The recent 50 per cent telecoms tariff hike approved by Nigerian Telecommunications Commission (NCC) has caused disquiet in the sector, with many stakeholders kicking against it. The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), telecom service consumers and civil society groups have condemned the raise in tariff, which they consider excessive and untimely. According to the Director, Public Affairs of the NCC, Reuben Muoka, “the adjustment, capped at a maximum of 50 per cent of current tariffs, though lower than the over 100 per cent requested by some network operators, was arrived at taking into account ongoing industry reforms that will positively influence sustainability.”
He also added that “these adjustments will remain within the tariff bands stipulated in the 2013 NCC Cost Study and requests will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis as is the Commission’s standard practice for tariff reviews. It will be implemented in strict adherence to the recently issued NCC Guidance on Tariff Simplification, 2024.” Though this is the first tariff hike since 2013, it is unduly high and unaffordable for millions of telecom subscribers.
Moreover, the tariff hike came at a time telecoms subscribers are saddled with poor services, including poor access coverage, call dropping and inadequate SMS services. Nigerians have been grappling with undue hike in prices of petroleum products, economic hardship, rising inflation and cost of living following government’s removal of fuel subsidy and floating of the naira. No doubt, the new telecoms tariff hike will worsen the economic hardship in the country.
Although the NCC justified the tariff hike on the need to improve service and ensure business sustainability in view of rising costs of running business in a sector that depends so much on imported materials for their operations, the critics of the price increase argue that there is the need to strike a balance between business sustainability and affordability of telecom services.
At the same time, any tariff hike must be reasonable. In an increasing digital world, telecoms services have become indispensable considering their deployment in communication, banking, education, agriculture and virtually every sector. Indiscriminate raise in telecoms services will exclude millions of Nigerians from accessing digital services. The tariff hike will affect financial inclusion as well as internet penetration. In a country with a national minimum wage of N70,000, which is yet to be implemented by some state governments, the telecoms tariff hike will impoverish millions of Nigerians. It will seriously affect e-learning as well as e-commerce.
Under the new tariff regime, Muoka further explained the cost of a one-minute call has been raised from N11 to N16.5, and the price of 1GB of data from N287.5 to N431.25, while SMS charges have been raised from N4 to N6. Despite this explanation, opposition to the price hike has not abated. The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has reportedly filed a lawsuit at the Federal High Court, Abuja, against the federal government and NCC to restrain network providers from implementing the “arbitrary, unconstitutional, unlawful, unfair and unreasonable” 50 per cent increase in telecom tariffs. SERAP further contends that the “NCC’s action undermines citizens’ right to seek, receive, and impart information through communication media without discrimination.”
Considering the prevailing economic hardship in the country and the dwindling purchasing power of millions of Nigerians, including telecoms service subscribers, we call for a stakeholders meeting to holistically discuss the new tariff hike and resolve the matter. At the parley, telecom service providers and subscribers will iron out the grey areas in the tariff hike and agree on the best way forward.
We believe that the present tariff hike of 50 per cent is exorbitant, unsustainable and will exclude millions of Nigerians from accessing telecom services. Moving forward, any tariff hike in the sector must be gradual and sustainable. Nigerians are already burdened with sundry taxes, adding the telecom tariff hike is excessive and unnecessary. The federal government should urgently wade into the matter in a bid to save the sector.
Beyond the new tariff hike, the telecom service provides should endeavour to improve on their services, which are presently poor. The telecom subscribers deserve good services at all times. The era of erratic services, frequent call drops, slow data speeds, unreliable network coverage, poor call quality, network congestion and others should indeed be over.