NCC Approves National Roaming Experiment: MTN, 9Mobile to Test Network Sharing

• NCC announced a three-month National Roaming Service experiment starting on August 1, 2020, involving MTN Nigeria and 9Mobile (EMTS)
• The goal of the experiment is to promote network resource sharing between operators and improving capital and operational efficiency
• Successful implementation will allow EMTS subscribers to access MTN services within the trial area without needing an MTN SIM card

Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has 5-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.

Due to the ongoing transition to a new identity verification platform required by the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) has announced a temporary suspension of SIM-related services across all mobile networks in the nation.

According to a statement by the NCC, Mobile Telecommunication Network (MTN) Nigeria and Emerging Markets Telecommunication Service Limited (EMTS), which operates under the 9Mobile brand in Nigeria, are the two telecom providers selected for this experiment.

Following this permission, EMTS and MTN are expected to set up their networks to begin customer experience testing and simulation.

A few local governments in Ondo State, classified as part of the National Roaming geographic area, are covered by the trial approval.

Roaming services allow a mobile subscriber to automatically make and receive voice calls, send and receive data, or access other services when travelling outside a specific network’s geographic area, by utilising the network coverage of other networks that have roaming arrangements.

The main goal of the National Roaming Service experiment, according to Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the NCC, is to promote network resource sharing among operators.

This will result in efficiencies in capital expenditure (CAPEX) and operational expenditure (OPEX), freeing up funds to extend mobile network coverage to underserved and unserved communities nationwide, thus enhancing subscribers' Quality of Service (QoS).

“The successful implementation of the trial will enable EMTS subscribers to access MTN network services within the National Roaming trial geographical area without the need for an MTN Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) card,” Danbatta said.

A subsidiary of the London-based Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) Lebara, has officially secured the 0724 phone number series as it prepares to fully launch in Q3 2025.

The new development marks a major step in its strategic entry into the Nigerian telecom market.

9mobile suffers as Nigerians switch to MTN

Legit.ng reported that according to the Nigerian Communications Commission's (NCC) most recent Mobile Number Portability (MNP) statistics, MTN Nigeria leads the industry in inward porting (incoming telecom subscribers), with 3,960 subscribers as of April 2025.

ThisDay analysed that MTN is followed by Airtel, which, as of April 2025, reported 1,860 inward portings, and Globacom, which reported 966 inward portings. Only three inward portings were reported by 9mobile, the last company to enter the GSM market. This means that 6,789 telecom users participated in inward porting overall.

However, when it comes to outward porting, 9mobile had the most telecom users leave its network, with 5,042 in total. Globacom came in second with 1,233 outward portings, and Airtel had 295 outward portings. As of April 2025, MTN reported that 219 subscribers had been outported.

Source: Legit.ng