Barely 72 hours after securing the Nigerian Communications Commission’s (NCC’s) nod for upward adjustments of their tariffs for voice and data services, Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) have complied with the approval by jacking up their data tariffs in compliance with the maximum 50% hike set by the commission.
Available information on the latest tariff adjustments by the telcos on Wednesday showed that the four bid operators, namely MTN, Globacom, Airtel Nigeria, and 9mobile had already revised their tariffs in compliance with the regulatory commission’s directive.
Accordingly, the MTN now charges N9,750 for 25GB of data, up from N6,500, while 10GB now costs N5,250 compared to the old N3,500; 5GB costs N2,250, up from the old N1,500,and subscribers now buy 1GB at N525, compared to N350 they were buying it before the NCC’s approval.
Similarly, Airtel has also raised its tariffs for data with the 23GB plan now sold to subscribers at N9,000, up from the previous N6,000, and the 10GB plan had been increased to N4,500, from N3,000 it sold before Monday’s regulatory approval to the telcos by the NCC.
Globacom subscribers are now to get 24GB plan at N7,500 from N5,000, while the 10.8GB plan costs N3,000, up from N2,500 they were buying it. As expected, 9mobile has also adjusted its 22GB data plan to N7,500, up from N5,000, and 9.5GB now costs N3,750, compared to the previous N1,500 subscribers were paying for it.
This tariff hike has sparked reactions among users, as it marks a significant rise in data prices across the country. The increase is part of an effort by telecom companies to align their prices with the rising costs of operations, which they blame on inflation, fuel price hikes, currency fluctuations, and higher infrastructure maintenance costs.
The NCC had on Monday explained that the voice and data services tariffs adjustment, capped at a maximum of 50% of current tariffs, though lower than the over 100% upward review requested by some network operators, was arrived at taking into account ongoing industry reforms that will positively influence sustainability.
Miffed by the approval by the NCC, the National Association of Telecommunications Subscribers (NATCOMS) almost immediately threatened to challenge the proposed 50% tariff hike by telecoms operators in a law court.
The President of NATCOMS, Chief Deolu Ogunbanjo, during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), expressed the subscribers’ next line of action on the plan, accusing the commission of not carrying the telecom services subscribers along in the arrangement.
Ogunbanjo, who claimed that NATCOMS understood the challenges being faced by the MNOs in their operations given the escalating inflation rate and incidents of vandalism in the industry, maintained that a maximum of 10% tariff hike would have been ideal under the current adjustments plans.
Describing the approved 50% tariff hike by the Federal Government as unacceptable to telecom subscribers in the country, the NATCOMS chief said doing so would hurt not just the subscribers but also the nation’s economy if implemented;
He explained: “This will affect everyone from the biggest industry to the smallest company, such as the Point of Service (POS) operators. It will increase operational costs.
“We now depend on telecoms for our meetings, for the banks, everybody depends on it even the education sector, yes, a lot of things depend on it.
“So, that is why we painfully agreed that, look, a moderate or marginal five per cent to 10 per cent increase will be fine.
”You know, we do not mind an increase if it is to salvage the industry that is helping us, that means so much to us and that is also contributing double-digit to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product.
“So, we appreciate that. It’s painful, but we granted. We said, okay, we will not mind if it is just five per cent to 10 per cent increase”, the NATCOMS chief added.
