Nigerians can now heave a sigh of relief as President Bola Tinubu has scrapped the controversial 5% excise duty on telecommunications services, including voice calls and data subscriptions.
The National Orientation Agency (NOA) announced the development in a post on its official X (formerly Twitter) page on Thursday.
According to the post, the Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Aminu Maida, disclosed that President Tinubu ordered the removal of the tax during deliberations on the recently passed Finance Act.
Maida explained that the decision was taken to protect citizens from further economic hardship while boosting Nigeria’s digital economy.
“The development is expected to bring relief to over 171 million active telecom users across the country, many of whom have faced a 50% tariff increase implemented earlier this year,” he said.
The tax, which targeted both voice calls and data, was introduced during the administration of late former President Muhammadu Buhari.
First announced in 2022, the levy faced immediate backlash from consumer rights groups and telecom operators, who argued it would worsen the financial burden of Nigerians already struggling with high living costs.
The government at the time defended the policy, insisting it was designed to shore up revenue amidst dwindling oil earnings. The Ministry of Finance also claimed the tax was consistent with global practices.
But telecom operators, under the umbrella of the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), warned that the policy was counterproductive.
ALTON stressed that Nigeria already bore one of the heaviest tax burdens on the telecommunications sector in sub-Saharan Africa.
With the repeal of the tax, industry watchers say the decision could ease cost pressures on households and businesses while strengthening Nigeria’s march toward a robust digital economy.
