has now extended its dormancy status for three months, with 3.6 million subscribers, the same count it had in July 2026.
Provided the telecommunications sector maintains its current average monthly expansion rate of approx. 1.27% (April to September) through Q4, projected telecoms users are expected to reach between 207.5 million and 208.2 million active connected lines by December 2026.
The surge is expected to be driven by seasonal holiday SIM activations, phone purchases, and continued industry recoveries.
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