FG Rejects Proposed 100% Tariff Hike in Call, Data Services by Telcos

The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Mr Bosun Tijani, after a meeting with the operators on Wednesday in Abuja, however, said Nigerians should expect to pay more for call and data services very soon to keep the operators afloat, especially due to rising cost of doing business in the country.

The telcos had asked the government for permission to increase tariffs by 100 per cent because the current rates were no longer sustainable.

The chief executives of two of the leading operators in Nigeria, MTN and Airtel, said they would want tariffs to be raised by 100 per cent to guarantee qualify service delivery.

Operators in the sector had warned that if the rates were not raised by the regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), they may begin to ration their services across the nation to remain in business.

“You have seen over the past weeks that some of these companies have been agitated to increase tariffs. They are requesting a 100 per cent tariff increase.

“But it will not be by 100 per cent; the NCC will soon come up with a clear directive on how we will go about it.

“We want to strike the balance as a government, to protect our people, but also protect and ensure that these companies can continue to invest significantly,” Mr Tijani said yesterday.

“As a country, over time, we have left these investments in the hands of the private sector. They typically invest where they can see returns in the short to medium term.

“We will not want this conversation to just be about tariff increase. What the world is talking about today is meaningful connectivity; people want to have access to quality service.

“A part of it that the consumers may not be aware of is the investment that needs to go into the infrastructure that is used to deliver these services,” he noted.

On his part, the Executive Vice-Chairman of the NCC, Mr Aminu Maida, said, “We have looked at all of these factors, and that is why, as the Minister said, it is not likely that we are going to approve a 100 per cent tariff increase.

“I know that Nigerians are agitated to hear the exact percentage approved. We are still going through some stakeholder engagements, but you will hear from us within a week or two.”

“We are moving away from the regime where you will have a main rate, then you will now have a bonus which is at a different rate.

“It makes it often complicated and difficult for Nigerians to actually understand what they are being charged for. There is this agitation that the MNOs are stealing our data,” he added.