Active voice subscriptions hit 171.7m in Q2 — NBS

Nigeria’s telecommunications sector sustained strong performance in the second quarter of 2025, with active voice subscriptions rising to 171,730,061, according to new data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The figure represents a 0.48 per cent year-on-year increase compared to the 170,904,257 subscriptions recorded in the same period of 2024.

The data is contained in the NBS Telecoms Data: Active Voice and Internet, Porting and Tariff Information Report for Q2 2025, released in Abuja on Monday.

However, on a quarter-on-quarter basis, active voice subscriptions declined slightly by 0.57 per cent from the 172,708,410 recorded in Q1 2025.

The report also showed growth in internet usage, with active internet subscriptions climbing to 141,171,679 in Q2 2025, up from 136,497,384 in Q2 2024 — a 3.42 per cent year-on-year increase. Quarter-on-quarter, internet subscriptions dipped marginally by 0.62 per cent from 142,053,537 recorded in the previous quarter.

A state-by-state breakdown revealed that Lagos State recorded the highest number of active voice subscribers at 20,469,762, followed by Kano State with 11,006,922 and Ogun State with 9,759,254.

At the lower end, Bayelsa State had the fewest voice subscribers at 1,148,655, followed by Ebonyi State and Ekiti State.

The same trend was observed for internet subscriptions, with Lagos leading at 17,591,914 subscribers, followed by Kano and Ogun, while Bayelsa, Ebonyi and Ekiti recorded the lowest figures.

The report further noted that MTN Nigeria maintained its position as the telecom operator with the largest share of subscriptions during the period.