The Nigerian government has remained resolute in its approval of a 50 percent telecom tariff hike, despite widespread opposition from citizens, telecommunications subscribers, and labor unions.
The move comes in the wake of a nationwide mobilization by the Nigeria Labour Congress, which plans to shut down the economy in protest on February 4, 2025.
On January 24, 2025, the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers wrote to the Nigerian Communications Commission urging a reduction of the tariff increase to 10 percent, arguing that the 50 percent hike, compounded by rising fuel and electricity costs, was excessive and unfair to the average Nigerian. In a letter signed by its national president, Adeolu Ogunbanjo, NATCOMS accused the NCC of neglecting its role in protecting consumers from what they described as telecom operators’ relentless pursuit of profit at the expense of ordinary Nigerians.
The letter emphasized that while some tariff increase might be warranted, a 10 percent rise would be more reasonable and balanced, urging telecom operators to explore alternative funding sources. However, as of Thursday, January 29, 2025, both the federal government and the NCC have yet to reverse their stance on the 50 percent increase.
In response to the government’s inaction, the NLC announced plans to mobilize workers nationwide for a mass rally on February 4, 2025, to express their opposition to the tariff hike. The NLC’s president, Joe Ajaero, condemned the increase, calling it an “insensitive” and “unjustifiable” decision that further burdens Nigerian workers already struggling with high inflation, fuel price hikes, and rising costs of living. Ajaero urged all Nigerian workers, as well as the informal sector, to join the protest and stand against the policy.
Several civil society organizations, including the Civil Society Legislative and Advocacy Centre, the National Civil Society Council of Nigeria, and the Take It Back Movement, have pledged their support for the NLC’s protest, condemning the tariff hike as detrimental to the nation’s struggling populace.
Despite the widespread backlash, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy has defended the tariff hike, attributing it to rising inflation. However, the minister has not shown any willingness to reverse the decision. The government’s position has sparked legal action as well, with the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project filing a lawsuit against the tariff increase.
The controversial tariff hike, approved by the Nigerian Communications Commission on January 20, 2025, will see prices for calls, data, and other telecom services rise by 50 percent in the coming days. The Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria, which represents telecom companies, has supported the hike, insisting that the increase follows due process and urging subscribers to prepare for its implementation.
“To express our collective opposition to this arbitrary tariff hike, the NLC will embark on a nationwide mass rally on Tuesday, February 4, 2025.
“The rally will serve as a warning on the dangers of imposing such an unfair increase on a struggling population earning a minimum wage of only N70,000; a population that has suffered outrageous hikes in the price of petrol, high cost of food, hike in electricity tariff, and general rising inflation,” Ajaero stated in the communique.
