Telecom operators endorse NCC framework

Stakeholders in Nigeria’s telecommunications sector on Thursday backed the Nigerian Communications Commission’s draft business rules for Mobile Virtual Network Operators, while urging the regulator to strengthen enforcement to resolve persistent operational and commercial disputes between MVNOs and Mobile Network Operators.

The stakeholders made the call during the Mobile Virtual Network Operator Business Rules Stakeholders’ Consultative Forum held in Abuja, where the NCC unveiled the draft framework designed to govern the operations of licensed MVNOs and their relationships with host network operators.

Speaking on behalf of the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NCC, Dr Aminu Maida, the commission’s Director of Licensing and Authorisation, Usman Mamman, said the proposed business rules reflected the regulator’s commitment to deepening competition, expanding access and promoting innovation in line with Nigeria’s digital inclusion agenda.

He said the rules would provide greater clarity on licensing, operational responsibilities, and commercial relationships between MVNOs and host Mobile Network Operators while protecting consumers and preserving market integrity.

“The MVNO business rules are designed to provide clarity on licensing, operational responsibilities, and relationships with host network operators while safeguarding consumer interest and market integrity,” he said.

Mamman added that the commission expected strict compliance from all operators. “We expect full compliance. The commission will continue to exercise its mandate to ensure that all operators adhere strictly to established guidelines,” he stated.

According to him, the draft framework was developed after continued engagements with operators to address implementation challenges encountered since the licensing regime commenced.

He said the rules covered onboarding and integration processes, hosting arrangements, interconnection, numbering resources, SIM and eSIM management, quality-of-service obligations, revenue-sharing principles, infrastructure access, consumer protection, and dispute resolution mechanisms.

“The commission is particularly mindful of concerns raised by stakeholders regarding onboarding delays, technical integration challenges, commercial negotiations, and access to network resources,” he said.

Mamman added that the proposals were intended to promote transparency, predictability, fairness and non-discriminatory treatment across the MVNO ecosystem while fostering investment, innovation and digital inclusion.

Earlier, speaking in his capacity as Director of Licensing and Authorisation, Mamman said the introduction of MVNOs followed years of regulatory planning that began in 2017 with a market readiness assessment.

He explained that the study confirmed Nigeria’s telecommunications market had matured sufficiently to support MVNO services, leading to the development of a structured five-tier licensing framework.

According to him, the framework allows qualified operators to provide mobile communication services by leveraging the infrastructure of existing Mobile Network Operators without deploying their own nationwide radio access networks, thereby lowering barriers to entry, encouraging infrastructure sharing and stimulating innovation.

He disclosed that the NCC had so far issued 46 MVNO licences across the five licence categories, comprising one Tier 1 operator, 11 Tier 2 operators, 16 Tier 3 operators, seven Tier 4 operators and 11 Tier 5 operators.

He added that while licensing provided a foundation for market entry, the commission had identified the need for clearer rules governing commercial and technical relationships between MVNOs and MNOs.Representing MVNO operators, the President of the Association of Mobile Virtual Network Operators, Ken Nwabueze, welcomed the proposed framework but urged the commission to prioritise enforcement.

“As we define these roles, the Association of Mobile Virtual Network Operators pleads with you to make enforcement a key part of it,” he said.

Nwabueze stressed that effective implementation would depend on consistent enforcement of the rules. “When there’s enforcement, people will obey the rules. When there’s no enforcement, people will not obey the rules,” he said.

He also urged the NCC to address unresolved concerns around revenue-sharing arrangements between MVNOs and MNOs. “There are two big elephants in the room I hope the commission will address. One is the revenue sharing: whether it’s necessary, or whether it’s the right way to go, or a hybrid of it,” he said.

Drawing from the experience of Vitel Wireless, which he described as Nigeria’s first MVNO to launch commercial operations in October 2025, Nwabueze said operators had gathered practical experience that could help improve the final framework. “We have real data to share with the commission,” he added.