Nigerians Consume 45,800TB of Data Daily — NCC Reveals

Nigerians are now consuming approximately 45,800 terabytes of data daily, according to the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), highlighting the country’s accelerating digital transformation and growing dependence on internet services.

Speaking at the 2026 Workshop for Judges on Legal Issues in Telecommunications held in Lagos, the Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of the NCC, Aminu Maida, disclosed that total data consumption in March 2026 reached 1.42 million terabytes, up from 995,000 terabytes recorded during the same period in 2025.

Represented by Ms. Rimini Makama, Executive Commissioner for Stakeholder Management, Maida noted that the increase reflects the rapid growth of Nigeria’s digital economy, driven by digital payments, e-commerce, startups, digital literacy programmes, and emerging technologies.

According to him, Nigerians now consume data equivalent to watching over 15 million hours of high-definition video daily — an increase of about 4.6 million additional hours compared to the previous year.

Despite the impressive growth, the NCC raised concerns over threats to telecommunications infrastructure, including vandalism, fibre cuts, theft, and sabotage. The Commission also reiterated the importance of protecting telecom assets following their designation as Critical National Information Infrastructure by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

To strengthen security and curb digital fraud, the NCC said it is collaborating with security agencies, telecom operators, the Central Bank of Nigeria, EFCC, and NIMC, while also deploying the Telecommunications Identity Risk Management System (TIRMS) to tackle SIM-related fraud and identity theft.

The Commission further disclosed that telecom operators invested over N2.5 trillion in network infrastructure and upgrades in 2025 to improve service quality and support Nigeria’s rising data demand.