MTN Nigeria Says It’ll Compensate Subscribers Over Poor Service Delivery Following NCC Directive

MTN Nigeria has announced that it will comply with a directive from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) ordering mobile operators to compensate subscribers affected by service shortfalls between November 2025 and January 2026.

The move follows intense regulatory pressure from the NCC, which flagged the country’s largest mobile operator for failing to meet quality-of-service benchmarks across several regions in Africa’s biggest mobile market.

In a statement released on Thursday, the telecommunications giant admitted that its customers in the affected areas experienced disruptions and pledged to implement the compensation framework as mandated by the regulator.

“All consumers within the affected areas where service shortfalls were recorded will receive compensation for the operating periods of November, December, and January, in accordance with the applicable framework,” the company stated.

MTN further noted that the directive reinforces the regulator’s focus on consumer protection, placing “customers at the centre of regulatory decision-making.”

Despite the pledge to compensate, the telco acknowledged that its operations have been plagued by “broader ecosystem challenges,” including infrastructure constraints and external disruptions.

To mitigate future service failures, the company promised an “aggressive capital expenditure rollout” and “accelerated infrastructure upgrades” to bolster network resilience and meet the surging demand for voice and data.

“We will continue to drive an aggressive capital expenditure rollout,” the company added, noting that it would deepen coordination with tower companies to improve uptime and service reliability.

The NCC has recently intensified its enforcement actions against telecommunications providers in Nigeria as internet usage grows, insisting on transparency and accountability in service delivery.

MTN has frequently come under fire from the Nigerian public and regulators over deteriorating network quality, despite recording massive profits from its Nigerian operations.

As of the time of this report, it remains unclear the exact form the compensation will take — whether in airtime, data, or direct refunds — or the specific number of subscribers expected to benefit from the redress.