NIN–SIM Policy Wiped Out 59.7 Million Phone Lines

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Nigeria’s telecommunications sector underwent one of its most significant contractions in recent years, with active voice subscriptions falling by 59.7 million in 2024 as a result of the rigorous enforcement of the National Identification Number–Subscriber Identity Module policy, the Nigerian Communications Commission revealed in its 2024 Subscriber/Network Performance Report.

The active subscriber count declined from 224.7 million in 2023 to 164.9 million by the end of 2024, representing a 26.6 per cent year-on-year decrease.

According to the telecom regulator, this steep reduction was caused by the deactivation of SIM cards that were not linked to verifiable NINs and the rectification of a long-standing discrepancy in subscriber numbers by a major mobile network provider.

This thorough clean-up was part of the Federal Government’s multi-year effort to ensure all SIM cards are linked to valid NINs, a policy launched on 4 February 2020 and jointly implemented by the NCC and the National Identity Management Commission.

After several deadline extensions between 2023 and 2024, authorities set a final deadline of 14 September 2024. From 15 September, any SIM lacking a verified NIN was automatically disabled.

The government introduced the linkage mainly to “curb the criminal use of anonymous SIM cards,” enhance national security, and build a more reliable national identity database. The policy is also expected to enhance service delivery, increase financial inclusion, and facilitate digital payment systems throughout the economy.

In September, President Bola Tinubu announced that more than 126 million Nigerians had been registered in the National Identity Database, following the Federal Government’s expansion of the system’s capacity from 100 million to 250 million records to guarantee universal coverage and remove enrolment bottlenecks.

The report also indicated that teledensity reflected the scale of the clean-up, dropping from 103.66 per cent in 2023 to 76.08 per cent in 2024. Internet subscriptions similarly decreased, falling from 163.8 million to 139.3 million, a reduction of 24.6 million users, equating to a 14.98 per cent contraction during the period.

Despite the reduction in subscriber numbers, the regulator noted ongoing improvements in coverage. Nigeria reached over 95 per cent cellular coverage, while broadband penetration experienced a slight rise from 43.71 per cent to 44.43 per cent, supported by widespread access to 3G (89 per cent), 4G (84 per cent) and 5G (13 per cent) networks.

Nevertheless, the latest NCC industry figures show the sector has started to stabilise and recover. Active telephone subscriptions increased to 173.54 million in September 2025, up from 171.57 million in August, signalling continued market adjustment after the 2024 clean-up.

Internet subscriptions on GSM networks also saw a slight rise to 140.36 million, while teledensity improved to 80.05 per cent, indicating renewed growth in user numbers and network activity.