The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported a decrease in the number of active voice subscribers in Nigeria, which fell to 219.3 million in the first quarter (Q1) of 2024. This represents a 3.03 percent decline compared to 226.16 million recorded in the same period in 2023.
In its report titled “Telecoms Data: Active Voice and Internet per State, Porting and Tariff Information (Q1 2024),” released on Monday, the NBS noted, “On a quarter-on-quarter basis, active voice subscribers fell by 2.41%.”
The report also indicated that the total number of active internet subscribers increased to 164,368,292 in Q1 2024, up from 157,551,104 in Q1 2023. This marks a year-on-year increase of 4.33 percent and a quarter-on-quarter growth of 0.32 percent.
In the state profile analysis, Lagos State recorded the highest number of active voice subscribers at 25,956,074, followed by Ogun with 12,672,990, and Kano with 11,931,128. Bayelsa had the fewest active voice subscribers with 1,608,473, followed by Ebonyi with 1,885,657 and Ekiti with 1,969,568.
For active internet subscribers, Lagos also led with 18,841,943, followed by Ogun with 9,528,795, and Kano with 9,067,983. The lowest number of active internet subscribers was recorded in Bayelsa with 1,201,601, followed by Ebonyi with 1,401,626 and Ekiti with 1,545,729.
The NBS report highlighted that MTN had the highest share of subscriptions in Q1 2024.
