Rising data costs will worsen Nigeria’s connectivity gap – CITAD warns

The Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) has raised concerns over the increasing cost of internet data in Nigeria, warning that it further widens the country’s existing digital divide.

The centre argued that the increase in data will leave many underserved communities without access to essential online services.

Haruna Adamu Hadeija, the Coordinator of Community Network, CITAD, revealed this while speaking at a press briefing held at the CITAD office in Kano on Monday.

He emphasized the impact of rising data costs on marginalized communities.

According to Hadeija, the 50% tariff increase on data, calls, and SMS approved by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has made it increasingly difficult for communities already struggling with poor connectivity to access the internet.

Advertisement

“Now that data charges have been jerked up by 50%, students and parents in underserved areas have to ‘dearly’ pay to enable their children to learn online,” Hadeija said.

“This cost hike not only widens the existing connectivity gap but also makes digital liberation nearly impossible for millions of Nigerians.”

Hadeija noted that while Nigeria has made strides in expanding internet access, an estimated 27.91 million people in 97 underserved communities still lack internet access, according to a 2022 report by the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF).

He highlighted how this lack of connectivity continues to disenfranchise students, youth, and women, particularly those in rural areas.

“In regions where internet access is absent, parents must send their children far from home just to register for computer-based tests, conduct exams, and check their results. It is unfair that many communities are left behind because they cannot afford internet services,” he added.

The CITAD coordinator stressed the need for urgent policy interventions to address the widening digital divide.

He called on the Minister for Digital Economy to officially recognize community networks as an additional layer of connectivity providers in the country.

“We urge the USPF to support local communities with grants to deploy their own connectivity initiatives. These community networks are not competitors to Mobile Network Operators (MNOs); they are complementary solutions to bridge the existing connectivity gap,” Hadeija appealed.

CITAD also proposed capacity-building initiatives to empower local communities in resource mobilization and sustainability to create self-sufficient, community-centered networks.