Mobile voice subscription rises marginally
The country’s total mobile voice penetration reached 36,138,706 as of the end of March this year.
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This represents a 130.97 per cent penetration, having moved from 35,802,135 as of the end of February 2016.
According to market share statistics posted on the website of the National Communications Authority (NCA), the industry regulator, the percentage increase between February and March this year was 0.94 per cent.
Gainers
Three out of the five international companies in the mobile telecoms space in the country gained over the period. They are MTN, Vodafone and Airtel
MTN’s voice subscriber figure for the period was 17,004,445, representing a percentage increase of 1.29 per cent over the February 2016 figure of 16,787,446. As a result, its market share stood at 47.05 per cent during the period under review, making it the industry’s market leader, a position it has enjoyed for more than 20 decades.
Vodafone’s mobile voice subscribers increased from 7,859,486 at the end of February 2016 to 7,900,534 as of the end of March 2016.
That represented a percentage increase of 0.52 per cent. Vodafone’s market share for March 2016 stood at 21.86 per cent. The company is, therefore, number two on the market share rankings in the country.
tiGO’s voice subscribers increased from 5,026,237 at the end of February 2016 to 5,062,304 as of the end of March 2016, indicating a percentage rise of 0.72 per cent over the period and putting its market share for the month under review at 14.01 per cent.
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For Airtel, its voice subscribers increased from 4,910,607 at the end of February 2016 to 5,012,239 as of the end of March 2016.
That represented a percentage increase of 2.07 per cent, putting its total market share for the month under review at 13.87 per cent.
Losers
Two companies in the sector lost some subscribers and market share as well during the period under review.
Glo, which entered the competition a couple of years ago with the aim of becoming a dominant force in the sector, saw its voice subscribers decrease from 1,103,301 at the end of February 2016 to 1,048,635 as of the end of March 2016.
That reflected a percentage decrease of 4.95 per cent for the month. Its total market share for the month under review was 2.90 per cent.
Expresso’s voice subscriber figure also dipped from 115,058 at the end of February 2016 to 110,549 as of the end of March 2016.
That represented a percentage decrease of 3.92 per cent, leaving a total market share for the month under review at just 0.31 per cent.
Observation
The increase in subscriber numbers is a reflection of the growth in the sector. However, the impact is not that meaningful, as majority of the subscribers still remain in the urban centres of the country.
Many parts of the country, particularly the rural areas, continue to exist without telephone signals. Those who rarely access the signals have to stand on trees and hill tops to receive signals which also fluctuate.
This calls for pragmatic interventions from the industry regulator to get the players to extend their services to unserved and under-served areas to help boost economic activities there.