Airtel Unsure of Impact of Call Blockage Policy in Nigeria on Business

By Dipo Olowookere

The board of Airtel Africa Plc has disclosed that it is not certain how the latest directive of the federal government to telcos in Nigeria will impact its operations.

Airtel Africa operates in the country through its subsidiary, Airtel Nigeria Limited and yesterday, the government directed operators not to allow subscribers yet to link their SIM cards to the National Identification Number (NIN) to make calls.

In a statement on Tuesday, the service provider said it study how this call blockage policy will affect its business in Nigeria, which contributes majorly to its total revenue.

In its nine-month results for the period ended December 31, 2021, Airtel Nigeria had an active customer base of 42.4 million and posted revenues of $1.370 million.

“As of today, we have collated NIN information for 73 per cent of our active customer base which accounts for around 79 per cent of our revenues from Nigeria,” a part of the statement issued on Tuesday said.

“We have made significant progress on capturing the NINs of our customers and building the database in collaboration with the NIMC,” the company added.

Airtel Africa further said, “The impact on the business in terms of customer numbers and revenues is uncertain. However, our experience of adopting similar procedures in other countries suggests that SIM consolidation is likely to occur in response to implementation, potentially reducing any financial impact.”

Though the telco said it has already adhered to the April 4, 2022, directive to place receive only status on all SIMs that have not been linked to a NIN, it noted that subscribers of such lines can still link their SIMs to their NINs in order that these restrictions can be lifted.

It promised to “continue to work with impacted customers to help them to comply with the registration requirements and continue to benefit from full-service connectivity.”

Recall that on December 7, 2020, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) informed all telecom operators to ensure that all their subscribers provide their valid NINs to update SIM registration records.

To complete the registration process, the NIN information received must be with the SIM of the respective subscribers and share the same with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC).

The initial deadline for this exercise was December 30, 2020, but was subsequently shifted forward several times, with the latest deadline set for March 31, 2022.