In a sweeping overhaul of Nigeria’s telecommunications sector, the recent verification of National Identification Numbers (NINs) linked to mobile SIMs has led to the deactivation of 64.3 million phone lines, with Glo and 9mobile mostly affected.
According to NCC data, the purge was most profound for Globacom and 9mobile. Globacom, once maintaining 62.1 million active subscriptions as of March 2024, saw its subscriber base shrink by nearly 70 per cent to 19.1 million by the end of September.
9mobile, which had already been experiencing declines in customer retention over recent years, lost approximately 8 million subscriptions in the process, leaving it with only 3.6 million active subscribers.
This drastic reduction left Nigeria’s four GSM operators collectively managing 154.6 million active lines in September, a sharp fall from the 219 million recorded in March 2024.
Despite the sweeping changes, MTN maintained its leading position with 78 million active subscriptions, though it too saw a 3.7 million reduction. Airtel retained its second position, recording a decline from 63.3 million to 53.7 million active subscriptions.
The ramifications of this exercise are set to impact the revenue streams of these telecom giants, especially MTN and Airtel, which had previously cautioned stakeholders about potential losses.
Airtel Africa, the parent company of Airtel Nigeria, estimated that monthly revenue losses could reach $4 million as a result of the NIN verification, with approximately 4.9 million of its customers yet to complete the process by mid-year.
Meanwhile, MTN had also disconnected 4.2 million unverified lines by February but noted that these were primarily low-value users, implying a milder revenue impact.
Telecom analyst Mr. Adewale Adeoye commented on the long-term benefits of the verification exercise.
“This marks a monumental cleanup for Nigeria’s telecom sector, ensuring that every line is now linked to a verified identity,” Adeoye said.