By 
Matters eRising with Olusegun Oruame
The public presentation of its 2024 Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) last June by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) underscored some definite statements. The telecoms regulator indicated it was finalising a crucial review aimed at updating telecom regulations to match today’s rapidly evolving technological and market realities. It also asserted it was accelerating Nigeria push deeper into a digital-first future.
RELATED: Call Masking: The hidden threat undermining Nigeria’s digital economy
Equally true and maybe on a sober note, the RIA offers a critical opportunity to confront an uncomfortable truth: the country’s telecom market is increasingly tilting toward big operators. Smaller players are being squeezed out of existence.
For a sector that thrives on innovation, competition, and diversity, this widening imbalance poses serious risks. If left unchecked, Nigeria could lose dozens more small operators, weaken digital inclusion efforts, and inadvertently entrench a telecom ecosystem dominated by only a few large entities.
The regulator’s longstanding commitment to industry fairness and balanced policy discourse has now become more critical.
NCC’s 2024 RIA: A Step Toward Modernising the Rules
The 2024 Regulatory Impact Assessment is an exercise designed to align Nigeria’s telecom rules with the rapidly shifting realities of modern communications.
The assessment reviewed:
- Licensing structures
- SIM registration and subscriber management
- Spectrum trading guidelines
- Enforcement processes
- Infrastructure-sharing frameworks
At the public unveiling, the NCC Executive Vice Chairman, Dr. Aminu Maida, described the RIA as both an innovation in the Commission’s rule-making process and a participatory engagement model that gives all stakeholders a voice. This is the right direction.
But the harder question remains: Will this process finally give small operators the regulatory protection they have long demanded?
The Big Operator Advantage: A Market Tilting in One Direction
Nigeria’s telecom marketplace is entering an era where infrastructure dominance increasingly determines survival. We are navigating into a market where monopolies wear many faces as significant controllers of various linked operators within the same industry vertical. Large operators, backed by deeper pockets, wider coverage, and stronger negotiating power control, vast portions of the fibre, tower, and wholesale broadband ecosystem.
This leaves smaller operators:
- Struggling to compete
- Unable to scale
- Unable to access affordable right-of-way
- Paying high spectrum fees
- Suffering from regulatory overlaps and inconsistencies
The result is stark: many ISPs have folded, and the number of active small operators continues to shrink each year. This is not the mark of a healthy, inclusive digital economy. This is the sign of small daring operators hanging at the tip of a dagger. They either fall off or they get stabbed. Either way, they are designed to perish.
Small Operators’ Concerns: Real, Valid, and Urgent
Across Nigeria, smaller operators and regional ISPs repeatedly raise the same concerns:
- Anti-Competitive Pressures
Big operators’ control of networks, fibre routes, and last-mile infrastructure limits the ability of smaller firms to compete fairly.
- High Operating Costs
Spectrum pricing, right-of-way fees, and rising deployment and maintenance costs have pushed many operators into financial distress.
- Regulatory Overlaps
New and proposed bills, sometimes duplicating or conflicting with existing laws, create confusion for investors and operators alike.
- Shrinking Survival Space
With many ISPs shutting down, the ecosystem is becoming narrower. The shrinking space is reducing innovation, service options, and regional market diversity.
These concerns cannot be dismissed as complaints. They are structural warnings. And the NCC is inherently mandated to address them. Big Operators must operate. But small operators must exist without being stifled. That is what healthy competition means.
NCC’s Mandate: Balancing Growth, Governance, and Fairness
The NCC maintains that its policies aim to:
- Stimulate industry growth
- Protect consumers
- Improve sector governance
- Promote digital inclusion
It is true. Recent reforms on governance and reporting aim to bring transparency and long-term stability to the sector. But the NCC must pay special attention to small operators.
The Regulatory Impact Assessment is intended to reduce entry barriers and strengthen competition. These are commendable steps. But the core conflict remains unresolved.
The Core Conflict: A Growing Power Imbalance
Even well-intentioned policies often fall short of addressing the structural disadvantages faced by smaller operators. Without targeted interventions, Nigeria risks becoming a market where:
- A few big players define the competitive landscape
- Smaller operators are relegated to the margins
- Consumers lose diversity and choice
- Innovation becomes slower
- Regional connectivity gaps widen
If this trend continues, Nigeria’s dream of an inclusive digital economy will be severely undermined.
What the NCC Must Do Now: A Call for Proportionate Regulation
For Nigeria to build a sustainable and diverse digital ecosystem, the NCC must:
- Enforce fair access to infrastructure
- Reduce right-of-way costs nationwide
- Expand spectrum-sharing and flexible licensing
- Protect smaller operators from predatory competition
- Encourage a multi-tiered telecom ecosystem where all players; big and small can thrive
The 2024 RIA presents the perfect platform to embed these changes.
Saving Small Operators Is Saving the Digital Economy
A digital economy dominated by a handful of operators is not inclusive, resilient, or sustainable. Small operators matter because they:
- Bring innovation
- Serve underserved regions
- Create local jobs
- Support digital inclusion goals
- Expand consumer choice
With the 2024 Regulatory Impact Assessment handy for implementation, the NCC must seize this moment to restore balance and protect the ecosystem’s diversity. Nigeria’s digital future depends on it.
